94 Astonishing Amateur Woodworking Projects That May Inspire You To Take Up The Craft

Very different process than I imagined I would do, but it worked pretty well. Already have a set up for my second, which will be much better in form, this one looks so great, but I have changes in mind that will make it much better. Steam bent the "ribbon". Walnut and cherry with a french polish.

Recently finished building my "Glenn Lounge Chair" and ottoman, designed by Shaun Boyd (Shaun Boyd Made This), and plans by Chris and Shaun (Foureyes Furniture). Walnut and cherry.
The plans are essentially a woodworking course, and are stellar. I've learned so much building their pieces, and started working on my own designs.
Anyway, this chair is the the most complicated project I've attempted and I'm proud of the results. I got my first table saw last year and I'm already certain I'll be making furniture in some capacity for the rest of my life. It's a wonderful hobby.
With some sewing help from my partner, we also made our own cushions from foam/batting and fabric. Turns out, upholstery is awesome. Buckminster Upholstery on YouTube is a true hidden gem. The man is like the Paul Sellers of upholstery. We used his video on making a simple cushion almost exclusively to figure out ours. Watch his more complicated projects to really appreciate him as a master furnituremaker.
Anyway. Now the garage is too hot in Texas and I've decided to spend the summer focusing on hand tools.
Finally, credit to Steve Ramsey, the absolute youtube dad GOAT, who taught me all the basics and will always influence my woodworking is the best way.
I'm 35, and have a fairly intense career in medicine that occupies a lot of my headspace. Woodworking is not easy, but it takes focus and patience and calm, not frenetic rapid decision making and constant communication with other people. It's an amazing counterpoint and has made me feel like a much more balanced person. I'm even reading books again! (Hello Lost Art Press)
It's also just stupid expensive - especially if you want to buy mostly nice things that are made with care and will last. But I certainly feel better about buying quality tools that will be useful for a few decades than I do about most of the other crap I consume.

A while back I bought the Flexispot E7 Pro frame to get a good standing desk going, but I was missing the tabletop. I got lucky and someone gave me, completely free, an old pine board from a kitchen table, 190x90cm and 35mm thick. As you can see in the first photo, it was absolutely caked in paint, completely dried out, and I had to apply several coats of paint stripper. The worst part of all, without a doubt, was sanding it down with 40-grit to strip away layer after layer until I uncovered the natural wood.
This is the first time I'm posting in this subreddit, though I've been following it for a while, and I'm really happy with the result I got after reading what gets posted here for almost a year. It was my project, but in a way, it's also thanks to everyone who posts here that I managed to get the finish I wanted in such a satisfying way.
What do you think of the result?
Edit: A few people asked about the finish. It’s a water-based sapelly stain, followed by a coat of grain filler to even out how the pine absorbs, then three coats of satin water-based varnish (V33 Ultra Resistant), lightly sanded between coats with the last one left untouched to keep the sheen.

Wooden cardinal i made out off different species of wood. Cut out on my scroll saw.

Basically it's 3 big wooden circles with 16 legs attached which has cuts to fit the scales in, original plan was to have 1 scale go into 2 legs but I failed to count the circle angle so that didn't work. had to settle with putting a scale in every other slot so half the cuts are unused

So I’m very proud of this and thought I’d share but I also need advice. I am now learning that I need to rest the mattress on slats so it won’t mold. Can I drill out like 2-3” holes all over the base for airflow or do I need to remake the base using slats?

The piece is an ash sideboard designed to hold a record player and vinyl records. The frame and slats are made of solid wood, the body is self-veneered and coated with an open-pore lacquer. I focused on the front design, whose contours originate from the sound waves of the four favorite songs of my fiance and me (i dedicated this sideboard to her and our story, so this piece is also very emotional to me :) ).

I used heavy duty 32” over-travel RV slides for the vanity. I started with the base to get everything mounted to the slides, squared up, and just went from there. It was a culmination of all the little things I’ve picked up from YouTube University. Used 12” Blum under mount slides for the vanity drawers. For power I installed a new outlet behind the cabinets which goes to a boingy extension cord that’s wired into the vanity outlet - this self retracts pretty small and can extend out to 6’. Each side is secured with a hook and strain relief.
The bottom cabinet for the hamper storage is on Blum 30” slides…I wish they made them in 32”. I copied an off the shelf design for those pull-out trash cans and kinda just made it up as went along. For the curves I used an old end plate of a wire spool as a guide for my router.
Newly acquired tool: this projected served as an excuse to pick up a Graco X5 sprayer.

