Bench Ideas, Tips & Guides

Everyone could use a little extra space for storage, but if you feel as though you've exhausted all of the possibilities in your home, you're going to want to read on, as there is definitely still hope.

I ‘VE GOT SUNSHINE, though it’s cold outside, and hardly like the month of May. The golden-leaved plants that are a backbone of the garden are seeing me through.

EUROPEAN UNION? The first Apis mellifera aka European honey bee I see each year is always having at the first Eranthis hyemalis or winter aconite to open, likewise a European species. I don’t know enough to know if their distant ancestors did the same dance way back when, but I like to wonder (and I like to imagine they might have, cause that’s how my brain works). And now I will spend 57 hours reading esoteric botanical and entomological research papers on the native ranges of each if I can even find them, because it beats reading the news lately. By a mile.March 20SURVIVORS! Lichen and moss are ancient creatures, living on earth for hundreds of millions of years already through thick and thin. When I filled the bird feeder this morning, I looked more closely than I usually do at the community that has formed using a slat of a very old wooden bench as its substrate, and just thought: right, hunker down and stay put. Thank

Elevate your outdoor space with these Side of the House Landscaping Ideas to make it look better. From creative paths, lush foliage, serene sitting spaces, and enchanting garden elements, this list has it all.

We’ve got some awesome Landscaping Ideas for Front of House that will help you transform your front yard into a stunning outdoor oasis. Get ready to wow your neighbors and make your home the envy of the block!

Paint beach stones and use them creatively in a fairy garden like this. Click here for details!

Every time I go to my local Goodwill I find something that can be upcycled. Most the time a quirky desk, headboard or table catches my eye. Usually something tattered and abused and I feel like me bringing it home to slick up is rescuing it. Giving it an Afterlife! Well, one fine morning, walking in saying hi to my friends at the counter, the manager said, «Michelle, I have a treat for you!». Moses brought me over to not one, but two BRAND NEW end of the bed benches! With the TAGS! TWO OF THEM! I said, «OH, MY! How am I supposed to upcycle these?» He said «What if your Unicorn stuff could color the fabric?» I hadn't thought about that! I figured what the heck. I'll give it a try! I did and I couldn't be happier or more excited about the results! So today I'm here with step by step instructions with how to SPiT on FABRiC.

I love creating pieces from cuts of wood with live edges. When my grandfather gave me a piece of oak wood with a stunning live edge, I knew I couldn’t use it for just any old piece of furniture, so it sat in my shed for about ten years. Then inspiration hit, and I knew what I wanted to make with it. Come along and I’ll show you how I made an oak table with a live edge and iron legs.

As part of a monthly blogger's challenge, I built this DIY Planter Box Bench Seat for my back yard. The challenge for this month was to build a project out of mostly 2x4 boards. Other than the lattice, I used 2x4 redwood boards for the entire project. Redwood is a little pricier than using any of the white wood boards, such as pine or Douglas Fir, but it holds up better in outdoor conditions. (Plus, if you have a wood planer, you can buy the construction grade redwood boards for much cheaper, and after running them through the planer they come out looking like the more expensive redwood boards).

This past weekend I was able to do a little hocus pocus and turned an old, dilapidated iron bench and table thingy into a pretty magical chair and ottoman. This set was generously given to me by a good friend. (Thank you, Kirk!)

Homeowners—now more than ever—enjoy outdoor living by incorporating the front porch into their decor space; rather than let it go to waste as unused square footage. Even in colder months when outdoor living isn’t possible, homes utilize front porch Christmas decor and front porch lights to bring warmth, cheer, and brightness to the cold, dark season.

Garden obelisks are tall structures with pyramid tops used as garden decor and plant supports. They can create a dynamic arrangement in a seating area or courtyard garden, and they are perfect if you want to define the entrance to your garden. Obelisks can be used as a frame for climbing plants such as old fashioned roses, clematis, jasmine or honeysuckle. Want to learn how to build a garden obelisk?

My removable ‘outdoor air conditioner screen fence thingy’ will hide those air conditioners, allow proper air flow for the condenser, and make the AC guy happy when he sees how easy it is to remove. I made these easy and lightweight lattice screens to hang on the posts. You can easily have this project done in a weekend. So let’s get started. Here’s how to hide an air conditioner unit outside…the easy way.

I love to make old items in to new things! In my city, they have bulk trash once a month so you can grab any items from the curb that's being thrown out. Well, my neighbor set this headboard out so I thought what a great way to try to make a bench for free! I didn’t want to do something too hard so I think this works and you don’t need many tools at all

I built a large cinder block planter wall several years ago and since then, cinder block benches have been on my radar.

Explore this list of Front Door Planters that you can take inspiration from to make your home exterior stand out and boost curb appeal!

Do you want to change the look of your garden without spending much? Check out some amazing DIY Cinder Block Ideas to add an industrial and smart look to your yard!

