Tutorial for DIY X Leg Upholstered Bench

Whether you call it an X leg stool, X leg ottoman, or X leg bench, the X-bench is an extremely versatile piece that can be used for extra seating anywhere you need it because it's so lightweight and moveable.  It can be stored away against a wall or under a table when not in use, grouped around a coffee table, used as a coffee table alone or in a pair, or grouped at the bottom of a bed.  The possibilities are practically endless.

Now how would you like to make your own for around $50?!

I tend to be a visual thinker so took an old piece of cardboard and drew a sketch of the finished piece.  I'd recommend doing the same so you have a reference to be sure your angles are cut correctly.

Do keep in mind that the angles given here will work for these measurements, giving you a finished X leg bench that is 17" square and 17" high.  You can change the length of the bench from one X leg to the other without needing to make any angle changes but any shift in the width or the height of the bench will alter the angles needed to make everything fit together properly.

I like to make my first cuts using scrap wood and then lay them on top of my sketch to be sure I don't make mistakes and waste my nicer materials.  I can't tell you how many times I've cut my angles going in the wrong direction and am always so much happier when that happens on scrap wood!  When you're ready to get started, use a miter saw to make the following cuts:

• 1 1/2"x3/4" oak hardwood planks - cut one end at a 50º angle.  Measure 9 1/2" from the pointed side and cut the other end at a 9º angle.  Do this process eight times, giving you eight identically-cut pieces of wood.
• 1 1/2"x3/4" oak hardwood planks - cut one end at a 50º angle.  Measure 19" from the pointed end and cut the other end at 50º as well.  Do this process four times, giving you four identically-cut pieces of wood.
• 1 1/2"x3/4" oak hardwood planks - cut one end at a straight angle.  Measure 17" and cut the other end at a straight angle as well.  Do this process twice, giving you two identically-cut pieces of wood.
• 1 1/2"x1 1/2" oak hardwood plank - cut one end at a straight angle.  Measure 14" and cut the other end at a straight angle as well.  You only need one piece cut like this.

You will also need a piece of 3/4" plywood cut to a 17" square, 4"-thick foam cut to 17" square, at least a 30 1/2" square of cotton batting, at least a 30 1/2" square of the fabric you want to use to cover the top, wood glue, wood stain, upholstery nails (I used 88 nails purchased from Lowes), a staple gun and staples, 1 1/4" and 2 1/2" finishing nails, and 1 1/2" wood screws.  I needed four 6'-long 1 1/2"x3/4" oak planks to make the first three groups of cuts above.

Once the oak is all cut, use sandpaper or a pad sander to sand it down.  Lay one of the 19" pieces on the ground.  Lay one of the 9 1/2" pieces on top, lining up the ends, to determine which sides will be facing each other.  Spread wood glue on the bottom side of the 9 1/2" inch piece and press into place on top of the 19" piece, fine tuning the positioning so all edges line up exactly.

Lay another of the 19" pieces on top, perpendicular to the 9 1/2" piece, and repeat the wood glue and positioning process on the other side with another of the 9 1/2" pieces.  Check them after 10-15 minutes to be sure none of the wood has slipped.

Do this same thing with the other two 19" pieces and two more of the 9 1/2" pieces.  Let the glue set up for 30-60 minutes, then carefully flip the glued X's over and follow the same process with the remaining four 9 1/2" pieces.  Also add a dab of glue in the center notch where the two pieces fit together.  Let the glue dry fully overnight.  Once dry, hammer three 1 1/4" finishing nails down each length of the 9 1/2" pieces.

Lay one of the X's on the floor and put a dab of wood glue in the center.  Position the 14" piece of oak in the center and let dry 30-60 minutes.

Carefully place the other X on top of the 14" piece.  And then very, very carefully, pressing the X's together, place the legs on the floor as they will stand when finished, to be sure everything is lined up properly.  Then again very, very carefully, flip back to vertical to allow the glue to completely dry.  The positioning part is very important or you could be left with a wobbly, uneven leg base.

