Wood Magazine’s Planter Box and Trellis

Summer is here in the northern hemisphere, and now is the time for everything to be lush, green and in bloom. It’s the time for those of us who live in more northern climes to forget about the seemingly never ending blizzards and ice storms and focus on enjoying the great outdoors.

What better way to enjoy the great outdoors than to do a little gardening? Today’s plan is from Wood Magazine, and it’s great one for those with a green thumb in your lives.

The planter can be built as is, or you can also add the handsome trellis made of wood and common copper water pipe to snazz things up and provide a great surface for climbing plants to grab on to.

Best of all, the plan is free…

The Not-So-Rustic Outdoor Table

Woah… what happened?

No, you aren’t seeing things. This is the first post I have made in a week. I wish it was due to some type of family vacation, but, instead, it was health-related. I had a bit of an issue that needed to be addressed, and I was unable to get to the blog.

But, I’m back in the proverbial saddle, and here’s that post that I owe each of you.

Today is Father’s Day, and with summer just around the corner, outdoor dining is in the cards for just about everyone (unless you are in Florida, where we tend to hold off on our outdoor dining plans until October).  And, for all of those cookouts, crab feasts and barbecues, you will need a place to sit the guests to do the dining…

The Wood Whisperer Marc Spagnuolo offers this free plan to build a not-too-rustic outdoor table to make your outdoor dining plans complete. So, if you are looking to enjoy more summer outdoor dining, this is not a bad plan to follow!

Homemade kayak storage

Sorry today’s plan is a little late. Rhonda decided that with the bright sunshine and relatively cool temperatures, it would be a great day to kayak to a breakfast place for a little Sunday brunch. That’s exactly what we did.

As we were dragging the kayaks back to their storage place after our trip, I had remembered that I was supposed to be building her a rack to hold our two boats. Oops…

Well maybe today’s plan could work.

This plan, created by Korey Atterberry, is simple, efficient and can hold the boats, their paddles, life jackets and the other accessories that go along with this fun sport.

Looks like I may have an upcoming project…

Know your stuff

OK, folks, it’s not a woodworking plan. But, as we start the Atlantic Hurricane Season, it’s time to create another plan … a plan to protect our stuff from the potential of loss due to one calamity or another. It could be hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fire, theft or whatever other nastiness that can happen.

My friend Lynne McChristian from the Insurance Information Institute turned me on to this site that they run, which helps you create a detailed inventory of what items you have in your shop. Armed with this information, you should be able to recover much more quickly after a disaster. And, after all, don’t we all want to be working in our shops?

Remember, this service is free!

Wood Magazine’s flag case

When a veteran passes, one of the most important things that is presented to the family is a folded American flag. This is one of the most solemn parts of the ceremony, and one of the most significant for the family.

Whether you know someone who has received a flag from this ceremony, or another flag for a significant event, a well-built flag display case is a suitable place to display one.

This plan, offered by Wood Magazine, simplifies the construction of the flag case, doing away with the narrow 22.5 degree angles at the bottom corners, making building one a snap.

Build a Morris Chair!

This week’s plan comes to us from the Capo di Tutti Capi of woodworking… Marc Spagnuolo. For those who may not be aware, Marc has both a free site that offers extensive content, as well as a paid Guild site.

The current project the guild crew is working on is this classic Morris chair. With its Craftsman lines and gracefully curving arms, this chair is bound to become highly desirable territory in your living room, sought out by all seeking a comfortable spot to watch a movie, read a book or just take a load off.

In addition to the plans, Marc also offers extensive step-by-step videos that clearly show each phase of the process.

Popular Woodworking’s I Can Do That tool tote

The one thing about tools is that – well – you typically need more than one to do a particular task. And, it’s not easy to juggle a bunch of tools as you walk from place to place to do your work. There has to be an easier way.

Sure, there may be a million different easier ways. But, not all can be as stylish as this tool tote brought to you by our friends at Popular Woodworking. This free plan from their I Can Do That series was designed by Megan Fitzpatrick, and features some pretty snazzy looking joinery that can be mastered by even the newest woodworker.