What Wood You Do?
To our friends on Twitter and Facebook this’ll be old news, but last week we shared an amazing site…
….full of plans to make your own knock-off furniture (like a sweet West Elm Parson’s Desk). And, well, everyone went nuts over it.
So we just had to share the link with the masses over here on YHL (but feel free to friend us on Facebook and Twitter for fun sale alerts and other great websites that we dig up). I mean, we’re not talking basic and boring furniture plans, we’re talking about clean-lined and amazing pieces your friends won’t believe you actually made. Like this…
… and this…
What do you think? Afraid it’s too DIY for ya? Many of the plans are totally doable for even the most inexperienced novices, and there are definitely some expert-level plans for the show-offs out there (send us pics!). All we know is that every time we visit we’re left inspired to try our hand at building something soon. But what to choose…
All images courtesy of Knock Off Wood.
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I’ve been drooling over her furniture plans since you tweeted about it a couple of days ago. I have zero building or carpentry experience, and it inspires me as well! Hearing that I can build a console table that I desperately need for less than $50 is music to my ears, but then I get worried about the cost of tools just to get started and I get discouraged. :(
When I saw it via facebook, I headed over to the website out of curiosity…and ended up spending the next hour drooling over the furniture! “I want that, and I can make that? get out….” Not anytime soon…but one day I want to make the dining room farmers table, a console table…and maybe even a window seat. I’m estatic about the site and have already become a regular visitor, if I can call myself that after only a few days, haha. :)
I am in love!!! I can’t wait to show this site to my husband. Thank you so much for sharing this!
I want to be a carpenter when I grow up now.
J & S, this could be a great project for something baby related!!! Babies need lots of fun wooden products….
So definitely can’t see from work, but definitely can’t wait to see from home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Get my saw ready husband….looks like a weekend of manual labor!
WAAAAAAAAA HOOOO!!!!!!!
That site is amazing! Thank you so much!!
Unbelievable! Thanks so much for sharing! I have been wanting to design and build a bench/locker type system for our mudroom project and she has the perfect plans for such a thing! I am totally geeked about this!
Wow! Pretty incredible! Off to check out the site now… thanks for sharing!
NICE! I did not see this on fb. That’s what you 2 are for (wink wink). I will be sure to show the Hubs this. Keep up the good work!
Awesome site! Thank you for sharing Ana’s talents with us!
I’m in need of a sewing table, and when I saw your tweet about that site and saw her plans for the Parsons desk knock-off, I decided that’s what I’d do. No question. I just need to modify it slightly to match the dimensions of the Parsons Mini Desk, but that should be easy.
Thanks again for sharing this find!
(klovescoffee on twitter)
omg. the daybed I’m not willing to spend $800 on, right.there.
I really would love to do some of these. But, I have no space in my little flat for woodworking! Maybe some other decade when I have a garage (never going to happen). :)
Wow! I think I’ve found another few projects to add to my summer project list… :)
Love this! Thanks for sharing! I can’t WAIT to catalog all my new found furniture “needs”.:)
I checked this out when I saw it on your twitter….and I am hooked! I can’t wait to try to build something from here. She makes it seem so easy that it has inspired me to try!
measure twice cut once!
I wish I had tool!
x,
Paula
http://www.adhocmom.com
Thank you! The hardest part of DIY furniture, to me, is the designing/planning. So I’m thrilled!
I <3 her. my hero!
I’m so glad you featured Ana. She is AMAZING. I found her when she had a handful of followers. She’s going to be famous. :)
Donna
http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/
I love, love, love her site! So glad you posted in on your site (I check it out every day!)…I’m not yet on your FB fan page.
I’m constantly trying to figure out how I can copy furniture and build it myself. We’re currently in the process of building a toy shelf wall unit for our basement playroom out of wood from a wall and built-in cabinet that we took down in our basement.
My adrenaline won’t stop flowing from all inspiration I just couldn’t stop looking at!
Thank you, Thank you! :o)
Love this site..I feel in love with last week and can’t wait to make the PB entry bench!
I love this site! Definately going to browse it more once I get home.
I’ve been meaning to thank you guys for sharing that link on FB a few days ago.
I’ve had my eye on the Pottery Barn Shayne Table F-O-R-E-V-E-R, but I’m not willing to shell out $700 (or even $500 on sale) for it.
I even found a look-a-like thanks to Copy Cat Chic( http://www.copycatchic.com/2009/09/pottery-barn-shayne-kitchen-table.html) from Overstock.com for only $250, but after reading some not-so-glowing customer reviews on the black version, I just decided to wait.
