DECK GATE (04/2017)

I decided to make a gate so as that to keep my 2 year old son contained on the deck.

It’s a very simple design made with the following materials from Home Depot:
2×4 weather shield lumber
2×2 spindles cut to size
Pocket hole jig
4×4 SPF pine
A gate kit that included all the hardware needed to hang the gate….

garden obelisk (04/2016)

So the honey do list just got a little lighter , my wife asked me to build this obelisk she found one like it on Pinterest..

So I built it with 2×2 pressure treated lumber and the beutiful thing about this project was that there were not angles to contend with and I built it in about 2 hours..

Materials needed
8 lengths of 2×2x8’.. Home Depot sells them for about 3.50 each
1 box of #8 2” exterior screws.. In case your wondering the wood was actually only 1 1/4” sq .

That’s it …

cedar deck cooler (05/2015)

So we decided to redo our deck in the coming weeks and I thought this piece would make a great addition.

I also made a blog detailing the build so I won’t go into too much detail describing the steps. I used Sketch-Up to design the piece and since I already had a 48 quart cooler in the basement I made the dimensions to suit that.

PINE MAILBOX (07/2015)

After a very long time the metal mailbox that served us so well is getting retired and it’s time for a fun router project in building a new one….

 I know that a softwood like pine is probably not the best wood to use for outside. I put outside stain and about 5 coats of spar varnish and if after all that it falls apart oh well I’ll make it out of oak.

As always I went to my trusty Sketch-Up and drew these plans, the box is 12” wide by 8” high with a 17° slope
I used 1×12 pine board.

The box is put together with noting more than a few rabbits and dados to house the sides and base and then I just glued it all together, I really enjoyed this little project as it thought me how to use a chisel and marking gauge and how to efficiently an accurately cut rabbits and dado on the router table.

garden gate (05/2016)

My better half asked me to build a gate or partition beside the shed to hide/conceal the god awful mess back there .. Not our doing …

Materials Needed:
Fence Picket (72” tall) I used 5 to cover the span of the gap.. ( I got mine at Lowes for $1.85 each
(3) 2×4 pressure treated.. These will be for the braces to complete a “Z” style..
(1) box of 1 5/8” exterior grade screws
(1) door lock

chevron trellis (03/2015)

My wife asked me to make a trellis for her morning glories that will be starting to flower soon. I found this design online and it looked awesome…

That is until I realized how many nails that I needed to nail into it and I don’t own a nail gun…oh I hope she likes it because I will never do another …that is unless I get a pneumatic nail gun..

It’s made from Home Depot Wethersfield lumber ,

The outside frame is made with 2×2 and the chevrons are 1×2….

The beauty of the trellis is you can make it whatever size you want.. I made mine 7’ tall and 3’ and it was  not too expensive to make…....

planter box (03/2015)

I made my planter box very similar to this last summer and a relative asked me to make her one so I said sure anyway I owed her big time for minding my kids as I went away for a weekend… I made hers a little different than the one I made myself and the main difference is that my planter box walls I used the wood horizontally and I made her planter walls vertically as you can see..

It came out awesome ….by the way I made a blog on my project here….

The planter box frame is made from 2×2
The planter platform is made from 2×6
The planter walls is made from 1×6

GARDEN FENCE & GATE (04/2017)

Over the last couple of years the yard has been looking very messy, although my vegetable garden did have a fence around it , I didn't like it at all because the mesh that was used was very big. So I decided to design out a nicer looking fence, and it had to be very functional as we needed to keep out all those pesky critters that love to eat out tomatoes and other assortment of vegetables.

So I turned to my trusty Sketchup software to design and ultimately price out how much this was going to cost and how much lumber I needed. The project was one of the hardest I had ever made and not because of the woodworking involved, but because of the pure size of the project and the weight of the pressure treated panels that I made 1 at a time in the shop and hauled it up from my basement workshop . Took me a 4 day weekend to get this done and I have to say it looks great and really adds a nice touch to the back yard.

corn-hole scoreboard (1.0) (06/2015)

After building some regulation size Corn hole boards and they were a big hit with my friends and family I decided to build a scoreboard…

My design is very similar that you see online on the likes of Pinterest ..the scoreboard consists of the following

2×4×1/2” thick sanded plywood ( ripped lengthways to give 2 panels with dimensions of 12” x 48”

Materials:
:- 2” acrylic numbers ( 3 packs)
:- (2) pieces of 12” brass chain.
:- (2) 2.5” brass hinges
:- 1/2” dowels ( 2 pieces 1.5” length
:- 2’x4’ 1/2” thick sanded plywood..

I made a blog detailing its build and you can go to the page here

  corn-hole board game (1.0)

(09/2014)

I came across this yard game at a 4th July party and I had that much fun on them I decided to build a pair of them and finish them with paint so as that I could bring them to my friends house. They are 4×2 so they are kind of big to lug around  you can make them smaller if need be.

I didn’t realize that they were so expensive to purchase and to build them was a lot cheaper.

I made this set in 2014 and they have been that popular I have made about 4 of them for friends and family, last year a made a set of Patriotic colored boards and he loved them. These sets can sell for anywhere around $300.00 + I made them for around $75.

corn-hole set PATRIOTIc (07/2017)

For a 4th of July present to my best friend I made him his own set of corn-hole boards and score board:

It’s very simple to make only requires

• (2) 2’x4’ plywood
• (4) 2”x4” wood
• Screws to attach the plywood to the he 2x4 frame & glue

It came awesome and with a little help from my wife painting. What's funny was that while I researching for another project I came across corn-hole boards at regulation size with the 6" diameter hole cut into it. t was a little more expensive but handy at the same time. Anyway if you would like a set of plans to make this DIY Network has cool instructions that you can find in the link below

WASHER TOSS (09/2014)

This was one of my first projects as a woodworker and its extremely easy to make, in fact I showed a couple of kids how to make them one day. This is one of my staple games that I bring to any summer party and it awesome and enjoyed by both adult and children. When we  first started playing it we used bags so as that we were not firing around metal washers especially where all the children were going crazy, but soon enough we got used to using the bags we never even tried to use washers.

All you need is :

• 2x4
• screws
• Quarter sheet of plywood
• 6" diameter pipe (only need like 8").

I have included some plans to make your own below if your interested

bird feeder (02/2015)

So I am not sure why I'm building this bird feeder in the middle of winter but I had some cedar lying around and I was looking at some of my project books and I saw a design in this Birdhouse Book and decided to build it…. I hope you like it.

I picked this feeder because I liked its simple look and I have to admit the piano hinge on the roof will work awesome….. It wasn’t too hard to make but the piece of cedar that I had was very dry and it cupped in the middle but I had just enough wood to finish the project.

If you are looking for a book that has detailed plans and a lot of information on how to construct some any bird house and feeders check the link that I attached….

I made this this feeder in 2015 and its still going strong, also this was one of the first times I used cedar and its one of my favorite woods for outside projects and I love the smell of the lumber.