Weird nook in entryway + no plan = this

Three years ago, I stopped watching videos on YouTube and tried my hand at woodworking for the first time. I’ve been absolutely in love with it since then, and amazed at my own progress.
If you are someone that is sitting on the sidelines like I was a couple of years ago, it’s time to get out of the grandstand, pick up some tools and start making some stuff!
I hope this is encouragement that someone needs! Merry Christmas Sawdust Santas!
I don’t really share very much in this group anymore, because people complain that it’s not beginning woodworking. But this community meant a lot to me early on. You can see a lot of my other projects in my post history.

Made a twisted leg stool. Thought was neat.

Hey everybody! I've been a commenter for a while, but this is my first time posting. I don't think I'm a beginner, but I'm definitely not an expert in everything. I'm 23 and have gone to a technical school for woodworking and the past two years I've been interning for the program I graduated from.
But anyways! This is my Adirondack style chair. I never built a chair before this, so I used Epic Woodworkings Adirondack chair as inspiration. By looking at them they look similar, but there's some obvious changes made and some not so obvious changes made. I believe the only things I didn't change were the corbel profiles, and the front legs with the half lap joint. Everything else was tweaked and played with a bit to bc more comfortable and reflect upon what I learned about in school when it came to construction and design. The wood is African Sapele for those who were curious.
I ended up making 14 of these in 2 separate batches, and they've taught me a lot about furniture design and production.
Anyways the whole point of this post is to get some feedback on the design, and have discussions about how certain processes happened!

Largest piece of furniture i've built. I normally build boxes...im surprised I didnt mess it up.
Doors still need to be installed, apparently concealed hinges are super complex, and I bought ones that aren't large enough...

The cat's getting old and his hind legs are giving him trouble going up stairs so I threw together a dozen or so of these to help him out. The ramp surfaces are 8x10 pieces of 7/16 OSB, short ends mortised into the sidewalls and covered with strips of peel and stick carpet tile for traction. 1x6 pine for the sidewalls, stained with Varathane carbon gray and sealed with 4 coats of diluted oil-based poly. All taxes paid at the end.

I've been slowly putting this bookshelf together for my new son's room. Wife said no new projects until this is done. Learned a lot, especially about how unforgiving pine boards are and how not to cut miters with a circular saw. It's almost done, touching up paint now and will probably put a topcoat on for protection and easy cleaning but wanted to share.

New next door neighbors are expecting their first baby so I figured I’d make em a welcoming gift to the neighborhood, and their baby a welcoming gift to the world. 8 species of wood. Pine, paduke, black walnut, claro walnut, olivewood (the bottom but forgot to get a pic. You can see a little of it in pic 2), white oak, mahogany, and aromatic cedar (juniper). Finished with Odie’s Oil. Making perfect shapes is not easy, thus, they are not perfect. Adds character. There are two of each shape, the other half are in the box.

Finished up this laptop stand the other day. First time doing splines and working with some more complex angles.
Made with walnut and maple splines.

Overall really happy with the end result, but more importantly the wife is thrilled. Was my first project of this size. Definitely made some mistakes along the way and generally just figured a lot of things out as I went. But wood filler and caulk is my friend, and the dark paint is forgiving.
Some things I learned:
• Nothing in my house is straight, square, or level.
• Should have used plywood over pine. The pine was a pain to work with due to warping/cupping. Will see how it holds up over time.
• I shouldn’t have used latex paint for bookshelves, but live and learn. Giving the paint a couple more weeks to fully cure before stacking any books.
• The darker the paint, the more coats needed for full coverage. Everything was sanded, primed, sanded again, painted, sanded again, painted again for a good finish. Still a few spots to touch up. A sprayer would have been better but basements don’t offer much ventilation.
• Wish I would have done butcher block or something more substantial for the “countertop” as the 3/4” pine just looks diminutive by comparison.
• Did some basic rechargeable motion-sensor LED bars in the cabinets, but LED strips are on the way for the shelving. That’s another project entirely but I’ve planned in advance and built in some lips to hide the LED strips and will require minimal drilling of holes to run the wiring.

