A few (one) of my favorite things....

Hi Everyone!  Well, tomorrow is the big day I (and my parents) have been working toward for the last several months...and I can't wait for the Open House for my Studio.  But first, I thought I'd share with you my very favorite thing I've made so far.

I apologize for the pictures...I just couldn't wait to share it with you and the lighting wasn't great.  I'll take some better pictures of it at the Open House.  In case you can't tell, it's a coffee table made out of a very large drawer.

I got these drawers free at work a couple of weeks ago (you can read about it here) and knew the minute I saw them what I was going to do with at least one of them.

I started out by cleaning them up...years of use in a plumbing shop made them very dirty.  Then I reinforced the bottom of the drawer.  I attached five inch wheels to the base (the wheels are hard to see in the picture).  Then I framed out the top of the drawer to give it a nice finished look. 

Since I was making the top so it would open from both sides, I decided the inside needed a pop of color, so I spray painted it Lagoon.  I think it's a nice surprise when you open the top.

I painted the outside and top in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White.  And attached the top using piano hinges.

I then did some light distressing of the entire outside and waxed it with both clear and dark wax.

And I'm loving how it turned out.  Just like I had envisioned it when I saw the drawer.  If I still had a living room, I would so be keeping this for myself, but since I don't....it will be for sale at my open house this weekend.  In my minds eye, I can see this going to a home with a family ...and years of games being played on the top and games or blankets stored inside....can't you see it too?

Well, I'm almost ready for the open house...just a bit of cleaning and straightening left to do tonight and then tomorrow the final set-up of items.  If the weather is good, some things will be outside on the patio..the rest has already been staged inside the studio.  I have several helpers coming...and I hope the people come too.  I promise to take pictures of the studio and outside once things are set up so I can share the day with all of you.  Thanks for stopping by.

Linking to:
http://www.myrepurposedlife.com/2013/05/catch-as-catch-can-124.html 
http://www.504main.com/2013/06/tickled-pink-no-148.html 
http://www.lizmarieblog.com/2013/06/inspire-me-linky-party-14/ 

Coffee table...take two...

Hi Everyone!  I've been busy getting ready for the Open House at my studio this weekend and thought I'd take a moment to show you one of the things I was working on.  Back when I first started blogging I showed you this coffee table that I had built.

You can read about it here.  Well it never sold and has been sitting in my storage room.  I decided to pull it out for the open house and give it a little make over....

....I decided to upholster the top of it.

Thinking that maybe someone might like it this way.  I really like the fabric but I'm undecided on which way I like better.  Which do you like better?  This will be for sale at my open house this weekend.  Now I have to get back to work.  I have lots more to do and lots of things to share with you!  Thanks for stopping by.

Linking to:
http://www.myrepurposedlife.com/2013/05/catch-as-catch-can-123.html 

Smallest coffee table ever....

Hi Everyone!  I hope you are having a great Tuesday!  I will of course be working out in the shop this morning....but it's going to be warm today so I'll be moving the work inside the house this afternoon.  I wanted to show you what I did with the world's smallest coffee table ever built.  Okay, maybe not the world's smallest, but it is pretty small.

Do you remember this sneak peek that I shared with you last week?....It's made from reclaimed cedar that my grandfather had saved and stored in the barn.  Judging by the coloring, the tight grain and how dry it is....it's old.  Really old.

And this is what I ended up doing for the feet.  It's different than I had wanted to do because I gave it's new owner a choice and this is what she liked best....all straight lines instead of the curve I had wanted to put on the feet.  I'll save that look for a different table I'd like to build.

It's a very simple table that my client is going to use on her small deck as a coffee table.  But it could be used as side table or even extra seating for a taller person.

I have put a sealer on it to bring out the color and grain and then it will be going to it's new home in the next day or two.  Not what I had originally envisioned for it, but if it works for the client, then it works for me.  Now I really need to get out to the shop since it's already almost 70 degrees out.  I need to finish the bench I started last Tuesday and then I need to put together a couple more wood canvases and a couple of picture frames.  Don't forget the All Star Block Party that I will have the pleasure of co-hosting with four other great ladies.  Thanks for stopping by.

Linking to:

A bench and a table...

Hi Everyone!  Happy Tuesday!  My day started out early.  I was out in the shop working by 7:30 AM.  I put the dogs out on their tie ups and headed to the shop.  Since the land sale was happening this morning I decided I had better get started early so whenever the crowd showed up, I could take a break.  But then a surprising thing happened, they didn't set up at the driveway across the road from my home, they set up at the drive on the south side of the field so no crowd at my house.  And I got a lot done today!

I started working on a bench.

 I got this one back in March and have been waiting for the chance to use it.

 The foot board has a bad spot on one of the feet.

