Community Brag Posts

This is the Rustic X Coffee Table without the rustic finish. I used cedar wood with Early American stain. This was my first furniture project and I am so happy I did it. We needed a coffee table badly and I couldn't fathom spending several hundred on a good one. This one saved money and I appreciate it so much more. Because I used cedar the cost of the project was about $100. I used pine on the 1X12s on the bottom shelf and once stained it looks just fine. I did not stain the under side of the table top so as to maintain the smell of cedar.

This was the first building project I have ever done. it was easy and fun. The end product is sturdy and looks stylish. I'm very happy with it. 

Just finished this farmhouse coffee table for my in-laws who live in Nova Scotia, Canada! This was my first try with the coffee table, but I have used plans from Ana for other projects and genuinely appreciate the simplicity as I am far from a master carpenter. As I started this project, I was determined to use pocket hole joinery (and glue) wherever I could. It took a little more thought, but the goal was accomplished! I finished the wood with BEHR water-based stain & poly, golden oak, and high gloss. I added crates, finished with a natural stain, for storage of small blankets; I also added the felt pads to protect their laminate floors. Thanks again for the plans, Ana!

A 1m version of the farmhouse bench. We needed a shorter one for the hallway and realized that the only way would be if we built it ourselves. My bf and I built this together and it's really sturdy. Some adaption to the plan was made since it's shorter. It's very useful and we all love it. It's used each and every day.

I made this hallway table for my gf's bday. It is really simply apart from taking apart pallets and squaring them off. The project only costs about $40-50, which most of the cost came from the purchasing of the table legs. I angled the pallet boards to be approximately 45 degrees. For this project, I used a table saw to cut, pneumatic brad nailer, tite bond wood glue, kreg jig pocket hole and paint/stain.

I built your 2x4 shelving to fit a small space in my garage. The unit is really easy to customize and ended up being a perfect fit for my saws. Thanks Ana!

First time building set of planters from cedar lumber (not fence planks) and fairly pleased with outcome… Lumber was a bit mismatched for thickness and it wasn’t S4S … Sanded and cut pieces then double coat stained all sides before assembly… All joints were glued and exterior screwed … Floor is free floating (we’re using potted plants) and has 2 hanger boards to accommodate different sizes of pots…

This project is the mirror from page 37 of The Handbuilt Home. I received my copy on Thursday night, built this and painted on Friday, then (impatiently) waited 24 hours for the paint to dry before distressing and hanging it up yesterday afternoon. The mirror was a plain one I found at Lowes for about $20 and attached with mirror clips. I attached to the wall with 2 1/2" screws through the frame into the wall studs. I was going to leave the screw heads exposed for decoration, but now I think I'll add a dab of gray on them to blend them in. This was a super fun project, easy to do. Love the book, and can't wait to build more projects from it! Ana, fab job on the book!!

I saw a post some time ago from brookifer86 for a wedding guest bench...I knew I would build one someday. First I'd like to thank Ana for her plans Fancy X Farmhouse Bench, and Whitney at Shanty 2 Chic for the wonderful instructions/pictures for this build. I would also like to thank Brooke at Killer B Design (brookifer86) for the mods to this plan.

This bench had to be able to break into the top and legs as it had to go from Texas to California. That is why I used Whitney's idea for pocket holes to attach the top to the legs. I used 2" screws. Brooke shortened the table with just two legs, and used a project panel for a smoother top for writing. I did, too. She also added a 1" x 2 " board around the edge of the 3/4" panel to beef it up. I used this idea and mitered the corners of the board and filled in the space between the board and the panel to make it very smooth. I sand a lot, and I painted three coats, so this took several days for me to complete.

For signing the top, I purchased fine-tipped oil paint pens. I learned from other brag posts that permanent-type "Sharpie" pens would smear when a finish was applied later. Also, you should use spray poly-acrylic finish to avoid yellowing the white paint.