When the glue has dried completely, hammer two 2 1/2" finishing nails through each outside X-middle into the center piece to strengthen the bond between the X legs and the middle piece.  Then stain the wood using the stain of your choice (don't forget to stain those two 17" straight pieces!).  I used Minwax oil-based stain in Kona.

Place one of the 17" straight-cut pieces on top of one of the X legs and position so the ends are flush.  Holding tightly, pre-drill small holes to make sure the screws go in straight and everything lines up.  Drive a 1 1/2" wood screw through each pre-drilled hole, one on each end, then repeat on the other X leg.

**For detailed instructions on assembling and upholstering the top of the x-leg bench, go HERE**

The final step, after constructing and upholstering the top, is laying the assembled, covered seat upside down on the floor, carefully positioning the X base upside down on top of it, and pre-drilling a couple holes in the middle of each 17" piece, now attached to the X base.  Drive a 1 1/2" wood screw through each hole, and repeat on the other side. 

Flip it over, and have a seat or prop your legs up!

The two benches wound up being photographed for Better Homes and Gardens magazine with my sofa that I reupholstered - you can see the photo that was in the magazine HERE.  

And here are a couple easy-to-pin graphics if you want to earmark the tutorials for making this x-bench for later!

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{DIY} How to Hang a Quilt

When my friend Karen recently asked me to come up with an idea for hanging a handmade quilt her sons had been given, I jumped at the chance.  My mom made a beautiful crib quilt for Ada (that later passed to Ellie) that I'll almost certainly hang once we move Ellie out of her crib, so I was excited to research some hanging options.  I sent Karen five ideas, but my two favorites were these:

 via Pinterest

via Pinterest

Karen liked the idea of a ledge or shelf above the quilt to hold little decorative accessories so I set out to gather up my lumber supplies: a long dowel rod for the quilt to actually hang from, a poplar board to be used as the shelf, doorstop moulding to give the edge of the shelf a finished look, two pine shelf brackets, and two finials.

I cut the poplar board to 58" to allow it to overhang the quilt a bit, which was 54" wide.  The dowel rod was cut to 56".  I then measured the width of the sides and cut the doorstop moulding with a miter saw into three segments: the front piece had a 45 degree angle at each end and the side pieces each had one 45 degree angle and one straight cut.  I ran a thin line of wood glue along the edge of the shelf and pressed the moulding into place. 

After the glue had set a bit, I used very small finishing nails to finish attaching the moulding to the shelf.  To make holes in the shelf brackets I used a paddle bit attachment for my drill that was slightly larger in diameter than the dowel rod.  A little tip I picked up here is to clamp the shelf bracket to another piece of scrap wood and drill down into the scrap to cut down on any splintering of the actual bracket.

Next step was painting, which Karen had requested in white.  To make painting the finials a little easier, I screwed them into a scrap piece of moulding I had in the basement.

I gave everything 2-3 coats of white latex paint, with drying time in between.

To allow the quilt to hang from the dowel rod, I needed to sew a pocket onto the back of the quilt.  I used some cotton fabric I had leftover from an old tablecloth (the same fabric I used for the underside of the Scandinavian chair I reupholstered a few weeks ago), and cut it to 56" x 6".  I ironed 1/2" and then another 1/2" on each long side and then sewed a quick straight seam down each ironed fold.  Then I flipped the fabric sleeve inside out, pinned it together, and sewed another straight seam 1" from the edge down the entire long side of the sleeve.  After the sewing was finished I flipped it rightside out, ironed it flat with the seam facing the back, and loosely hand-stitched it to the back of the quilt.

Then came time to slide the dowel rod through the pocket...except it didn't exactly slide because I hadn't allowed much wiggle room in my measurements for the pocket.  I was able to get it through, but in hindsight, allowing for another 1/2" or so of width would have made this process much easier.

