It’s time to think about the “lazy days of summer” and create a comfortable, attractive outdoor living area that reflects your family’s lifestyle.
Consider décor featuring wood furniture that you build yourself, using advice and products from Woodcraft. Or, if you already have wood furniture, let Woodcraft help you give it a new look – maybe distressed or antiqued or a brand-new color.
Woodcraft’s Project Plans include Outdoor Table and Benches shown here (in photo collage at left) and featured in the April/May 2013 issue of Woodcraft Magazine.
Furniture Options
Woodcraft offers nearly three dozen building plans for the popular Adirondack chair in several individual styles, as well as a glider, loveseat, folding, twin adjustable, chaise lounge, child size, and footstools. Adirondack chair templates are also available.
Other outdoor seating plans include Tudor style chairs, folding sling chairs, and porch and folding patio rockers.
Picnic table-bench combo plans include the traditional shape and an octagonal version, while bench plans feature seats with and without backs/arms in various styles such as Tudor, Lutyens, English, and arched. Traditional porch swing plans come in several styles, some with frames for yard use. Glider plans are also available.
Other plans include a tree seat, garden trellises, a footbridge, birdhouses, and a camp kitchen.
Folding Patio Rocker
Build a Porch Rocker
Octagonal Picnic Table
Arched Foot Bridge
Tools & Products to Build (Or Repair)
Once you have selected your wood, something rot-resistant like cypress, cedar, locust or white oak, the 7.0 amp variable-speed Bosch Barrel Grip Jigsaw, with a tool-less blade-change system, will make cutting chores easy.
Keep a work surface handy with the Kreg Mobile Project Center. It is a workbench, sawhorse, assembly table, and clamping station all in one that provides a versatile work space for DIY, repair, and woodworking projects.
To join the furniture pieces, Kreg Jig HD Starter Kit will do the job using pocket-hole joinery. The Kreg Jig® HD is made to work with 1-1/2″ and thicker material to build outdoor furniture, fences, trellises, and more. Kreg Jig® HD Screws are #14 hardened-steel screws with a Protec-Kote™ finish that has three anti-corrosion layers.
HD Pocket Hole Screws - 30 or 125 count
Tools, Supplies and Hardware
Other tools, supplies and hardware that come in handy for furniture projects include:
FastCap Lefty/Righty 16' Tape Measure features dual-display standard measurements that can be read easily from either side of this 16' tape.
Expand your drilling capabilities with the Festool T18 Easy Cordless Drill Plus Set —with new generation brushless EC-TEC motor and electronic torque setting for precise screw driving and drilling wood or steel.
HIGHPOINT XT Square Drive Woodworking Screws, Flathead, 100-piece packs offer almost twice the torque values of other screws.
The lightweight, compact Grex GC1850 Cordless 2“, 18-gauge Brad Nailer features an all-metal robust construction with the power to sink 2″ 18-gauge brad nails into 2″ red oak.
Finishing
Selecting a finish offers the opportunity to customize furniture for your family’s tastes and lifestyle. Color and special effects options are the “tools” for this creative endeavor.
General Finishes Outdoor Oil Finish is ideal for exterior weather conditions and may be used over other brands of exterior oil stain or exterior clear oil finishes for additional protection.
WoodRiver Pure Tung Oil provides a natural long-lasting finish.
General Finishes 450 Varnish in Satin minimizes fading, retards mold and fungus growth, and can be applied quickly to achieve a clear, tough finish.
System Three Marine Spar Varnish in Satin is designed for exterior surfaces and provides long-lasting protection against water and marine environments.
To learn more about these and other products, visit your local Woodcraft store, call (800) 535-4482 or visit www.woodcraft.com.
Let us help you create the perfect outdoor retreat with new wood furniture created in your own workshop, or updated, older pieces that just need a pick-me-up.
We hope you’ll be inspired!
