Make-Your-Own-Furniture
Make-Your-Own-Furniture
Make-Your-Own-Furniture
What to make with old wood lying around. I
You've for lots hardwood or old furniture lying around not being use? You're sitting on a little jackpot of hardwood there! Cheers to you for saving it and being game to use power tools to transform it into something else. There are about a million things you could do with it. There is a reason that the furniture frame was made out of solid hardwood to begin with: Structurally, it's great for furniture. So while you could use the wood for picture frames, doorstops, trivets, or kindling, I'm going to suggest that you stick (ha, ha, woodshop humor) with furniture. I'm assuming, like most futon frames, it's made of slats, yes?
Those slats are already milled to the appropriate thickness and scale for furniture, so why not take advantage? With some super simple crate-building techniques and a few hours, you can make seating or storage that's both sturdy and handsome (just like the dude on paper towel packaging). Look around your house. What do you need?
A bench or pair of benches. I really love the idea of bench seating at the dining table-it's so approachable, communal, and visually minimal. Plus, a li_ le bench tucked in just the right spot is the perfect place to prop yourself during shoes on/off procedures. Or you can make one to fi t perfectly under your favorite window, and you've got the ideal spot for
daydreaming, neighbor-gazing, brainstorming, pantomiming...whatever's your thing. Add a cushion and it gets that much closer
to being a couch. You could even change the proportions a bit and make a table instead.
Materials
Wood (if you don't have an old furniture frames to cannibalize, you can buy some from your local home warehouse or lumberyard)
Measuring tape
Random orbital sander or palm sander (you can also sand by hand, but you might hate me after an hour or two and learn martial arts at the same time! - wax on wax off anyone?)
120 and 220 grit sandpaper
Chop saw - Check with your local home improvement center or tool lending library for rental options.
Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Glue
Wet rag
16-gauge finish nailer and safety glasses (you can tap in brad nails by hand with a hammer but, trust me, nail guns have so much more going for them in the immediate gratification department) Check with your local home improvement center or tool lending library for rental options.
16-gauge finish nails slightly shorter than twice the thickness of your slats (so nails don't poke through the other side)
Furniture feet or legs and mounting hardware
Drill
Paint or stain (like Bartley Gel Stains)
Wood filler or putty
Preparation - General overview
1. Determine the end use and location for the piece, then decide on the dimensions. (The easiest route is to plan on using full widths of your maple slats.)
Generate your cut list (a cut list is a list of all the parts you'll need and at what sizes) and verify that you have enough material. You'll need to plug in your own numbers based on the size of your materials and the dimensions of your piece, but you can use the cut lists at right as your guide.
3. Buy furniture feet or legs if you plan to use them. (HFELE, hafele .com/us, is a great source for furniture feet and table legs.)
4. Sand off the existing finish from your maple slats. (Leftover finish will prevent the glue from
bonding, plus this gives you the opportunity to clean up any dings or scratches. It'll be easier
to do this before you cut the wood up into pieces.)
Start with 120 grit sandpaper, then finish with 220 grit to get the wood nice and smooth.
5. Cut.
6. Assemble.
7. Finish. If painting, fill and sand holes first, then paint. If staining, stain and seal first then fill
holes with tinted putty.
8. Toast yourself with a Manhattan (or a martini if you're the gin type).
MAKE IT!
HARDWOOD BENCH
This will make a 16x46xx15 inch bench (using a -inch-thick 3 inchwide slat).
CUT LIST
8 pieces at 15 inches (4 legs)
2 pieces at 40 inches (apron)
2 pieces at 11 inches (apron)
4 pieces at 46 inches (bench top)
1. Bring your list to the hardware store and have pieces cut on site if you don't have a chop saw
at home.
2. Assemble the 4 legs by butting 2 leg slats lengthwise at a right angle. Glue (cleaning up
any squeeze-out ASAP with a wet rag) and nail along the joint.
3. Build the apron by gluing and nailing a box frame together. Let the long pieces cap off the
short side pieces.
4. Glue and nail one leg into each of the four corners of the box frame. Make sure the top
of each leg is flush with the top of the box frame.
5. Glue and nail your bench top slats into place, making sure they have even -inch spaces
between them. Slats should overhang by 3 inches on each side and by 1 inches on both
the front and back.
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