As cliche as it sounds, masters of crafts aren't born. They're made through hard work, failure, and perseverance. So while someone hasn't traveled far on the road to excellence, they are destined to make mistakes. And the subreddit '[Bad] Woodworking' has plenty of examples to prove it.
Sharing pictures of various projects falling short of their ideal version, this online community embraces Bob Ross' happy accident approach and provides quite a few lighthearted giggles along the way. Whether it's a child's pencil holder or a driver's phone holder, if there's a production, there's a way to mess it up!
This post may include affiliate links.
Homer's Spice Rack. Made For A "Shi**y" Gift Exchange
Made This When I Was About 5 Or 6. Pencil-Holding Caterpillar For My Dad To Use At Work
We managed to get in touch with the moderators of '[Bad] Woodworking' and they agreed to give us more insight into this subreddit.
"Moderating here is fairly simple and the general philosophy is to let downvotes take care of unpopular content," the team told Bored Panda.
"Some posts are off-topic but get upvoted and they usually get left alone, even if reported."
A Kitty Door In A Door
Recently Finished Project
Woke Up To Snowmageddon In Texas And Sister Asked If I Had A Sled For Her Daughter (Which I Didn't) So I Built Her A Shitty One Real Quick
The moderators said there have been some bans from off-topic spammers but it has been a while since the last time.
"People generally seem to post about things they are proud of or happy about, but know could use improvement," they added.
The maturity of the subreddit's members, their respect towards each other, and their genuine interest in the craft as well as the desire to get better at it have to be some of the main reasons why this niche community, despite being almost a decade old, remains active.
Didn't Wanna Pay $13 For An Extension Cord Reel. I'll Make My Own With $1.30 In Materials And $1,300 In Tools
Kinda like my garden. Why would I spend $3 on lettuce when i can grow my own for $50
Made A Small Box Out Of Popsicle Sticks To Hold Toothpicks For My Work Truck
Phone Holder For Google Maps And An 800 Mile Trip. I Had 15 Minutes-Ish And Very Few Tools On Hand
Deodorant Holder, My Wife Asked "Why Is There A Baby Stump On My Counter?" Lol
Many insiders believe that woodworking is somewhat easy to become decent at but takes a lifetime to master.
Even Paul Sellers, whose biography as a woodworker began in a small joiner's workshop in 1965 in Stockport, England, and who now has two of his pieces gracing the Cabinet Room of the White House, calls himself "a lifelong amateur woodworker."
So staying humble and not being ashamed of your mistakes seems to be really important in this particular field.
Tricycle
Did I Win The Sub With This One?
When In Doubt, Screw It
It looks good, but it might need a couple more screws!! Or some nails.
There Was An Attempt
It's one of those things where the journey really is more important than the destination. "In making, I find unsurpassed peace," Sellers wrote in one of his blog posts.
"It's a silencing of excess that gives me encouragement in the simplicity of making with my hands."
A Stool Sample
8 Cuts + 12 Screws. Does The Job Though!
How About These Genuinely Sh*tty Steps In Our Garden ?
TV Remote, Friend Said His Kids Kept Losing The Remote So This Was The Solution
Sellers has spent a large part of his working life in the USA where he taught woodworking courses and he advises everyone to embrace the challenges. "Throughout my work teaching classes hands-on, I learned from students what troubles them the most. Cutting square, planing square, cutting straight and sharpening a perfect edge, the list could be exhausting were we to go down that road," he recalled.
"We could soon convince one another that we should just go the machine route. And yet there is something truly magical every time you develop a very particular skill you never thought you could or would own."
Some Sage Advice
Sh*tty But Effective Toddler Deterrence For Our Lazy Susan
Made A Ramp For The Dogo, But I Guess It Was Too Sh**ty Since She Refuses To Use It
Walnut Sculpture I Made. My Wife Thinks It Looked Too Much Like A Certain Distasteful Emoji
"Thinking back through my years as a full-time, lifetime, lifestyle maker, I can recall every step where I earned my ability through my stubborn determination not to give up. Some recollections came when I was one step away from giving up and giving in. In that split second, a lone voice, barely audible, said just one more try. There it was. The launch was complete and I was flying in euphoria as all resistance left, the cut was made and the two pieces slipped perfectly together for the very first time," the woodworker explained.
