DIY bench

While looking for a new bed, I became very familiar with the clearance selection of the furniture stores in town. When I found a black under dresser piece for $30 I could not pass it up. My husband was less than excited about making it into a bed so I found another use for it: a bench!

We have a big family room in the basement with little seating so this would be a great solution. It took me a while to figure out the pieces and the right foam to ensure the piece would be comfy for a long while.

First the under dresser is like what it sounds like, a short long dresser you put under something-in most cases a bed.

I measured the piece and had the hubby purchase plywood that he cut to fit the top (we added a small overhang on the front to help people from hitting the drawer knobs-just about an inch or so.)

Next after a lot of searching I found high density foam at Joann Fabrics- .5" to 5" thick but the price got bigger and bigger with each half inch. Being 26 weeks pregnant, I got to sampling them. By myself I would drag out the 8ft by 3ft piece, lay it in the middle of the aisle, and get down and sample it. Repeat,repeat,repeat- I finally settled on the 3 inch piece (the best mix of thickness and price since the foam was already on sale half off) and dragged it to the front of the store.

They cut the piece with an electric knife (a cool trick I later stole at home- I needed another excuse to get out the lonely, once a year turkey curving knife anyway...) I paid the $60 and was on my way.

At home I gathered the under dresser, plywood, foam, and fabric of choice to start the project. After noticing the green foam color lightly shown through the white fabric, I added a layer of quilt batting to the mix. I got the neighbor's electric stapler and a friend to help put it together.

I cut the foam to the exact size of the plywood. Using the under dresser as a work bench,we layered the wood, foam, batting, and fabric together. Starting on one of the longer sides, we pulled the batting and fabric over the wood and foam, stapling it on the bottom side of the wood. Repeat many times! We trimmed the excess fabric and batting away as necessary leaving us with the final project.

I can't be happier on the way it turned out and for just under $100!!! This can be done in so many different looks to fit your style with the choices of under dressers and fabrics out there.

I later found out that the original price was only $100 on the under dresser so even not on clearance- it would have been a cheap bench for the sitting and storage space it provides.

We have had two parties since the project was completed and the bench gets a lot of use. The foam is not yet showing any use or sinking- the extra money spent there shows!