We have a small strip of trees along the sidewalk that we've turned into a FAIRY FOREST including a Rustic Fairy Village, Fairy Farm, Fairy Chinatown Mer-Fairies at the beach, and more. There are benches for sitting and it's a nice stop on the way to the local park and lake. Anyway at the entrance to FAIRY FOREST is a tree that is a bit hollowed out on the side facing the pine trees and so it was obviously needing to become a home for our fairy folk.

John Bessler

Be it home or yard, a form of art can make a huge change in how things look! Here are some fantastic DIY Garden Fence Art Ideas you can try!

FB Marketplace is my new favorite places to score FREE furniture. You wouldn’t believe some of the things you can come across that just need a little TLC. I recently came across this changing table its owners were ready to trash and I knew this would make the perfect new up-cycling challenge!

Don't toss your old headboard or pass up that broken bed at the thrift store. You can easily make yourself a super cool and unique bench with a wooden headboard and foot board. Check out this quick tutorial, and find out how I transformed a $5.00 headboard and foot board pair into a beautiful farmhouse style bench.

If you’re looking to add some pizzazz to your yard, these 13 DIY backyard landscaping ideas have something for everyone. From easy ideas to build a raised garden bed to building retaining walls, fish ponds, and greenhouses, there’s something for everyone among these great makeover ideas.

When I was ready to start furnishing the patio space I had trouble finding furniture that was the size I wanted. I was looking for a bench that would fit perfectly against my back wall and decided that in order to find just the right size to maximize my space, I would have to build it. My DIY patio bench was so incredibly simple to build, adds so much enjoyable living space to my home, and looks amazing! One of the best parts of the building project was that I was able to make use of the leftover cut boards to build a matching chair.

Despite doing as many tasks as possible in advance of our first summer garden opening of the year tomorrow, there will always be things that can only be done nearer the time – and not just deadheading! There is furniture to be rearranged to create our pop-up café, signs to erect in the garden, cups and plates to be brought down from the loft and a whole host of other things. Having toiled since I first got up this morning, I didn’t realise till part way through the afternoon, towards the end of deadheading the roses yet again, just how tired I was (not helped by the steadily increasing temperature), so I permitted myself a break  and sat down on the shady bench behind the shed. This vantage point provides a pleasing panoramic view (partially shown above), taking in the gallery and (well-stuffed) main borders, the bronze heuchera bed, the clematis colonnade and the fringe of the woodland edge border.

My friends at The Heritage Company, an architectural salvage/ antique store in downtown Kalamazoo did it again. Instead of passing on a lonesome sleigh style headboard, they purchased it from one of their pickers with me in mind.

Make a unique herb garden using an old baby crib to keep it indoors or outdoors. Check out the step-by-step tutorial here.

Neptune are purveyors of luxury furniture and accessories for home and garden, as well as a leading name in interior and kitchen design. What’s lesser known is that they started out as a garden retailer, with co-founders John Sims-Hilditch and Giles Redman crafting a hammock from scratch around a dining table.

I love fire pits for how they look like, the warmth they provide, of how family and friends gather around it and have a good time. The absolute satisfaction that comes from kindling the fire and leaning back comfortably, watching the flame and falling into a sweet sleep is a feeling you cannot replicate.

In today’s world it is not at all easy to live in a large, traditional house. The prices for everything have been skyrocketing and the future does not look like it will give us any kind of respite. The mortgage business crashed the world market in 2008 and it hasn’t picked up entirely still. Plus, the traditional house can be too common and mundane to live in. Humans crave novelty. We are susceptible to boredom and being turned off by the mundane. We always need something new for ourselves.

Spending time outdoors is a wonderful experience that all people enjoy all year round no matter what’s the weather like. The nature has soothing properties and makes us feel good about ourselves. A dose of fresh air and sun is beneficial for our health as well, and having a walk or just sitting outside is recommended.

Spring is here, greenery is just around the corner, after the first, extraordinarily blossom, today we ought start to envision our decorating plan, we ought to envision how we are going to enjoy spring and summer outdoors, in fresh air, relaxing, soothing our nerves, loosing ourselves in the lush, green garden.

I've built this simple bench for a friend of mine to use on its home terrace and i featured it with two plots to fit in it some furniture plants to give it a better stylish look.

We tackled a project last summer that I was loathe to do, but after years of praying to the Yard Crasher gods to no avail, we plunged into the pool patio project. Our inground pool is surrounded by a paver patio that pre-project resembled an animal pen. By that, I mean the metal fence that runs the perimeter was very, very close, allowing just enough space for two people to pass but certainly not to comfortably seat anyone. I don’t know how it is that I cannot locate a photo of the before, to illustrate how tight it was. However, here is a photo taken afterward, where the measuring tape denotes the end of the former pool patio. Tight, right?

Last year I fancied up my front porch by building a DIY Corner Bench with a Built-in Table (you can find that project here: http://www.pinspirationmommy.com/diy-corner-bench-with-built-in-table/) and a Firewood Rack. This year I decided the rest of the front of my house needs to be spiced up a bit as well.

Create an outdoor space you’ve been dreaming of by adding a simple, yet gorgeous DIY concrete block planter box to your patio or flower garden.