Community Brag Posts

Beadboard Cabinet

Submitted by jamie_C on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 20:26

Since we don't have a garage or any really good place to keep our tools, they end up all over the house while we're working on a project. So, we decided to build a cabinet that would look nice in our house, and also house our tools. We chose the armoire plan because it has plenty of space.

This project took us forever, so it's hard to really estimate the actual working time. We began working on it back in June, then we were evacuated because of a forest fire.... By the time we got back into our house and we were organized again it was the end of July.... and now finally the end of August it's finished. It took us a while, but it's a great addition to our house!

We modified this cabinet by using 1/4 inch beadboard backed with 1/4 plywood for the doors. We also modified the size of the armoire to make it deeper.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$125 approximately?
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
Sanded, then painted the outside with a quart of "creamed coffee" oops paint, and painted the inside with a sage green paint from Habitat for Humanity Restore.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Pirate Treasure Trunk

Happy International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Thank you, Joanne, for designing this fun to build trunk. It enabled me to use pieces of odd scrap wood and a weathered old belt and make something fun and functional of them!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
Gray paint wash (5 parts water : 1 part gray paint) + Golden Oak mixed with Red Oak stain layered on.
Recommended Skill Level
Starter Project

Comments

JoanneS

Thu, 09/19/2013 - 18:11

As the pirates would say: Ye did a fabulous ship on 'tis trunk, it looks full 'o awe!

You did a great job on this, looks awesome! Love the details and finishes you used! :)

Classic Bunk Beds for our boys!

Submitted by TheLufkins on Wed, 11/25/2015 - 13:13

We found the plans for the Classic Bunk Bed look and we loved it.  Since our boys share a room this bunk bed design was the perfect match for us.  We used Red Mahogany stain with a polyurethane clear coat to give it a good shine.  I made a little revision to the slats but adding a 1X6 crossbea, across the bottom and top bunk to give added support for the boys as they get older but other than that the beds are directly from the plans.  Now onto the same design for our girls!

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Red Mahogany and Polyurethane Clear Coat
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Black and White Beam Table

Submitted by Landers15 on Tue, 01/15/2019 - 12:38

I have to shorten the design up a bit to fit my dinning room. I also did Epoxy Resin on top to give it the glass like appearance.

 

So ebony stain on white pedistole with an Epoxy Resin finish.

 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
Lumber $80
Stain/paint/aprasives $30
1 gal Epoxy Resin $80
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
White paint, ebony stain,and an Epoxy Resin Finish, which took 5 days alone.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

entry locker

Entryway locker cubbies, top portion constructed in custom width and shelf height. Two sets.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$75
Estimated Time Investment
Day Project (6-9 Hours)
Finish Used
1. Primed
2. Two coats semi gloss white
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Chevron kids table

Chevron kids table

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Cabot red oak and golden
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

spiceylg

Mon, 09/23/2013 - 08:25

This came out really nice: it's unique! However, you should put the picture in the beginning of the post instead of under additional pictures so it's nice and big.

Hall tree

We had a great time building this
We did the bottom half one weekday, and the top piece another day. Primer, painting, and sanding in all took us 6 days.
It look fantastic

Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

Farm House Bed w/Drawers

Used the farm house bed plans from here with a few modifications.  Instead of plywood for the headboard and footboard, I used tongue and grove 1x6 planks.  I used edge glued spruce planks from Lowes for the drawer fronts and I invested a bit more on the drawer slides and opted for the full opening type.  Also, rather than 3 large drawers on either side, I opted to put 2 smaller drawers in the center.  I felt the shallower drawers would be more useful for smaller items (socks and underwear).  I also used a 3/4" molding to hid the ends of the plywood drawer boxes.  The weathered finish was created using a video I found on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7Via9Lz4Pw).  My upgrades increased the overall price, but it was still under $600 and should last a lifetime.

Estimated Cost
$600
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
Multiple products - follow YouTube tutorial. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7Via9Lz4Pw
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Christmas tree box

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 11/26/2022 - 15:29

I made this plan at my wifes’s request. I added a platform on the inside for our artificial tree and stencils on the outside of each side. Plan was relatively easy. We love the look. Bonus, made the tree taller. George from Arizona.

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Outdoor Sectional- The Great Outdoors

I can't thank Ana enough for her plans on this project. We recently purchased a big project house that was going to need a lot of work (and a lot of money.) That's why I was thrilled to find Ana's plans for the exact West Elm Wood Slat Sectional I was eying for my screened in porch. The exact configuration at West Elm would have cost $2130, but I built it and sewed all the cushions for just $288! Ana's sewing plan was really helpful too, but I altered mine to include zippers in the back to remove the fabric for washing, and ties to hold the cushions securely to the sectional. We finished the sectional with super easy india ink and poly for a deep black finish that still shows the wood grain. The screened in porch is now our favorite room in the house! Thanks Ana!