Practiced Making A Picture Frame From A 2x4. No Planning Ahead. Turned Out As Expected
Stand For My Wife’s Mini X-Mas Tree. Weights Are To Keep The Cats From Pulling It Over
You can't stop cats from knocking over Christmas trees. It is a fact.
Finally Get To Make A Post Here! Made Some Legs For This Leopard Bench
Did I Have The Correct Tools? No. Does It Look Good? No. Does It Function Well? No. Am I An Idiot? I Don't Have All The Answers
The moderators of '[Bad] Woodworking' said that, ideally, they would like to see more engagement, as they're sure there is plenty of "content" being created nearly daily in every neighborhood, "but probably most people would be put off by having their work labeled as [bad] here."
"It seems to be a space for people that are capable of more and have respectable creations, but need a quick solution and would agree that what they made is a bit comical."
Repurposed Free Wood Has Become Ugly Garage Work Bench. Much Sturdy, Much Eyesore
I Slaughtered A Guitar Neck I Was Making, But Needed A Chisel Holder
Found In The Wild…
Another Chair Made Out Of My Deck I Demolished
#update On My Shitty Wooden Chandelier. Thats How It Looks Finished
From The "Quick And Dirty" File
I Also Made A Sh**ty Phone/Tablet Stand
No Fires Allowed... So Tiny Scraps Turn Into... Kind Of Larger Scraps
This Coffee Table I Made
Porcelain tea seat, priceless. Tea with friends, priceless. This tea table, worthless.
Happy Hannukah You Hacks
My Dad's Cutting Board
Absolutely Textbook Quality Dovetails On My First Attempt
Just mix some sawdust with glue, and spread it into the cracks... No one will ever tell the difference... Make sure to sand it down tho... 😁👍
Made A Stool. Despite Its Questionable Looks It Is Actually Quite Comfortable And Steady
Found This On Fb. What Do You Think?
Soap Holder At My Friend’s House
I guess if you have an outdoor shower, you don't mind a plywood soap holder
Plywood Chic
My Dad Made This Terrible Table
Didn't Want To Rent A Crane So I Built One Out Of 2x4s
Finally Finished The Treehouse, Total Cost Around $50. Everything Was Made From Items Found In A Barn
Was Told You Guys Might Appreciate My Teapot. Kettle Handle Used To Get Hot. Not Anymore
First Railing Lmao. Swear I Used My Tape Measure
I believe they used their tape measure. However, the tool they actually needed to use was their protractor.
I Needed A Weight Holder So I Cut Two Pallets And Screwed Them Together With Boards. Done
Professionally Made And Polished Thing To Hold Log When I Saw
I See Lots Of Beautifully Made Mallets In Various Subs, Behold My Sh*tty Contribution
Needed A Stand So I Made This From Scrap
Finally Found A Reddit Where I Can Show Off. Here You Can See A Bird House, Made It Myself
Quick And Dirty Panel Lifter. Needed To Move A Sheet Of Plywood By Myself And Threw This Together With Scrap Bin Wood. Ugly Af But It Worked!
First Metal Free Build. Incredibly Unstable, 4/10 Woodnt Recommend
My 2 Year Old And I Are Making A Tree House! Its Only 3 Feet Off The Ground :) And I Couldn't Figure Out How To Make The Hole The Size Of The Tree?
Dice Tower Made From Sturdy Wood And A Firm Plastic Adhesive In 2020, Not To Brag But This Piece Speaks For Itself
Needed A Workbench, Made A Workbench
Friend Made Beer Pong Table Out Of A Door His Dad Kicked In, Thought It Belonged Here
Truck
I Give You The Double Decker Sofa. Ideal For Game Night With The Guys
So We're Posting Sh**ty Treehouses Now??
