DIY Farmhouse Bench
I am excited to show you how to build this DIY Farmhouse Bench with 2×4 lumber. It is a very cheap and easy build.
This bench is 76 inches long, and can easily seat 4 adults. It is the perfect bench for anywhere in your house, or even outside. I’m using mine in my entryway, but it would also look adorable next to a dining room table, or imagine it out back by the firepit. A firepit bench is definitely next on my list.
Oh, and did I mention it cost less than $20 in lumber? Yeah, that’s pretty awesome!
Materials:
(Here’s a little tip: I buy everything from the Home Depot online, then I just click the “pick up in store” option, and they have everything on a cart and ready for me when I get there. It’s AMAZING!
- Building Plans- download below
- 7- 2×4 studs
- 2.5 inch grabber screws
- 2.5 inch pocket hole screws
- Wood Glue
- Wood Filler
- Stain or Paint (I used American Walnut stain from Rustoleum and DecoArt’s Americana Decor Chalky Finish paint in “everlasting” for the paint)
Tools:
- Miter Saw
- Kreg Jig This was the project that made me fall in love with my Kreg Jig. If you don’t have one, buy one right now! They are less than $100 on Amazon, and it will change your furniture building life.
- Sander and 150 grit sandpaper
- Drill (this Ryobi drill/ driver kit is what I have and I LOOOVE it!)
- Countersink Drill Bit (comes with the Kreg Jig)
- Measuring Tape
- Pencil
- Eye and Hearing Protection
Cut List:
- 4- 2×4’s @ 76 inches
- 2- 2×4’s @ 14 inches
- 1- 2×4 @ 58 inches
- 1- 2×4 @ 54 inches
- 4- 2×4’s @ 15.5 inches. Both ends cut at 10 degrees off square. Ends are parallel.
- 2 – 2×4 @ 12.5 inches. Both ends cut at 10 degrees off square. Ends are not parallel. (12.5″ from long point to long point).
- 2 – 2×4 @ 13 3/8 inches. Both ends cut at 45 degrees off square. Ends ARE parallel.
Download Plans:
Download the building plans, including the step by step instructions for this bench here:
Farmhouse Bench
A basic farmhouse bench that is simple to build, but adds a huge wow factor! This bench is 76 inches long, and can easily seat 4 adults. It is the perfect bench for anywhere in your house, or even outside.
This is a DIGITAL DOWNLOAD purchase. Upon purchase, you will receive a confirmation email from Nat@thecreativemom.com (if you don’t receive this email, look in your spam or junk folders). The confirmation email includes the link to download the plans that you purchased.
How to Build a Farmhouse Bench
- Download Plans
Download the building plans (linked above) and follow the step-by-step instructions found there.
- Build Legs
For each leg, you’ll need your 15.5 inch boards, one 14 inch board, and one 12.5 inch board. Use your Kreg Jig to drill your pocket holes in the ends (see cut list).
- Build Bench Frame
After you’ve got your legs built, you will use your 58 inch board (on top) and 54 inch board (on bottom) to build your bench frame. Make sure to use wood glue and attach your cross bars using 2 1/2″ pocket hole screws.
- Add diagonal supports to frame
PLEASE NOTE: This step is not pictured, but you can see the diagonal supports in the finished photos.Â
You’ll need two 13 3/8 boards, which will be your diagonal supports. They stretch diagonally from the upper stretcher, to the cross bar on the legs. You will attach your diagonal supports using wood glue and 2 1/2″ pocket hole screws. - Assemble bench seat
Next, you’ll assemble your bench seat using 4- 72″ 2×4’s . You don’t have to hook the boards together, but I wanted my boards to stay tight together. So I used wood glue and my Kreg Jig to plank the 2×4’s together.
Note: If you are using this bench outdoors, allow 1/4″ or more gap between planks for drainage. - Putty and Sand
After you’ve got your top and your bottom assembled, fill in any holes with wood filler (make sure you get the stainable kind if you are planning on staining). If you want the bench to look really sleek and smooth, you can putty or caulk the joints on your bench. I wanted mine to look more rustic, so I skipped the caulking. Once the glue, putty, and caulk is dry, take your sander and sand everything smooth. I made sure to round the corners on my bench too.Â
- Stain or PaintÂ
Since I wanted a farmhouse look. I stained the top and painted the bottom of my bench white.
- Attach Bench Seat to Legs
Once your pieces are stained and painted, you’ll use some wood screws and attach your legs to your bench top, from the underside. (I didn’t fill the holes that face the wall, or on the underside, since nobody will see them.)
All finished!
All in all, this project only cost me about $20 in lumber. And it only took me 2 afternoons from start to finish, which included a trip to Home Depot, drying time, and doing all the necessary mom stuff, like feeding children and taking them to school.
For $20, this DIY farmhouse bench is a project you should definitely tackle this weekend. You could even let your husband help if you want.
If you used this tutorial in your own home, I would love to see photos and share them here on my blog! Please email completed photos to Nat@thecreativemom.com
I would also love if you would share this project, or save it to your Pinterest board for later! You can hover your mouse over the image above and click the “save†button, or share this on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.
If you liked this project, you might like some of my other DIY projects:
Nice work, thanks for sharing.
Love this design. Going to make this for my daughters wedding for people to sign. Thanks for sharing the specs on it.
It appears that the outside width at the bottom of the legs is wider than the width of the bench top (the seat).
Isn’t that a trip hazard? The eye sees the width at the top and the feet use that width as a reference. Anything extending beyond the width of the top could be a danger.
Get a life.
Thank you!!!!
At a glance it looks like the 54 inch would go on top of the frame and the 58 inch would go on the bottom.
That was my observation as well.
Tour finished picture show angled pieces underneath, like support pieces but I don’t see that as part of the instructions. Do you have instructions for those?
There is a step included in the instructions, which points out where these diagonal supports belong. There is not a photo that shows where they belong, but they should be included. Sorry about the confusion.