Other than a crosscut sled and the bmw workbench from Steve Ramsey, this is my first big project. I watched a ton of YouTube videos, used this old home mudroom bench plans to help develop my approach, and then customized this for the space. I’m pretty proud! I used pocket holes and birch plywood mostly.

I have all Ryobi starter tools and managed to break, damage, or burn out the motor on five different tools trying to make this thing. But I got it done, and I'm happy with it, though I can still see the imperfections, and they bother me, like some tear-out on the maple shaft, a slight gap where I didn't clamp the hinge plates down enough, and places where I had to add glue and sawdust to even out the seams. My wife tells me not to worry about it, so I'm trying not to critique it too badly. What do you guys think?

Usually take on a new project every winter. This one took a lot longer than expected. Needs a few minor touch ups but happy to be done!

This was my first attempt at making a planter box using 2x4 lumber and finger joints.

Took quite a bit of time working on my first chair. Wanted to do a Z chair with a danish weave. Mainly curly ash with red oak accents as I ran out of ash and had some red oak scraps that worked out. The angled mortise and tenons weren't as bad as I thought but doing the shaping of the curves took a fair bit of work between a saw, chisel, and drill with a sanding spindle.
I wish someone had told me how long and how much cord doing a weave takes but I'm pretty glad with the results.
Used almost 1500 ft for the whole chair with a waste of about 17 ft from off cuts and trying to hide the knots in decent places.

I’ve been wanting to try my hand at woodworking for some time now, and seeing how expensive even USED patio furniture is going for, I decided to take matters into my own hands. All I had was a jigsaw, sander, drill, and two small clamps my dad gifted me. I’m proud of how it turned out and had a blast making it. Still need to do a final sanding and finish coat, but I’m jonesing for the next project. And more tools. How did I do?

Does anyone have a good idea for sealing the ends of 3/4” maple plywood?

Drawers are definitely not my favorite, and using a gouge for the front panels was more work than expected. However, I am very satisfied with the total result.

Had some time the last few days and made this from scrap walnut and maple. Quite pleased with the result.

For so long I wanted to learn woodworking, but was intimated by the dangerous tools and feared I didn’t have the physical strength to do it. A few months ago, I made the leap to take a class and it has been a rewarding experience. Everyone in the community is so kind, encouraging, and helpful!
This is my first project ever - a step stool made of red oak!! I didn’t even know how to change a drill bit before this haha.
I’ve learned so much along the way and am continuing to learn. I’ve gained so much more respect and appreciation for woodworkers. It is NOT easy and requires a great deal of critical thinking, attention to detail, and control of your motor skills.
I’m hooked. Onto part 2 of my woodworking class. :)

A few months ago I asked for advice on how to build a fake window in our game room. I don't think I described the project very well. Essentially we are making a medieval tavern themed game room and I had this very modern window I wanted to cover but still maintain access and real window function.
I think it turned out beautifully! I removed the blinds, built a frame around the window, and basically built cabinet doors that attach to the frame. I used inset cabinet hinges, plexiglass, and a stained glass window film for the doors.

Cherry and walnut, milled the crown out of a slab of walnut myself. Pretty happy with how it turned out, a few gaps and glue stains but I can live with it.

Frame and shelves are solid walnut while the doors are plywood with a thin walnut veneer. Used a CNC machine for the design and then filled with epoxy. Also added wallpaper to the interior.

This board came out beautiful except I have user error that resulted in the rows not being perfectly straight. Assuming it’s something I’m doing on the table saw. You can see the “bend” in the lines towards the outside and on the juice groove.

I’m brand new to building things… like brand new, all I have is a drill and hand saw. I just finished this for a buddy of mine, they are repurposed decks from the thrift store thats why they aren’t super pretty. What would you price this at? (It’s a gift so I’m not selling it but just curious) Even if you think it’s not worth a dime that’s okay it won’t hurt my feelings.

This is my second “Furnature” build and I decided to go all in. This took way longer than planned but I love it.

