Community Brag Posts

Built from DIY Pete's plans. I'm in Hawaii so lumber here is a lot, and I do mean A LOT more expensive here. I wanted to use cedar but that would have cost me close to $450 just for the lumber here in Hawaii. Spent an entire day running around between local lumber yard, Home Depot, Lowe's, and a recylce lumber yard called Re-Use Hawaii trying to figure out how to cut costs down. Ended up going with redwood as it was a nice wood that was more affordable. I ended up putting 5 coats of Minwax Helmsman spar urethane clear gloss, sanding with 150 then 220 grit sandpaper to get a nice thick and smooth finish. This is my very first build ever and it took me the weekend (about 20 hours) to build. DIY Pete's instructions are pretty good but I have to watch his video a few times which was extremely helpful. The video made this an easy project as it was like having a pro right there with you. Love your website. Can't wait to start on the next project. David M. 

My husband and I built this modern upholstered outdoor sofa for our back porch. As it was going outdoors we used treated lumber, a painters drop cloth (dyed with Rit dye), and coated deck screws. We are so proud of the way it came out! Please see my blog for more details on the build.

Used a 2x2 cut at 45 degrees on both ends to hold up the flaps.

I really enjoyed this project. Really happy with how it turned out! I ended up using a thin flexible panel board in a nickelboard pattern for the back to help make it lighter. Easier to transport. 

1/2 ' x 18" black pipe was used along with 1/2 ' flanges. The wood was re-purposed 2x6' pine lumber that had been used for pallets, that would have been thrown away. The boards were joined with a Kreg Jig, It will house my stereo components.

Went a slightly different route, since I'm not a fan of furniture built using 2x4's. I opted to use 1x3"s for the supports. Still more than sturdy, and I think it adds a little to the look.

This project wasn't really a 'planned one', but just turned into something I could do fairly easily with the stuff I had on hand and some of the leg work I had already done. I did the original green bed in the Fillman Storage Bed with Drawers post. I had originally planned to do one of those beds for each of my boys in the room they share so we would have plenty of storage. We also homeschool and were in need of more room space, so we went a different route (you can see the messy picture that shows our new bed (double loft bed). WE LOVE the loft bed, but we also really love this dresser. The size is perfect and fits our needs. Thanks for checking it out. I have more specific photos showing what I did on the blog link I have on here.

Happy Building!!

This was my first wood working project from Ana White. I am in love with how it turned out.

I ended up making the console narrow and long to fit in the living room area. 

Recycled 6 panel window frame

This project was super easy, my husband and I did this together while I was 9 months pregnant with our other 2 kids and dog running around the whole time! We made the table and 2 benches for $250 including lumber and finishing supplies. Check out my blog for details.

I built this using the Farmhouse Table plans, and we're thrilled with the results. My modifications included making the table longer and narrower to fit our dining room, and building it from some fantastic white oak from a local lumberyard called Boards & Beams in Fairfield, NJ. I used 5/4" thick boards of varying widths for the top, and created deeper overhangs at the ends by making the breadboard ends 10" deep. Unlike a more rustic version using pine, the lumber was extremely expensive, and the oak makes an already heavy table even heavier. Still, it is orders of magnitude less expensive than purchasing a custom table like this, and I only needed to "ship it" from my garage. 

My idea was to match, as closely as my skills would allow, the antique buffet in the photo next to the table. Or at least to build something that would look good next to the buffet. My prior woodworking experience is limited to DIY carpentry and building plywood shelves and radiator covers. I am not a "mortise and tenon" woodworker (although I'd like to learn). The plans are excellent because this was the first "real" furniture I've ever attempted, and it is literally as solid as if it were carved from a single piece of wood. I rented a 12" compound miter saw from Home Depot to make most of the cuts in one day, which worked out extremely well. The visible screw holes I plugged with oak dowls. 

If you decide to build this (or anything) from a hardwood, here are a couple mistakes I made early on that you don't want to repeat. First, EVERY screw into every piece needs a pilot hole. If you have even the slightest thought that your screw is about to strip or break, it is. Second, higher-quality wood is often cut larger than what you find in a big box store. A 2 x 4, which might be 1.5 x 3.5 from Home Depot, can be 1.75 x 3.75. This really matters a lot, and so you have to measure your actual wood and re-calculate every measurement accordingly. The upsides, for me, included fewer warped pieces, less splintering, and greater ease of sanding and finishing.

Thank you very much for posting these plans and for your excellent "how-to" on cutting out the notches. 

My girlfriend and I just moved into our new apartment. It has hardly any storage space at all and very little closet space. So we built our own! It was a long day's work, but the reward of a beautiful Chifforobe is well worth it.

This was my first carpentry project, and I couldn't be happier with the way it turned out.

This was my first project I ever assembled. It just took a while to get them on the wall. Was free since it was leftover from cutting wood for another project.

Quick and easy to follow plans.  Only issue I ran into was that my miter saw only cuts up to a 50° angle.  I set up a jig to hold the 2x2 perpendicular to the saw and set the miter to 30°.  Viola, easy 60° angles!  Pic attached for reference.

Thank you Ana White!!! This website is Awesome!!! I started my outdoor sectional project last summer and used the "Modern Outdoor Sectional" plans for my project....it really was easy....In fact, I went to Lowes and had all my sizes cut for me and all I had to do was use the kreg jig as recommended and a drill and "Wa La!"....my sectional didn't cost me more than $350! This year I am going to paint it since it is pre-treated wood, I needed to wait the season!!! So, I will upload another picture soon to show you what it looks like painted......