Lo and behold, I visit the blog and scroll down just a bit to find these plans for the very table I so dearly love and desire:
http://knockoffwood.blogspot.com/2010/01/plans-storage-dining-table-pottery-barn.html
And they totally look easy enough for me to accomplish!! Since I want to paint it black anyway, I can make it out of mdf and save a bundle! Plus, I will have the satisfaction of knowing that I did it! Can you tell I’m excited! :)
Thanks for the link.
Here’s another site with some projects that are supposed to be easier/don’t require a full workshop of tools:
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/icandothat/
I LOVE IT!!!
Thanks so much for directing traffic her way! I am getting all excited that I might actually be able to make the furniture I want!!!
Thanks for sharing!! I love the furniture at West Elm, but it doesn’t go along with my stay-at-home Mom salary. It would be great to be able to recreate the look for so much less.
Thanks so much for this! I am so making that parsons desk! I’m pretty decent with power tools and have built small items, but it would have never occured to me to try to make my own furniture!
The fact that I e-mailed this link to you this morning (unaware that you’d already twittered and facebooked it) just cracks me up. Glad to see that y’all find Ana as amazing as I do!
Oh my god, I can’t wait to start!!!!
Thank you so much for this link! I’m drooling over all the gorgeous plans that she has, and planning ahead for when we buy a house and all the furniture I’m going to have to learn how to make! Thank you! :D
I just recently came across this blog myself, and love it. I hadn’t seen the post about the parsons desk though…which is perfect as I’ve been searching for the perfect (affordable) white parsons desk!
Good to know. My husband has made two of the Pottery Barn ladder shelves thus far, and created his own design for our baby’s armoire. He cannot stand to pay big money for things he can easily make, and anytime I show him something I wouldn’t mind having, he arrogantly states “I can make that.” At least it puts to work all of the tools he owns.
A.W.E.S.O.M.E.
the farmhouse canopy bed has my name stamped on it!
Oh my! How did I not know this was out there for the taking?! I am in love. Where’s my hammer?
It makes me want to cry a little because we’re two of the least handy people ever born. My husband can build you a computer from scratch or a gorgeous webpage, but anything else and we’re losers. Thus we must pay.
But maybe we should pay for woodshop classes instead and go from there…
Incredible! What awesome ideas. I’m always looking at furniture I own and trying to re-vamp it, add shelves to it or make it more functional. Finally a site after my own heart! Thanks J&S.
I just love Ana`s site! We made the simple, cheap, and easy console table and it really was simple, cheap, and easy for us (we aren`t carpenters)!!
This is perfectly timed!
We just bought our first house (unfortunately, it probably won’t be our “forever” house due to husband’s career path), and I’ve been thoroughly enjoying all the sprucing up. However, we’re definitely a piece or seven shy in the furniture department, and poor as churchmice! I love a lot of the Pottery Barn furniture, and this site seems to focus on many of their pieces. My dad has all the necessary woodworking tools and expertise to help us along if necessary.
I’m so excited about making furniture out of solid wood that we can keep forever, instead of buying el cheapo and then having to junk it later and buy all over again. Thanks for posting this site!
My boyfriend is going to build that PB recylcing center. HE just doesn’t know it yet :-)
Thanks so much for the link….I have been dreaming of those entryway lockers for ages.
Don’t be discouraged by lack of tools / experience! My suggestion is to start small. Lots of times home stores will cut the wood for you for a small fee. Also, if you sign up for a wood-shop class at a local community college, you get access to their wood-shop (at my local community college you get access all semester, even though class only meets once a week). Most of the time tuition is also tax deductible.
Absolutely amazing. I’m inspired!
oh wow! my husband and i will surely be trying some of these out! great find!
These look very do-able, especially for a husband who loves power tools! Thanks for sharing :)
Hi Sherry and John
Just wanted to let you know that there is a problem with your email address. I tried to send an email and got an error message: No Such User Here.
Thanks
Thanks for the heads up! You may have just entered our email address wrong (or it was momentarily down but now it’s back) because it appears to be working now (we’ve received over fifteen emails including a few test ones we sent in the last ten minutes). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Thanks for sharing this great blog! I love the furniture featured and it’s tempting me to venture into a place I never thoguht I would – furniture making. I really want to make the coffee table but will need my hubby to help. I’ll let you know if we end up making it when it warms up a bit around here.
Thank you for sharing! This is a phenominal blog for us diy’ers. The instructions are so easy to follow. Thanks again!
I found her too, she is amazing.
i just joined that group last week! i love it.