So this is my first “fine” furniture project. This entry table took me about 9 months to make (usually could put in a few hours a week into it). It’s a Mike Pekovich design, this one is made from Sapele. My first time really doing anything with dovetail joints and drawbore tenons. Hopefully this one is enjoyed and used for many years to come!

At the suggestion of a kind woodworking Redditor, I've decided to post some pictures of this project, one that was a very emotionally tough time on me. Maybe if the community appreciates it a little bit, it'll help me feel better about the outcome. Thanks, guys.

M. 30. I’m just a DIYer and self taught. I really don’t have that many tools and I realized early on that this would’ve been so much easier if I had a bench top planer and a few other tools but I just couldn’t afford it right now. That’s why it’s completely made out of Home Depot wood and not something nicer. I worked on it off and on over 4 months so not too bad for the occasional weekend project. It definitely has a ton of imperfections, and of course that’s all I see when I look at it but my wife is happy and I learned a lot along the way, so that’s what counts. Maybe one day I can rebuild it better.
Also it’s a bit of an experiment to see how well it’ll hold up outside, it is under a covered section of the patio with some polycarbonate sheeting that I did a few months back. It’s survived over a month outside with three good cold snaps and temperature fluctuations from freezing to over 80°, so we’ll see.
A little Easter egg too I put my two year old daughter’s foot prints on the underside. That’s my favorite part of the whole table.

i finished my first big project with the elevator planter i made my wife yesterday and my sister loved it. she now wants 4 or 5. the wood near me would cost about $43 for each. what would be a fair price for family? these are advertised on fb marketplace for $100-150 near me. im only about a month into this hobby/side hustle and make mistakes. the one o made came out with a little wobble and it needed a shim.

I started my woodworking journey this time last year. I needed a huge bookshelf to use as a room divider in an apartment with 16 foot ceilings. Later, I needed to scratch the itch again with a mid century modern aquarium stand.
All of this I did on my apartment balcony which I got away with because it was technically classified as a live/work space.
My coworker really liked what I did and he asked me to make a console table for him. It’s my favorite thing I’ve made and I’m so annoyed that it’s not mine. Back then I didn’t know there was a difference between the wood you got at Lowe’s and the wood at a lumber store so maybe one day I’ll make it for myself out of oak or walnut or something.
I used a Milescraft dowel jig, a Kreg rip cut guide (which I threw away after this), my beginner’s Skil circular saw, and a corded drill. I’m part of a coworking wood shop space now because while it’s possible to make furniture with just my circular saw, I’ll never do it that way again.
A more trivial annoyance is that I didn’t take a video of it before staging it for my coworker or take a picture of it before staging it

I used Turkish walnut wood and little bit of epoxy, hope you guys like it.

I made this for a buddy’s house (he helped). Hard maple, with the sides rabbeted for a 1/4” backer. Pocket-holed shelves and face frame. Feels super sturdy!
This was by first bookcase and my first complex face frame. I learned some lessons for sure. Overall, so happy with how it turned out!

First time I've made anything like this. First time I've ever made and installed drawers. If I have to do it again, it'll be too soon. Lots of mistakes and fixes as I've made it. Proud of it, but not proud at the same time because I feel like I could have done better.

Just finished these nightstands. A year ago I quit my job, went to cabinetmaking school, built a little portfolio and am now a full blown cabinetmaker. Love seeing everyone's passion grow on this sub.

2 main benefits: happy lungs and happy AC.
And my dog decided to trample the filters beforehand. My fault for laying them flat on the floor

When building something that will be outside or in a wet environment (like this shower stool) one of the primary concerns is where the feet touch the ground. Because wood is just a bunch of straws, the feet tend to suck up (capillary) moisture and your project can rot from the ground up. Especially if the feet are in the dirt.
To stop this you need a barrier between the ground and the wood. So wrap tape around the feet so that tape creates a "bowl". Mix up some regular 5 minute epoxy (with epoxy, remember to stir/mix for much longer than you think you should) and pour the epoxy into your little bowl. It only needs to be about 1/8" thick. I know it's "5 Minute Epoxy" but let it cure overnight.
Remove the tape and rasp/file or sand it smooth. You now have a project that will last longer than if you had not done that.

I am running out of room at my own place so I have had to branch out to friends’ houses