Spike Carlsen - Ridiculously Simple Furniture Projects Great Looking Furniture Anyone Can Build

2011 Spike Carlsen

Published by Linden Publishing

2006 South Mary

Fresno, California 93721

559-233-6633 / 800-345-4447

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1-800-345-4447.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.

135798642

Editor: Richard Sorsky

Cover design: James Goold

Photography: Bill Zuehlke

Design and layout: Maura J. Zimmer

ISBN 13: 978-1-933502-30-4

ISBN: 978-1-610351-75-1

Printed in China on acid-free paper.

Linden Publishing titles may be purchased in quantity at special discounts for educational, business, or promotional use. To inquire about discount pricing, please refer to the contact information above.

Woodworking is inherently dangerous. Your safety is your responsibility.

Neither Linden Publishing nor the author assume any responsibility for any injuries or accidents.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

For my father who taught me simplicity and
my mother who taught me tenacity

Spike Carlsen

For my late brother Ken and
my loving wife Deb

Bill Zuehlke

Introduction

One of my favorite pieces of furniture is a side table built by my Uncle Bob over 40 years ago. Its no more than four 1x3s connected to a pair of plywood discs, but its endured a dozen moves, the burden of a few thousand magazines, even a cigarette burn from my reckless brother-in-law, Ray. Its not fancy (the good part of this, I guess, is that its never gone out of style), but it is solid, well designed and easy to buildlike the projects in this book. In fact, it inspired one of the first projects in this book.

Sure you can buy a screw-together table from a Big Box store for $19.99but in the end, you wind up with a screw-together table from a Big Box store. Theres no chance to tweak dimensions, shape, style or wood. And do you REALLY feel a sense of accomplishment when you toss your screwdriver back in the junk drawer when youre done screwing it together?

Ridiculously Simple Furniture Projects provides you with plans and instructions for building, well, just what the title says. It also provides you with something harder to come by these daysthe feeling of satisfaction in having built something with your own two hands; something you can point to and tell your grandkids I built that 40 years ago. And youll save money to boot.

Weve also scattered information on safety, tools and skills throughout the book. We didnt lump it all at the beginning because you want to build furniture, not read about it. But if youre looking for more details on a certain technique or tool, check the index and Table of Contents; theres a good chance youll find the information you need.

Before building any piece of furniture in this book (in fact, before building anything) we encourage you to grok the project first. And just what does that mean? In Robert Heinleins science fiction novel, Stranger in a Strange Land, he coined the word grok to explain the notion of understanding someone or something so thoroughly that the observer becomes part of the observedto merge, blend, intermarry ... well, lets not get too touchy-feely here. But you get the idea, right? Before rolling up your sleeves, you should have the big picture. You should grok what youre about to build, how it goes together and in what order.

And heres why: This is YOUR furniture, not ours. You know what color, size and style you like, so embellish, improvise, scale down and scale up as you see fit. For most projects we include illustrations, dimensions, even life-size templates, but our hope is youll use this information as a starting point and inspiration for building what you like and need.

There are a few projects that arent really and truly ridiculously simplemaybe pretty simple would be a better label. But we included them because, after youve gained confidence building some of the easier projects, our guess is youll be itching to tackle something a little more difficult.

So whether youre a woodworker who likes to dabble, a homeowner or apartment dweller looking to furnish a few rooms or a complete rookie thats been tempted to give woodworking a shot, this books for you. Roll up your sleeves. Enjoy.

Chapter One: Living Room and Bedroom

Uncle Bobs Craftsman Side Table

Two store-bought discs, a few 1x3sand youre a Craftsman

My Uncle Bob was one of those classic uncles that would pull nickels out of your ear and tickle you until milk came out your nose. He worked most of his life as a butcherand I suspect his daily use of a band saw for cutting pork chops naturally inclined him to use the same tool for crafting furniture. This piece was inspired by a table Uncle Bob made 40 years ago; one that still serves as a side table next to my reading chair in the den.

How to build it

You dont need a band saw to create this table. The round top and round lower shelf are precut discs you can purchase at a home center. Glue and screw the leg braces to the large top disc ().

Cut the legs to length, with 5-degree angles on each end, and create the decorative cutouts as shown in photo 3. Use a backer board so the bit doesnt splinter the wood as it emerges through the backside of the board. You can cut the slot freehand or use a straight-cutting jig (shown on ) to help guide your jigsaw.

The trim head screws used to secure the discs to the legs () are simply drywall screws with a thinner shank and smaller head. Predrill the holes to minimize the chance of splitting the wood.

Wood Screws vs. Drywall Screws

Though youll find thousands of screws at your hardware store, in the end they all do one thing: Clamp two things together. They do this by using threads to pull themselves into the bottom piece, while the head clamps a top piece against it.