A couple days later I headed over to Karen's house for the big install, and got there with a bag full of materials, excited and ready to put all the pieces together...and realized I'd left the quilt at home.  I thought I could get some of the pieces hung without the quilt there but messed up the spacing a bit, as you can see by the extra holes I left in her wall.  

What you need to remember when hanging a quilt in this manner, and what I did not initially remember, is that the space between the brackets needs to be the same width as the quilt.  The general process for hanging is to draw a level line across the wall where you want the shelf to go.  Mark spots for your two brackets that allow enough space in between to fit the quilt.  For this particular installation, the quilt was 54" wide so (the second time around) I spaced the inside edges of the brackets 54" apart.  

 

The dowel rod was 56" so once slid through the holes in the shelf brackets (which were 1" thick) the ends of the rod lined up with the outer edge of the brackets.  Still with me??

The quilt was now hung and just needed the finials screwed into the ends.  I pre-drilled guide holes in the center of each dowel rod end to make sure the finials were centered, and after twisting them in the installation was complete!

 

 

I love the way it all came out and couldn't be happier to have helped hang this beautiful quilt for two such sweet boys.  I can't wait to hang Ellie's crib quilt now...how soon is too soon to move her into a bed??

{DIY} Moroccan Tile Stenciled Table

I've been at it again.  Scott says I get "a look."  I'm not exactly sure what the look is but I think it involves standing very still, hands on hips, and staring intently into a room in which nothing is happening.  Yep...something's about to get moved.  This time it was on the screened porch, which we've been absolutely loving during its first habitable summer.

We'd pulled a couple of freebie-with-our-couch, parson-like side tables out of retirement to use on the porch when we first furnished it a few months ago.  They were originally a scuffed dark stain but I painted them soft ivory. 

Nothing wrong with them at all, but nothing particularly exciting about them either.  When I recently came across a moroccan tile stencil I had stashed away with a set I'd bought when I was finishing my girls' playroom (post and pictures to come soon!) I thought I'd give stenciling the table a shot.  If I hated it, well, I figured I could give it a quick sand and spray paint it back to ivory.

First I gave the whole table a fresh coat of soft grey spray paint (Rustoleum since the table would be semi-exposed to the elements).

I was planning to paint the sides of the top an antique white, so I didn't worry about the splotchy grey there.

After the spray paint had completely dried overnight, I used a small foam roller to roll the antique white paint along the edges of the top.  And then it was time to stencil.  I had done a little research on stenciling prior to undertaking this and so knew that spray adhesive was a necessity (I used Elmer's Multi-Purpose Spray Adhesive).  I also knew that the best tool for applying paint to a stencil is a foam brush.  Which I swore I had in the basement but when I went to retrieve it, it was nowhere to be found.  I had an abundance of bristle brushes though, so even though I knew it wasn't "right" I decided to give it a go.  And it all worked out fine, but next time I stencil I will use a foam brush.  The bristles are a little too unwieldy for the control you need stenciling and the finished look is a bit mottled.  Which I am okay with, it looks sort of rustic and handmade, but I can imagine that a foam brush application would have a more crisp look.

On to the stenciling.  I gave the back of the stencil a light coat of spray adhesive and then positioned it on the table so it lined up straight against the edge.  Next I applied a bit of paint to my brush and dabbed it on newspaper to remove excess paint.  I dabbed the brush over the stencil until everything was painted, then carefully removed it.  I found I could use the same coat of adhesive for 2-3 repositions of the stencil before it needed another spray.  I'd periodically check the back to be sure no paint had seeped through that would make splotches on the table.  When in doubt, give the back a quick swipe with a dry paper towel.  To make the next several rows of the tile pattern I overlapped the last row I had done to be sure everything would line up and repeated the process...

...many, many times... 