I Made This Stool A While Ago—thought I’d Share
Cat Water Bowl Holder, Made From Scrap Wood & Cracked Where You See The Glue, A Bit Over Halfway In The Middle. Top Piece Was Warped, I Also Used 18 Gauge Brad Nails To Keep It Together. Notice The Beautiful Clamp Marks & The Wedge I Tacked On To Keep It Level. Hole Cut Out W/ Jig Saw
I Needed Shelves And Had An Old Kitchen Bench. Admire My Bodge Job
Sh*tty Reconstructed Pallet Table
Those are the same table. The "reconstruction" is just a mid build picture. The floor is the same. The reflection and lines are the same. The side of the table the picture was taken on and stage of the build are the only changes.
Old Desk Left By The Old Owners Of Our New House
Tower Built. No Blueprint, First Saw. 3 Hurricanes And 5 Years Later Still Standing
The Excellent Framing Work At A Job Site I'm At
Who Would Want To Do This To Their House?
Combination Wardrobe And Nap Spot, First Thing I’ve Build Out Of Wood How’d I Do?
This Sub Is Perfect For Me As I Don't Care About Aesthetics And Only Functionality. Here's A Sh**ty Bench
Lid Handle Fell Off, Wood Scrap Pile To The Rescue!
Took The Glass From An Old Scale To Make A Window. I Need To Start Actually Trying When Taking Measurements
My Crowning Achievement. This Bad Boy Presses All The Goo Out Of Tofu So That I Can Fry It Later. Improvements Will Be Made. Oh Yes
If You Can Build Something With Less Effort That Will Hold Your A** Up… Show It Here
Six Modelos In And My Wife Tells Me That I Needed To Get The Cucumbers Going Up A Trellis. No Problem, Dear. Ezpz
When It Works, It Works
Standing Desk
The Underside Of This Deck
0% Waste
It’s The Attention To Detail That Really Sets This Transition Apart From The Rest
Checkout My Sh*tty Bench-Top Sander!
This Mallet Someone Made
Ia This An Optical Illusion?
Made A Stool
It Ain't Pretty But It'll Work To Keep Clothes Off The Bedroom Floor
Lmao maybe in a perfect world! You might make that, but your clothes will still live on the floor. I think they like it that way.
When You Run Out Of Money For The Real Mounts, You Gotta Make Do
Anaheim Convention Center
Literal Trash, But It's The Perfect Size And Shape
Sh**ty Coffetable For My Coffee
Don't lie. It's a White Russian. I mean, no one drinks coffee from a glass like that.
Check Out My New Laundry Shelf. I Made It Myself
Roast My First Bench
Made This See-Saw With Scraps In My Garage
Slapped Together Access For The Far End Of My Chicken Coop
Monitor Riser Stand Made With Hand Tools Only
Better than mine. I use the "home handyman DIY guide" as my monitor rised.
Seems like at least a quarter of these are amazing, not "weird", "hilarious" or "uncraftsmen like".
Once locked myself out of my house and went full McGyver. Found a bamboo stick, a hook for hanging a garden basket and some green wire put it all together and made like a hook'a'duck type device. Put it through the catflap and managed to get my key from the worktop. I was so pleased with myself lol. Then I realised the back door was unlocked the whole time lmao.
To clarify I locked myself out the front door then got all the "supplies" from the back garden.
Load More Replies...So much engineer in this post - no aesthetic, no cost, minimal functionality, far overthought
Seems like at least a quarter of these are amazing, not "weird", "hilarious" or "uncraftsmen like".
Once locked myself out of my house and went full McGyver. Found a bamboo stick, a hook for hanging a garden basket and some green wire put it all together and made like a hook'a'duck type device. Put it through the catflap and managed to get my key from the worktop. I was so pleased with myself lol. Then I realised the back door was unlocked the whole time lmao.
To clarify I locked myself out the front door then got all the "supplies" from the back garden.
Load More Replies...So much engineer in this post - no aesthetic, no cost, minimal functionality, far overthought