Rustic Bench and Coat Rack Tutorial

Here at my house we have been under going many projects.  We are updating the upstairs, gutted the basement restroom and are in the process of putting it back together, so I thought what's one more thing!  HA!  When I brought my idea to do this project to my husband, I thought for sure he was going to tell me I was crazy because we have so many other things going on.  Thankfully for me, he saw what I saw....an easy project that would ultimately make my life a bit easier and he didn't say 'No', so I immediately ran to my local home improvement store!

I wasn't following any plans, just an idea I had and a space to fill. 

This was what was thrown here.  Not really working for me,

I wanted something chunky for a bench.  So I decided to use a 2x12.  My hallway is less than 5' wide, and I always remember that you should have 3' for walking room.  So I didn't want something too wide.  Plus it would just clutter the space.
For the back piece of the bench and the coat rack I used a 1x8.  I unfortunately got these in two trips, because I was making it up as I go.  I wasn't sure if I needed a back, but after building the bench, I felt like a back would anchor it better.

Here is a list of what I needed...

1- 2x12x8' (you need 8' for this project however my store only sold it in 12' length so I can make another bench now!)
1- 1x8x10' try to find the straightest one you can
8- 2-1/2in double wide corner braces this (these came two to a pack so I only needed to purchase 4 packs)
wood screws
stain of choice (I used Varathane in Dark Walnut)
5 hooks of choice (we used this)
nail gun

Cut list:
2x12: 1- 5' & 2- 16"
1x8: 2- 5' sections

easy peasey!

When I got my wood home I started staining.  I wanted to distress it a bit so I took a hammer to it.

 I used it the "right way" and then turned it to the side and hit that way too.  You can use chains as well, we just didn't have any.  I figure my kids are going to take care of all the distressing!

As a big painter, the staining was quite a fast process.  I just followed the directions on the can. 

Apply liberally wait 2-3 minutes then wipe off the excess.  I used a lot of fabric to wipe up the excess.  I had a ripped fitted sheet that I used.  As for the brush I used...you can use those foam ones or I just grabbed a cheap 1" brush that my kids use for painting.  TIP- you need mineral spirits for cleaning...so needless to say I threw the brush in the trash because I didn't have any.

So after my wood was dry, it was time to assemble.  Determine which side of the 2x12x5' is going to the the top of the bench and lay that side down on the floor.  You will be using the 16" pieces as legs.  I wanted there to be four feet from inside leg to other inside leg.  I don't know how to go about telling you to accomplish this...so I will let you just figure it out...I know you can do it!

So we have this awesome right angle clamp to hold the leg to the bench, but if you don't have one,  it would sure help to have an extra pair of hands.  So once you have figured out placement of the legs you will stand the leg on the bottom side of the bench, place the brackets where you want them.

We used two on each side of the leg, so each leg had 4 total brackets.  My kids are rough on things so I wanted them reinforced.  We placed each bracket about 1.5" from each side. You can either mark the spots with a pen, using the bracket as your template, or just use the bracket and drill your pilot holes.  Once you have done that you can use the hardware that came with the brackets to attach the legs to the bench. (I ended up taking stain after it was built and go over the shiny brackets.  It doesn't look pretty but now I can't see them glaring at me).
 So, because I had someone at the store cut them for me, the legs weren't completely straight, and neither are my floors I am sure! So we attached a shim to the bottom of one of the legs and stained it.

Shim

Hopefully you can skip this step!  If you do need it, you just need to move the shim in and out until it the wobble goes away...gotta just mess with it.
To attach the back, we used our handy dandy tool again, other wise help would be awesome...We lined up the bottom of the bench with the long side of the 1x8.

Bottom of bench meets with bottom of long side

Again drilling pilot holes, we did 8 evenly spaced.

Brady wanted to help.

I also wanted the holes countersunk too.  This will help it lay flatter against the wall (if your walls are straight....mine aren't even close!).  Attach the back using wood screws. 
Voila your bench is done!

We had thought about attaching the bench to the wall for multiple reasons.  One being worried about the back being pushed on a lot and it not holding.  Seeing as our wall curves horribly, attaching it is NOT going to happen! So I leave that choice to you.

This end is pushed as close as it will go...sigh

So now for the coat rack.  First, figure out where you want to place your bench.  We lined up our coat rack right over it and wanted the ends to match.  Second find where all your studs are.  We put the board up first and then attached the hooks.  So you need to determine what height you want it to be.  We placed ours 55.5" from the floor to the bottom of the board.  We attached the board using our nail gun and 2" nails.  We nailed the board into the studs using 4 nails per stud.  We had four studs that the board covered, so we figured it isn't going anywhere!

Now that the board is up you need to attach the hooks (almost done...this is where I get super excited!).  We used 5 hooks so we placed them (the middle of the hook just eyeballing it) at 8", 19', 30",41", 52".  We placed them about 1" from the bottom of the board to the bottom of the hook.  I wanted them low on the board so you can see more of the board.  You can place them where ever you would like.  I am just telling you what I did in case you love it as much as me :).
So, like the brackets you can either mark all the holes that need to be drilled or just hold up the hook and drill the pilot holes while holding up the hook and using as a template.  When all the pilot holes are drilled, attach the hooks using the hardware they came with. 

Line the bench up with the coat rack and get ready to do your happy dance...Guess what...you're done!  Have the closest toddler see what they can reach now...

Before

After

I would love to see all the benches you make...
If you have any questions, ask away.  I am sure I have left something out.  Seeing as I am writing this and my kids are running around, asking me questions, fighting, etc.

Have a good one!  Happy building!!!

Side note:  we we re purposed the bookcase in our kitchen nook where we were going to build a cabinet.  That project just got put on the back burner...for awhile.  Love when things work out!