DIY Entryway Bench

(Disclaimer:  This post may have affiliate links.)

When Chad & I talked about redoing our basement, I knew I wanted some kind of entryway bench.  I love halltrees and the cute cubbies systems that you can buy from pottery barn and other similar places, but I do NOT like the price tag.  Here is one really cute bench from Pottery Barn that costs $400. AND it doesn't even include the baskets or the cushion (or the matching shelf above which is entirely seperate).  The baskets and cushion together cost about another $170 (on sale).  So to buy it like it's shown in the picture (not even including the shelf), I'd be dishing out more than $570.  I just can't see myself spending that kind of money for a bench.

Potty Barn's Samantha Collection

UPDATE! I still looooove this DIY projected we completed, but I have noticed in the three years since we built this bench, many much more affordable options have become available.  If a DIY project like this is just out of your realm of comfort, check these out.  In the spirit of honesty, of these benches are cheaper than what we spent to build ours! Check them out:

We had a console made for downstairs to set our ginormous new TV on because we ran into a similar problem finding one.  All of them were crazy expensive and none of them were the length as we wanted or really looked like what we were hoping for.  So, we decided to check out a local furniture maker, and I am SO glad we did.  We had to wait a little on it because he was really busy with other projects, but he built us EXACTLY what we wanted for less money than almost anything we found in big box and local furniture stores (and actually also in really remote furniture stores that we spent hours driving to hoping to find something that would work).  Life Lesson: Custom-made does not always mean overpriced.  Check out ALL your options, even the ones you think may be out of your price range, before you make a decision.  You may be surprised!

Anyway, I explain all that to say that we briefly considered having this furniture maker also make us an entryway system (and every other piece of furniture we ever wished we had), but we examined our priorities and decided that we just didn't want to spend the money this time around.  We aren't sure how long we'll stay in this house (but it's looking like we may move sooner rather than later), so we don't want to be rash and spend money on a bunch of custom things that we can't end up working into a new place.  But we definitely want to enjoy this house and make it as functional as possible for as long as we're here.

So I decided that we were going to build a bench Chad was going to build me a bench. :) Just kidding.  (He wished I was just kidding about the whole project at first). I am proud to say that I helped out on this project quite a lot and that after we got started, it turned out to be not-so-difficult to build.  We had a lot of fun and we feel quite accomplished now.  And Chad had a great time using many of the Christmas presents he's received over the past few years (AKA: tools).

Here's how we did it.  I found some awesome plans HERE for free that we modified to fit our space.  Then we headed to Lowe's and bought a sheet of MDF and two 1x3s also made of MDF.  The lumber cost us $45.  (MDF is the same material that the Pottery Barn bench is mostly built out of).

Then we got our saw set up and made the necessary cuts and started assembling... this took us a few hours one weekend afternoon.  The plans and pictures of other similar projects that I found on Pinterest helped us figure out exactly how to assemble the bench to our liking.  Chad pre-drilled all the holes for the screws to keep the wood from splitting and countersinked the holes so the screws would be recessed into the bench and could be filled with putty to make them virtually invisible.

Here's what the bench looked like when before we added the trim to the bottom or the backing:

Pretty simple so far!

For the backing, I used a left over piece of wall paneling that we pulled out of our basement when we remodeled it just a few months ago.  I primed it with the dreaded oil-based primer and then we attached it to the back, and also attached the 1x3 trim pieces around the bottom of the front and two sides. (...apparently I forgot to take a picture of us doing this...)

And then I painted the whole thing.  Just one coat.  Yep.  Usually you should do two.  I probably should have done two.  Did I wait and take the time to do two?  Nope.  One was good enough for me.

Here it is:

Close up of the backing here:

So with the main bench assembled and looking pretty good by itself, I was really excited to dress it up a little!  

Chad and I scrounged up some plywood that was left over from some other projects and cut that to fit the top of our bench. Then we made a trip to Hobby Lobby and bought a roll of 1 inch foam that cost less than $5 for the amount I used, and a yard of some home decor fabric that we both liked which I cannot remember the price of now, but I believe it was about $8.

We did the good ole stretch and staple method to upholster the bench.  First I cut the foam to fit on the plywood with just a little overhang on all sides to make it a little padded on the edges so that it wouldn't hurt anyone's legs if they plopped down on the bench.  

Then we laid the fabric out on the floor upside down, placed the foam over that making sure to line it up so that the fabric print would be centered, and laid the plywood over the foam. Here Chad is painstakingly lining everything up so that it turned out perfect:

Usually, you'd want to glue the foam onto the plywood to keep it from shifting.  Did I take the time to glue it? Nope.  It worked out just fine anyway!  I stretched the fabric while Chad stapled.

