Community Brag Posts

Pottery Barn knock off

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 12/23/2015 - 12:13

I painted mine black and distressed it. Stained the top and distressed parts with MinWax American Walnut poly stain. Hardware from Van Dykes Restores. Used piano spring loaded lid supports for lid.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$110
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax poly
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Caged Golf Ball Puzzle

Submitted by mtairymd on Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:17

This was a fun little project to make. The golf ball is trapped inside the 12 piece burr puzzle. As with all burr puzzles, there is a trick to solving it.

Build Instructions/Dimensions: https://www.instructables.com/id/Caged-Golf-Ball-Puzzle/

Video of Build: https://youtu.be/gcdd7ZAYNTo

Solution: https://youtu.be/IjHByz2_xMk

Estimated Cost
$5
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Danish Oil
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Floating Shelves

Submitted by amym on Sun, 10/02/2011 - 11:50

When I saw Ana's post within Young House Love's blog, I thought this would be great for pictures. We have a large wall that spans two stories in our entry way. This shelf helped make a dramatic impact when we have visitors over.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
I used a high gloss finish of Espresso Beans by Behr from Home Depot. After sanding and sanding, I primed the entire shelf and then used 4 coats to give it a really smooth finish.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

West Elm Knockof Chevron Queen Bed

Submitted by jpurp on Sat, 12/26/2015 - 21:33

I pretty much just followed the plans.  It turned out a bit more colourful that I expected but I've already sold it so I guess its okay.  I'm going to make another one with a bit more toned down colours.  I also created a matching night stand.  I didn't follow any plan.  Just used the ideas from the bed build.

Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Old Masters Wiping stain in Provincial, Cherry, Cedar, Weathered gray, Ebony
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Simple Farm Table

My mom and o completed this weekend project together! It was so fun to complete! The table is customized to 7ft and the benches made smaller than the original plans so they slide under the table when we’re not using it. We made it for our homeschool room. The kids are excited for this space already and we all have the room we need to get our work done! Under $200 start to finish! I used a prestain to prep the wood and then stained with watco danish oil in a natural finish.

Comments

Tower

Submitted by bmarielee on Thu, 10/06/2011 - 13:21

My son loves his tower! We didn't attempt the curved sides, but made it work by adding a door with a toy steering wheel instead :)

Built from Plan(s)
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Amanda Rhoads (not verified)

Wed, 12/05/2012 - 18:58

I love the paint and steering wheel! I'm making this now and, first time using a jigsaw, my arches look awful! I think I'll just go with them but this was a good innovation.

Buildingmom2

Fri, 07/05/2013 - 16:09

Love the wheel (and the paint job is fantastic). I am just wondering where you bought the wheel mount. Is it 12"? We'd like to do a similar one.

We put a chalk board and a dry erase board on our outside panels. :)

Toddler Closet Cubby

Solid wood is an amazing material because it can be cut, re-shaped, extended, filled, sanded, stained, painted, and essentially re-used almost endlessly.

Last week, I took old cabinet doors (from when we gutted the mouse-hole kitchen cabinets that used to be in our apartment before we moved in) and turn them into a free cubby for my daughter's closet. :)

Estimated Cost
$0, with new purchases, $20 estimate
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
3 coats Olympic No-VOC semi-glass straight from the paint can.
Small paint brush for cut-ins, foam roller for surface coverage. Allow recommended dry time between re-coats.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

JoanneS

Mon, 10/07/2013 - 19:43

Beautiful Cubby from old doors! The trim adds elegance with the white color and it fits perfectly. Looks adorable! :)

Connor's Table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 12/28/2015 - 17:03

Clara table with chalkboard top.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$100
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Paint
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

So easy, so quick, so awesome drawer organizers

Had some scraps hanging around and thought I would try using Ana's plan to organize the mess. Wow. What a difference. So nice to build something to fit your space rather than working around a preformed, plastic or metal utensil holder. Thank you Ana!

Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
just sanded to get rid of rough edges and added a coat of poly. done.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

Hannah Canopy Bed

Submitted by FSTASFCK on Wed, 10/09/2013 - 18:48

Utilizing the Hannah Canopy Bed plans, I made 2 changes that I am really glad I made. First, I added bead board to the headboard to give it a little style instead of the flat plywood. Second, I used 2x4's on all 4 corners because I could not find any 2x3's that were anywhere close to being straight. Overall I love the final project! It was nice, simple, and quick to get it all put together!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Painted white
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Play Kitchen

This project went pretty smooth. I built the sink box out of 1x6 and 1x8. Total cost (if I got the right stuff the first time) would have been about $120. Most of that is in the faucet (a $25 laundry faucet from Home Depot), pulls (about $4.50 each), knobs ($3 each), and hinges. I also purchased the wooden discs for the stove at Michael's for about $1 each. I used common pine and sanded it smooth before painting, which saved a lot of money over the more polished pine products. I used stainless steel spray paint for the fridge and stove door, and leftover paint for the rest of the sink and stove. I glued all joints and used my finish nailer rather than a Kreg Jig. I had a hard time finding hinges that will work, so keep that in mind. I ended up buying some of the European hinges that were surface mounted on the inside, and they work well. One suggestion - if you're planning on mounting these next to each other remember not to allow any overhang on the countertop. The plans call for a slight overhang, and I had to do some messy cuts after I had the cabinets assembled to correct that. I ended up attaching the cabinets together for added stability. Overall this was a surprisingly simple project. I'm considering building another cabinet like the sink/stove without any doors just for some countertop space and additional storage.

Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Primer and Dutch Boy paint/Rustoleum Stainless Steel
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Faux fireplace with hidden storage

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 03/10/2019 - 22:32

I slightly modified my build. I kept the same dimensions as the plans, but made the top shelf 7” from the top to allow for a bigger firebox. I added faux brick made from masking tape, joint compound and chalk paint. I changed the molding a bit and used 3” pine slats for the top. Inside I added 3 shelves, attached with pocket hole screws, to fit in as many DVD’s as possible. Overall this was an easy build. It took me almost as long to paint it, as to build it. Thank you Ana for the plans!

Estimated Cost
$200.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Painted with Sherwin Williams Alabaster. Faux brick is chalk paint from Waverly.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Kitchen Table Storage Bench

Submitted by Sailor0411 on Mon, 10/17/2011 - 06:47

I built this storage bench and my wife stained and painted it. It is for use at the kitchen table as well as have storage for baskets underneath. This is my 1st project I have used my Kreg Jig on. Absolutely love it!!!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Maple Finish with mixed paint to match our kitchen table for bottom.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

ken

Tue, 04/24/2012 - 08:54

I was thinking about building mine with the top having some over hang and like how yours turned out. Did you lay the boards on top of another piece used to make the top or where they laid on the open top and screwed to the sides?

Pretty in Pink

I made this as a gift for my niece. I fully assembled it, instead of presenting it as a kit. When I made the frame, I hadn't quite figured out how to make perfectly straight cuts with my circular saw, and I cut all the pieces before I came across Ana's tutorial on using a circular saw. So the bed is not perfectly square. Fortunately, a few pieces of thin craft foam glued to the bottom of a couple of the legs eliminated most of the wobble. That, and a generous application of pocket holes and screws. Each side rail is attached to the headboard/footboard with (6) 1 1/2" screws! I could probably jump up and down on the frame and it wouldn't budge. And I think I over-painted. Not to good with my spray painting technique yet. Plus, I forgot to sand between coats, and I didn't have time to add a clear topcoat.
When I look at this project, I see every flaw and mistake and feel dissatisfied. But, I just remind myself that I am my own worst critic. My niece, on the other hand, loved it. And no one else seemed to notice the mistakes: I received several nice complements. And the best part: it was practically free! I bought a can of pink spray paint, but everything else came out of my wood stash or my fabric stash. A present made with love, not money. And my first "real" building project.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$3
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Modern Slat Bench- red and brown

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 01/02/2016 - 09:30

I followed Ana's instructions  except for my bench was 56" in length and stained the top red bottom brown. 

Estimated Cost
50
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Express brown
Red stain
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Yay!!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 03/15/2019 - 20:01

I made a simplified version without the arches, worked out great!  Thanks for the plans!  I used oak so cost was a little higher than necessary. :)

Estimated Cost
$90
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax weathered oak
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Wine Rack with Live Edge Wood Top & Shelf

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 02/08/2023 - 10:23

Made this wine rack for our basement rec room using live edge wood, 1x2s, and 3/4in wood dowels. Full dimensions and write up at the link below!

Comments