 I cleaned it up and used Kwik Wood to fix it.

 Here it is after it dried and I sanded it to smooth it out.

 Then I cut the foot board apart.  Here it is being dry fit together.

I haven't finished it  yet, but I think it's going to be a cute bench.

I also worked on the order for a coffee table that I got right before my craft fair at the end of April.

I took boards from this stack of really old lumber and after cutting it down and a lot of sanding, I ended up with this table top....

I was asked by a friend of my mother's to make her a small coffee table.  She didn't know how big she wanted it, she just held up her hands and said "I'd like it about this long and this wide."  As she said it she moved her hands to mimic the size.  So with those measurements, this is what I came up.  I told her I had a stack of reclaimed cedar boards that I would use to make her coffee table.  It's not a traditional style of table but I was looking through my Pottery Barn catalog the other day and saw a dining table that was made sort of in this style and decided it would be cute for this table.

Pottery Barn inspiration

I of course didn't make it to look like this, but I liked the idea of this table.  I'm not finished with it yet, but so far I like the direction this is headed.  So what do you think?  It is the smallest coffee table I've ever seen.  I just need to get the feet finished.  Thanks for stopping by.

Storage box bench or coffee table...

Hi Everyone!  Happy Friday!  I hope you have plans for a great weekend!  I will be finishing things up for the Craft Fair on Monday.  My brother and his family are coming, in fact they are on the road as I type this.  Do you remember this storage box bench that I shared with you a few weeks ago?  Well, I finally finished the first of two of them. 

I painted this one semi-gloss white and then added walnut stain to tone down the brightness of the white.

And using the same walnut stain, I stained the top.  It's a plywood top and the edges have been faced with an iron-on veneer to give it a much more finished look.

 And here's how it turned out.

 I'm really happy with how this turned out.  It's the perfect size for a coffee table or bench with built-in storage.  I think the walnut stained top looks good against the white.  Now it's on to the second one.  I think I'm going to paint the base of that one black and make it a padded top.  Have a great holiday weekend!  Thanks for stopping by.

Coffee table, storage bench...

Hi Everyone!  Happy Saturday!  I wanted to share with you one of the things I've been working on.  I made this storage bench/padded coffee table last year for the Clarinda Craft Fair in October and it sold before my benches did.  The top opens up and there's lots of storage inside.  So this year I thought I'd make a square one similar to this.

So I started working on my idea for a square, padded coffee table, made with the same look as the one from last year.  I cut the lumber and took it all inside into my living room since it was too hot to work in the shop and got all the sides made.  Each side is a panel that fit snugly together with the panel on either side and then the panels get glued and screwed together. 

So I had each panel made and I set it up in my living room and it was just too big.  Each side measures 36".  Which didn't seem too large to me when I laid out yardsticks when I was trying to determine my dimensions.  Boy was I wrong!  IT WAS HUGE!  I lived with it in my living room for two days and couldn't image anyone having room for that large of a box. 

I talked to my mom about it and she didn't think it sounded too big.  I talked with a co-worker of mine and the same thing, didn't sound too big.  I looked in Pottery Barn and their padded coffee tables were 48" square, but didn't have storage, just legs with an open area below........that's the problem!  It was the solidness of the box that made it seem so outrageous big.  I couldn't cut the panels down so instead, I'm making two rectangles instead of a square.  I'll try again on the square later.

So I made two more panels (I've only made one of the two so far) and put it together in my living room.

I haven't made the top yet.  Hopefully this weekend.

But I did move it out to the shop so I can sand it and get it ready for painting.

Since I will have two of them, I thought I'd paint one Graphite and the other Old White (using my Annie Sloan Chalk Paint) and then wax and age them.  The only thing I haven't decided on is if I'm going to upholster the top like the one I did last year, or have a wooden top.  Or maybe one of each?  What do you think?  The nice thing about these storage pieces, it can be a coffee table or storage bench in your entry way or kids room or at the end of the bed, or at your dining room table.  They are very versatile.  I'll let you know what I decide.  Thanks for stopping by.

Coffee anyone?...

Hi Everyone. I thought I'd show you the coffee table I made. I made this table entirely out of recycled materials that were given to me. So the only cost I have in it are the screws, nails, stain and paint, all of which I had on hand.
The top is maple that in it's former life was some one's kitchen table. I cut off the router edge because it was missing on two sides anyway and then added the walnut trim to give it a more "finished" edge.

I couldn't decide what kind of base I was going to use, so I took a look at the scrap wood that I had and it just sort of spoke to me as to what kind of base to make.

It's sort of on the small size, but not every space can accommodate a large table.

I'm happy with how it turned out. I think it's something unique that not everyone will have. Well, thanks for stopping by.