Asher guarded the left over fabric. He cracks me up. :)

Pretty cushion all done and in place:

I am really thrilled with how well this bench turned out! Not to mention, the satisfaction of knowing that you built something from scratch by yourself!  And best of all, the crazy amount of money that we saved by sacrificing a few hours of time and building this ourselves!  All in all we have this bench built and finished with cushion and crates in the cubbies for just over $100! That is just so much cheaper than the inspiration piece from Pottery Barn!

Asher loves it, too.  He thinks we built it just so that he'd have another cozy spot to lay.

If you're wondering about the crates in the bench cubbies, I got them from Michaels for less than $20 each.  I originally wanted to use baskets, similar to what was shown with the Pottery Barn version, but I ran into these crates at the craft store and they were cheaper than the ones I was considering from Target.  Plus they pretty much PERFECTLY matched the color of the console that we had professionally built for out TV downstairs, and the color also tied in very nicely with the gray fabric of the bench cushion.  Easy decision!

I am so happy with how it turned out!  Chad and I definitely plan on building a matching shelf, too, eventually, and then it'll be a complete set and we can hang our coats!!


I made a little chart of some of the main materials and products I used on the bench, if anyone is curious where some of the things came from! 

Basement Renovation - The Reveal

Chad and I were so excited about the way our basement renovation turned out.  We've long had the "building bug" and this project just made us even more excited for future house projects. The basement has gone from my least favorite place in our house, to my absolute favorite... I LOVE to go down there now to do laundry (except for the carrying clothes up and down the stairs part which still drives me crazy!!) and we spend the vast majority of our "down" time downstairs now (pun!).  Hope you enjoy this little tour of our hard, fun work!

Coming down the steps, this is the view... 

I took out the clutter for a few pictures to show how the finished wall turned out... You'll probably notice how the paint color that we chose for here - Wedgewood Grey by Benjamin Moore - looks very different depending on the lighting... sometimes it's a light blue and sometimes it's a dusty bluish-grey: 

We keep Asher's crazy massive "cat condo" in the corner (not pictured) and a keyboard that we have no other good place to put :)

I designed this pretty dandelion out of vinyl and I hope one day to set up an etsy store and start selling this design and some of the others that I've made...

And Chad and I made this bench for the entryway space (more on how we made this in another post to come!!):

Now to the actual relaxing space!! 

Chad and I had a local furniture maker make us this cabinet (we don't have any knobs on it yet because we couldn't decide what we wanted...).  We searched high and low, near and far for a TV console that would work in our space and hold ALL our 400+ DVDs and Blurays.  I cannot speak highly enough about his work! We were so pleased that we decided to go with a local business.  It turned out to be cheaper than almost anything that we could find anywhere else, and it's the exact specifications/color that we wanted.  So pleased with it! (Also very pleased with the cool big screen TV we got to go along with it!) ;)

 

Chad also built some speakers into the ceiling along with the pot lights for a great surround sound system :)

I love having soft throws around this room... there is always one nearby to grab.  Just in the basement alone I have 7 right now! And I'm addicted to them... they always catch my eye in stores.  Chad makes fun of me because I can't keep myself from buying them!!

Plus I think fabrics are so important in a room like this to soften it and make it feel comfortable.  The sectional sofa and the pillows it came with (which Chad brought with him when he left home) is very comfortable and the color wasn't horrible with our other choices, so we decided to keep it and save some money.  We did get some new drapery, though, in a soft white color, almost burlap/linen texture. Plus how cute is the curtain rod we found??

 

I closed the blinds to help with some lighting issues but check out the gorgeous view we've got today due to snow a few days ago and an ice storm last night:

 
 
I love looking out the widow at that!  Speaking of looking out of windows, remember how we switched out the door to the patio to one that had a window in it... here's how that corner of the room looks now:

We made it into another little "entryway" space since we do use this door quite often to get in and out!  The bookcase and rug were also brought with Chad from his parent's house.  The bookcase fits so perfect in this spot!  Getting it "staged" is still a work in progress though... :)  Also, check out the view from this door... dreamy, icy, lovely winter. (I know most people don't like it because it causes a lot of problems, but you have to admit, it's beautiful!) ;)

We finished off the basement with some decor in a variety of grays/metals paired with wood grains/warmer tones.  Threw in some pretty clear glass pieces, and a bit of black and white to anchor it all together.

 
This space will be a work in progress, I'm sure, until the day we move... I'm always very slow to actually buy things (Chad makes fun of me because I oohh and aahh over things like crazy, but I can never bring myself to actually spend the money...) but over time I will slowly buy and incorporate new things! :)

Thanks for stopping by and checking out this "new" space and sharing in my excitement of it!  Just as a reminded of how far this space has come I'll leave you with a few pictures of what it used to look like.  In case you missed it, you can read about how it all got started and see all the progress pictures HERE.

I think we've definitely made an improvement! :)