My dear friend's daughter was thrilled with her surprise, and the guest bench was a hit at the reception. Thanks to all the brag posters - I studied every single one.

My inspiration for this piece was the Grandy Sliding Door Console - I made this piece to fit behind a sofa so adjusted the plans to customize my piece. 

I used plumbers pipe instead of barn door hardware - much more cost effective and still gave me the vintage look I was after.  I stained and distressed the wood and added some hardware! Voila!

I am hooked to your site, stay tuned for more projects! 

Modern cedar rocker.

I had to come on here to thank you all for inspiring me to build this bed! The thought of building such a big piece of furniture never really occurred to me until I saw the Farmhouse queen plans, which really got the gears turning.

I wanted to add some storage to the bed, though, and so I kept looking at other projects on this site. I don't know which plans are all combined into this one, but you can see the one side table in some of the pictures which is based on a hutch plan here, and the concepts there are used in the drawer fronts on the bed. I still plan to build a matching side table for this side of the bed and also a dresser unit to complete the bedroom set.

This entire project was built on my deck as I don't have a garage. Started at the end of September and working by flood light on nights where I could find the time. It was finally moved inside to paint. The bed is built into four sections for disassembly - headboard, footboard, and a base section that is split in half with knockdown fasteners. The headboard and footboard are also attached with knockdowns, so the entire bed comes apart with an allen key.

The cost was incredibly low. My biggest cringe costs were for the 4x4 posts, which I had to buy in cedar, and the birch 3/4" plywood for the drawers. All in costs are still under $200, though I did own a Kreg system which got used a fair amount.

I did modify the footboard / headboard construction since I had the Kreg system. Rather than using a 1x4 backing board with 1x verticals and a 1x4 front board, I used a Kreg'ed 2x4 as the backing board, flush to the 4x4 post... no 4 1/2" screws required! The 1x verticals were then glued and nailed onto the 2x4s, and the 1x4 front board was glued and nailed to it.

The drawers are huge! 29" wide x 26" deep x 14" tall (more or less). Also, they are positioned so that when a side table is placed beside the bed the drawers can still open. The panel at the head of the bed is a door with a magnetic catch. I think of that area as 'deep storage' as you would have to move a side table to get in there. The door is there to get there if you want to though.

One cost not accounted for... my 'work bench' patio table sustained an injury. I still maintain I did not drop anything onto it. In fact, I was using a tape measure to measure a drawer length when the glass shattered out from under the piece I was measuring. It was cold in the morning, so maybe that had something to do with it. But now I just have to add 'fix patio table' to the project list.

Thanks again!
Mark

I needed a way to store and organize my make-up without taking up drawer space. It is built very similar to a small dresser, but with no drawer slides.

I found that if you use (16) 1x4's in lieu of the (8) 1x8's as for the panels no cutting is necessary for a standard full size bed.  Worked out wonderfully!

This project was easy to follow! Always love Ana's plans. I did add feet because the 23" legs made the table too short for my couch, which was my fault for not paying attention to that. Other than that, fantastic project!

Our first DIY furniture project. We told friends it was an assignment from couples therapy. lol Don't look too close or you will see the many flaws, but I can say it has character and will serve its purpose.

We had problems with the doors. I think they are true and plum, but the cabinet, not so much. They hang a little cockeyed, but they do swing. The plans for the doors didn't quite match the cabinet, but we are newbies so we could have misread the plans.

The hinges and latch are from the blue store - painted matte black from a can from the original nasty brass. The red is Balero and the shelves are a coordinating tan from Sherwin Williams. A coat of Minwax Polycrylic for protection. We used square wire from the blue store for the doors. We didn't router the doors to inset the wire, a stapler worked fine.

It was an absolute great first project that Husband & I enjoyed tremendously. Mom has been looking for a jelly cabinet for 6 months without success. Old functional furniture pieces just aren't manufactured anymore. This cupboard fit the bill perfectly.

My very first project, made it for my girlfriends birthday. Did not have time to stain and paint them yet, will add finished pictures.