I built a bench

That's right.  Do you notice anything different about this picture?  If you pay that close attention to my blog, I might be scared but also very very impressed.  

You read correctly that I built a bench.  A bench that does the following things:

1) fits perfectly under the built in desk/shelf type area that I built (see how perfect the fit is!?)

2) contains our file folders that are important

BTW - we have way more important files I promise, I just hadn't got them in there yet!!!

How sweet is that??  Actually last night I went through and put them all in there and they fit perfectly.  It's much more convenient to file things and very handy. 

Checkout the trim that I added too to make it look a little more fancy.  Just a 1X2 on the top and then some corner trim on the sides.

And there it is!!  As you can see, I'm still waiting to attach the front white trim piece until we get the glass that fits perfectly on top.  And I think we'll need it because the desk has already been used a lot and it looks like the top is already getting some wear.  That's what I like though - to know that it goes to good use, right?  (FYI - the fabric is the same fabric that I used to recover all our dining room chair cushions).

Now when I showed my sister in law Hillary this - she was a little shocked and kept asking "how did you even start this?!?".  Well, that is where the magnificent Ana White comes into play.  I took this kid's toy chest plan that she posted (here is the unfinished plan project)...

...and modified it to make sure it fit perfectly in the space but also fit the file folders inside perfectly.  Let me tell you, even for someone that does math on a daily basis, it was a lot to think about when changing the dimensions and cuts to make sure they all worked.  I did do a few wrong cuts, but I lived and it turned out just perfect.  I decided to do the molding on the bottom to match he same molding that is around our floors.

So there you have it!  A toy chest that was modified to be a bench that I covered in foam and is just wonderful!  Wahoo!  Love building furniture!!