DIY Farmhouse Bench Tutorial | BentleyBlonde

Hey Ya'll. 

I'm so excited to finally share this DIY Farmhouse Bench Tutorial with all of you!
After adding board and batten to our entryway last year, I knew I wanted to complete the look with a farmhouse style bench for our guests! Unfortunately, after searching at a ton of local retailers, I had no luck finding what I was looking for.
As luck would have it, my friends over at Osborne Wood graciously offered to provide a set of their beautiful turned legs for another DIY project, and I just knew they would be the perfect fit for the farmhouse bench we'd been dreaming of!
If you've followed my blog for awhile, then you probably remember our DIY Farmhouse Table and Dining Set Makeover, using Osborne Wood Husky Dining Table Legs (my absolute FAVORITE diy of all time!) 

For this project, we decided to go with a smaller version and perfect compliment to our dining room table legs, the Country Bench Leg.
After visiting Lowes to pick up additional supplies, and with the help of my amazing dad; we created the perfect farmhouse bench for our entryway! Read on to find out how we did it.

Materials Needed:
(2) 2x4x8 (apron)
(2) 2x6x8 (top)
(4) Osborne Wood Country Bench Legs (hard maple)
Wood Glue
DeWalt Plate Joining No. 10 Biscuits
(1) box Fine Thread Drywall Screws (6 x 1-5/8")
(4) 6 inch lag screws & washers (optional)

Tools Required:
Table Saw
Biscuit Jointer
Clamps
Screwdriver
Drill Motor
Sander

Can we all just take a moment to swoon over these gorgeous hard maple Country Bench Legs from Osborne Wood? They are a beautiful addition to our farmhouse bench, and a perfect match to the Husky Dining Table legs we used in our DIY Farmhouse Table Makeover!

Bench Top:

-  Cut the 2x6s into (3) lengths of 41 inches.

(We cut our wood down using a table saw, however if you dont own a saw, you could have the hardware store cut your wood to length for you).

- Cut the remaining 2x6 pieces into lengths of 15 inches.

- True the edges of the 2x6's so that the edges are perfectly straight.

- Put a bevel on the top edge of each of the 2x6 pieces before jointing.

- Then cut biscuit slots on the edges of each of the 2x6 pieces (as shown below).

- When all biscuit slots have been cut, glue up edges, insert biscuits, put them together, and clamp until glue is dry. (check glue bottle for drying times)

Bench Apron (base):

-  cut legs to desired length (we cut ours down to 17 inches tall )

- Cut 2x4 into (2) lengths of 43 1/4 inches, and (2) lengths of 7.5 inches.

- Place one leg at each corner, placing 2x4's between the legs as shown below, and center on the top.
(The 2x4's are placed 1/8 in. inset from each leg for aesthetics).

- Cut biscuit slots on the end of  each 2x4, and corresponding slots on each leg where the 2x4 and leg meet.

- Once this is done, glue and clamp the 2x4's to the legs ensuring the base (apron) is squared.

- Once glue is dry, place base on bench  top, and install 6 corner blocks (we used scrap wood) as shown below, using drywall screws and glue.

- We pre-drilled the 1-5/8" holes and countersunk the heads.
Adding 2 drywall screws vertically into the bench top, and 2 horizontally into the bench base.

- Sand entire bench until smooth (we used 400 grit, followed by 800 grit, and finished with 1200 grit).

- After sanding, use tack cloth to ensure there is no dust on the bench surface.
- Apply (1) coat of Minwax Pre-Stain Conditioner on bench top (according to product directions).
- Then apply (2) coats of Minwax English Chestnut stain on bench top (according to product directions).
- Apply (3) coats of Polyurethane, wet sanding in between each coat.
- Apply (2) coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White on bench legs and apron.
- Seal legs & apron with wax if desired.


Bench top after stain application:

Finished:

Decorated for Christmas:

I'm so happy with how our DIY Farmhouse Bench turned out! It adds the perfect contrast to our whitewashed board & batten entry, and gives our guests a much needed place to set their things. It will also be a great place for Colton to sit and put on his shoes for school one day, thankfully for this attached mama, those days are far in the future! ;) 




A huge thanks to my dad for all of his help with this project, and to Osborne Wood for providing the beautiful bench legs for this post.