My husband and I have been busy over the past week. What started as a re-ignited love for Pinterest has quickly turned into an exciting list of potential projects… and this DIY front porch bench was first up on the list.
This bench was inspired by the original design over at DIY Candy, and we made a few changes like making it longer as well as taller. We have a rather large space to fill by our front door, and wanted the bench to be an eye catching piece so made the final piece 5 ft long and adjusted the height from 16″ to 18″. If you are considering giving this bench a try, I would definitely recommend raising it up to 18″ to make it a more natural fit for taller people.
I’ll give a breakdown on how we made our bench and what we learned along the way – but definitely check out the DIY Candy blog for more detailed instructions as well as tons more cool DIY tutorials!
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While I work with wood quite a bit because of my handmade sign business, the hubs and I don’t make many large woodworking pieces at all. In fact – this was our very first piece of furniture we’ve ever tackled. Today I’m proud would be an understatement and also that if we can do it, so can you!
What You’ll Need to Make This DIY Front Porch Bench
Naturally, we needed to hit up my own personal wonderland (Home Depot) for supplies and a few extra tools. Remember, these are supplies for a bench that is 5′ long, 18″ high and 13.5″ deep. If you change your dimensions, you’ll need a different amount of supplies
- 2×4 Wood (we bought 9 pieces of 8′ board)
- Stain + Exterior Sealant (we used Varathane Ultimate Wood Stain in Dark Walnut and Exterior Water Based Sealant)
- Sandpaper (started with 80 grit, then 180, then 220)
- Lepage No More Nails Construction Glue (we couldn’t find Liquid Nails or Titebond III in our area, but if you have them, they will work as well)
- Screws (we added screws as we went since we extended the length of the bench and wanted it to be sturdy)
- Saw (we used our Milwaukee Mitre Saw but any saw should work)
A Few Things We Learned Building our DIY Front Porch Bench
- The original tutorial included planing the wood a bit with a table saw to make edges straighter and more flush. We don’t own a table saw, and made due just fine without one. It will just take a bit more sanding to even things out as you go.
- We needed to purchase clamps for this project, since we didn’t own any big enough for the job. We chose these ones from DeWalt and are very happy with them. We bought 2, but now having done the project, I would recommend at least 4.
- We chose to round the edges of the bench during the sanding process because we both love the look of rounded edges. You can choose to do this or leave them more square!
Instructions
Even though it might look intimidating, the instructions are rather straightforward. Bonus, right?
- Get started cutting all of your wood pieces, if you are making the bench the same size as we did (5′ long, 18″ high and 13.5″ deep), here is our cut list (all cut from 2×4):
- 10 pieces cut at 18″
- 8 pieces cut at 14.5″
- 5 pieces cut at 53″
- 4 pieces cut at 60″
- Once your pieces are cut, take a few minutes to line them up, making sure you are happy with the faces that will be the top of your bench.
- Start assembling like the picture above, starting with a 53″ length first. Fit snugly against an upright 18″ leg piece. Glue as you go, making sure that your edges are flush on both sides. Once glued to the leg piece, add the next bench top piece, this time using a 60″ length.
- You will then need to take (2) 14.5″ leg pieces and glue them to the one already attached. Clamp all sections and add screws if desired.
- Continue this way, alternating long pieces and short pieces until your bench is fully assembled. Taking care to clamp after each new layer.
- We left the bench overnight to allow time for the glue to dry.
- Turn bench upright and get to sanding! These is the most tedious part, but also the most important. We wanted our edges to be pretty flush so it took some time. It was 100% worth it though!
Finishing Your DIY Front Porch Bench
Finally, it was time for the fun part! I use a lot of stain in my own shop, and it’s honestly my favourite part of any project. You never really know what the wood grain will look like until you stain it – and this is where you’ll see a reward for all that sanding you just did. We used a rag cloth to apply the stain, and only needed one coat to fully cover the bench. We then applied 4 coats of Varathane Exterior Diamond Sealant all over the bench to protect it from the elements.
Then place it in it’s new home and admire your work!
Now we just need to find or DIY make a large planter to go behind the bench in the corner – and get some beautiful flowers planted once the weather warms up. We’re in the PNW, so I usually wait until at least early May before planting new flowers for the summer. I can’t wait!
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