Tips For Building Your Own Furniture

With the growth in interest in DIY and home crafts projects, many people are choosing to build their own furniture.  Intrigued?  Then read on to discover some essential tips to get you started.

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The rise in home-grown furniture making

There are loads of reasons why increasing numbers of DIY enthusiasts are having a go at making their own furniture.  For starters, it can save money compared to buying items.  You also get unique one-off pieces of furniture, that fit with your style preferences and tastes, as well as slotting into corners or awkward areas in your home.  As a means of expressing your creativity, furniture making gives you control over the total design and production processes, ensuring you can monitor quality control throughout; something that can’t be done when buying furniture from stores.  And, with the growth of DIY programmes and books, as well as how-to-do-it online videos or tutorials, making your own furniture has never been easier for even the novice DIYer.

Plan your design

However, that’s not to say there aren’t things to consider before you wade in on your first furniture project.  The success of your endeavours can largely depend on how much initial thought and preparation you put in beforehand.  It’s sensible to draw up some design plans, together with dimensions and measurements.  Work out what equipment and tools you’ll need, as well as the type and quantity of materials.  If your motive for making furniture is to save money, then make sure you work out how much it is going to cost you to make your items before you get started.

Knowledge is power

Before you embark on the practical work, ensure you know what you’re doing.  If a method or procedure is unclear, or you don’t know how to use a tool or item of equipment, then swot up on it beforehand.  The internet is a great resource for doing this, and online guidance videos or tutorials can be really helpful.  If you know what is required before you get going, then you’re less likely to make mistakes mid-project.  For that reason, it’s a good idea to start on a simple project, and progress to more difficult and challenging tasks as your furniture-making skills evolve.

Tools and equipment

Make sure you have the right tools and equipment for the job.  Only buy the items you need (otherwise your new hobby could turn out quite expensive), and if you can’t afford some items, then see if you can borrow any.  Don’t compromise on health and safety, though.  If you need to protect yourself when working with certain tools or equipment, then invest in the appropriate gear.

Materials

Use the measurements on your plans as an indication of how much materials you’ll require – whether you choose wood, metal, glass or plastic, for example.  To avoid errors along the way, carefully check measurements before you cut the materials.  Take your time, and don’t rush your project – even if it starts taking longer than you anticipated to finish it.

Finally, if your end project isn’t totally flawless, then try not to lose sleep over it.  It’s all good practice for next time, and the blemishes are probably not as bad as you think.

This article was written by B. Frisby on behalf of Tool Orders.

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