...until the entire tabletop was covered in the moroccan tile pattern.  I let it dry a bit then gave the top a hearty coat of Rustoleum Crystal Clear Enamel to protect the stenciled design and to give the top a nice glossy finish.  I let the top coat dry overnight and then moved the table back to her home on the porch.

 

And now the moving furniture part.  Nothing terribly significant here (Scott has come home before to the entire living room having been moved around) but I decided to shift the accent tables around a bit and put the yellow table between the chairs and the newly stenciled moroccan tile table against the wall between the sofa and chair.  I liked the idea of having a table lamp on that side of the room and the yellow table fit a bit better between the chairs.

The table has so much more character now and is leaps and bounds more interesting than the plain, square, beige table it was before.  For my first venture in stenciling furniture, count me one happy gal.

Rust and Cement - A Scrub Story

Approximately one year ago I decided to tackle the unsightly cement stoop that leads from our kitchen to our side yard.  The cement was stained and cracked and the metal railing was covered in rust.  I'd cringe every time I was outside on that side of the house and was visually assaulted by the hulking eyesore.  It didn't look so hot from the inside either.  Hiring someone to jackhammer it out wasn't an option from both a noise and a cost standpoint, so I decided that I would stain the cement white to match our house and de-rust and re-paint the metal railing.  I headed to Lowes and came home armed with TSP (a heavy-duty cleaner), white cement stain, Naval Jelly (a rust remover), and glossy black, oil-based paint for the railing.  And then...well, and then nothing, really.  The stuff just sat in the basement for an entire year and I sort of forgot about it.  Sort of.  I still hated - hated - the sight of the thing, but I couldn't exactly work out there in subzero winter temps so once the cold hit, the makeover was delayed until the return of warm weather. 

I had also let the stoop makeover fall down on my project priority list - which is an actual thing, a file I keep on my laptop and add to and delete from as I work on projects or new ones come up.  I pop projects in where I want to prioritize them and the stoop kept getting pushed down.  But finally I thought, "I have all the things I need, let's just roll up the sleeves and get this thing done!"  Rah, rah!

Certainly not improving the look was the green gunk that had accumulated on the siding and around the door.  What is it, even??  Mildew?  Pollen?  Slime?? 

 
I donned my painting clothes and some rubber gloves and used a heavy duty scrubbing brush to scour the stoop and green-mystery-substance with a mixture of TSP, water, and bleach.  The green came right off the house and while the cement didn't really look any different yet, I knew it was clean and prepped for stain.  I let the cement dry completely overnight and then applied a coat of white cement stain.

Next came the railing.  Ugh...the railing.  Messy, tedious work.  I coated the whole thing in Naval Jelly, which is sticky pink goo, let sit for 5-10 minutes as the bottle instructs, and then rinsed with a hose.  Shards of the goo were all over the house, the door, you name it, so it took me awhile to get everything goo-free.  More drying time, again overnight, and then came the painting.  I taped off the areas around the bottom of the railing to protect the cement and then curve by curve, spoke by spoke, I applied Rustoleum Oil-Based High Performance Protective Enamel in Gloss Black.  And as the paint went on little by little, I started to see the realization of what I had envisioned a year ago and all the mess and tedium suddenly seemed worthwhile.  Shall we take a little before and after look?

Before

After

The only thing I purchased this year was the new doormat from Lowes.  I moved the planter over from our front porch where I had two of them but one actually seems to work better.  I had my moments where I thought maybe this wasn't a worthwhile endeavor but comparing the before and after shots it actually has made a tremendous difference.  We could still use some landscaping work along this side of the house, but now instead of an ugly old stoop off the kitchen, we have pretty white stairs and a glossy black iron railing.  It looks so purposeful now instead of a rusting leftover from who-knows-how-many-years-ago.

Time will tell if the rust will start to creep back, but I'm pushing that thought back for now and enjoying the view.  Now if I could just get the black paint off of my skin I'd be all set...