Over the past year and half I have been working on building a set of beds with storage underneath for my children. So far I have completed the first one for my eldest daughter, who enjoys her ‘tall’ bed. I have completed construction of the second bed for my middle daughter. The bed is now ready for stain and varnish.

The goal is to get it finished and moved into her room by early October. I like to give the varnish about three to four weeks to cure and harden before putting the furniture to use.

Design / Style of the bed

The platform bed is designed so that a standard sized twin mattress will fit comfortable on top of it. I designed a 1 1/2 inch deep recess for the mattress to sit in. This prevents the mattress from being able to slide off of the platform. That would make for a bad night’s rest. (more…)

I came across a really cool article about Sergeant Geoffrey Allison a medic in the Army. He is currently assigned to a one year tour of duty in Iraq. During his off time he works on building violins.

From scrap wood he built a small work bench that is wedged between his bunk and the wall. Before he was stationed in Iraq he bough enough wood to make two violins. In the three months that he has been stationed in Iraq he has completed both violins. (more…)