Estimated Cost
$288 with all cushions and pillows
Estimated Time Investment
Week Long Project (20 Hours or More)
Finish Used
India Ink- Found in art supplies stores this thin, watery ink goes on with a sponge brush and soaks completely into the wood leaving a deep, dark wood finish that still shows the wood grain. No need to worry about drips or evenness, this finish goes on in one coat and is super easy, especially on a tricky, large piece like this. Topped with 3 coats of water based poly.
Recommended Skill Level
Intermediate

Comments

JES

Mon, 09/05/2011 - 11:05

This looks really super! I clicked on your blog link and read a few entries (funny!) You did a great job! Love the fabric for the cushions too. How much India ink did it take to stain a piece this big? Did it take a long time to dry? cheers!
J

Chair

I built this chair for about $12. I used 6 four foot landscaping timbers. The legs are 12''
and i used 1/4'' cedar or you could use pallets. The ends are Dog Cut . The chair is sealed and finished with Helsmans Clear. E mail me if you have any questions

Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
Semi clear Spar.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Craft Table

Submitted by Jenga on Sun, 12/06/2015 - 13:08

Project was rather simple. Just wanted to create a space that my wife could work her projects rather than always working on our dinning room table. Took the concept of the plans and made the table work for the space we had available.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$150
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
White Paint and Dark Maple Finish
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Coffee table

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 01/26/2019 - 15:39

Sister asked me to make her a table. Since I am out or work right now I said yes and got this thing done in about 3 days! 

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
130.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
White chalk paint for the bottom and a combo high gloss poly/stain for the top
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Christmas Stocking stand

Submitted by Egle01 on Fri, 12/09/2022 - 15:30

I enjoyed making this. The kids love it and it goes great in front of the fireplace.
#Todays_Spare_Time

Built from Plan(s)

Comments

Time Out Bench

Submitted by VelvetSky on Fri, 09/09/2011 - 07:19

I built this from wood scraps. I saw one at Walmart online but thought it was too small. I built this to suit my tall toddler.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Cost
$20.00
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
General Finish Gel Stain Java

Decopauged 'Time Out'
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Tree Shelf

Submitted by Stasia on Fri, 12/11/2015 - 17:56

We loved making this project, I even learned how to work with angles.

Built from Plan(s)
Estimated Time Investment
An Hour or Two (0-2 Hours)
Finish Used
Minwax Dark Walnut
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Modern Outdoor 2x Chairs

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 02/01/2019 - 20:48

What a fast, fun, and FUNCTIONAL project!  I did lower the seat height, as I think it allows you to sink into them a bit more -- especially with the cushions I had for them (which BTW, were on sale at Lowe's for $14.99/each.. normally like $60, I think).  Thanks ANA, for making yet another project such a breeze!

Estimated Cost
IDK.. I had all the wood laying around already.
Estimated Time Investment
Afternoon Project (3-6 Hours)
Finish Used
semi transparent deck stain in chocolate
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Benchwright Dining Table

I built this table using a hybrid approach; I used Ana's plans as a loose guideline (leg angles) and drafted the rest using the dimensions supplied at Pottery Barn's website (for the fixed table, not the extendable version).

Estimated Cost
150.00
Estimated Time Investment
Weekend Project (10-20 Hours)
Finish Used
The table is finished in an Espresso stain with a clearcoat of Minwax oil-modified water-based clear satin polyeurethane. I beefed up the table legs by using "4x"6 lumber and also included a wood stretcher instead of a metal one. I originally installed a "3/4 metal stretcher made of spray-painted conduit, but it looked too flimsy and dinky when juxtaposed with the thick legs of the table. I added two countersunk lag screws to each endcap and also attached the stretcher with two lag screws and joist supports (all spray painted with Rustoleum textured black enamel). My favorite part of the table is the faux slotted cross-brace ends that protrude from each leg. I simply cut four "1 pieces of "1x"4 scrap and attached one to each leg using glue, two nails, and a nail set. Pottery Barn charges $999.00 for this table; I built it for $150.00.
Recommended Skill Level
Beginner

Comments

Keri Beth (not verified)

Wed, 09/14/2011 - 23:04

This is awesome. I'm finishing up my first project (floor to ceiling bookcases) and looking for a dining room table to make next. This just might be the one. Thanks for sharing!