One summer, I was contemplating gifts for Keelyn. I wanted to get on the birthday/Christmas bandwagon sooner rather than later because at the time I was working for Craig's Cruisers as a video game tech and taking classes, and as such was rather poor. I wanted a gift that would reflect her as a person, and me as not totally useless. I decided on a book case. The dimensions were to be 4 feet tall, approximately 2 feet wide, and 1 foot deep adjustable shelves. I took a sheet of graphing paper, drew up a bookcase, then mapped out a 4'x8' sheet of plywood and figured my measurements. I noticed that I only needed a little over half the sheet to make the book case, so using the other half, I designed a nightstand out of the remaining part. This way, I had 2 gifts to present to her for both her birthday and Christmas (which are within a week of each other) since I was commuting three hours once a month to see her. Sadly the progress pictures are non-existent, as I really wasn't planning this sort of thing 3 years ago. But here are the finished products (as well as a mirrored set I made for myself while living with her parents).The first set was assembled using nothing more than a circular saw, guides and clamps, a drill press, wood glue and a finish nailer and 1.25in nails.
Since they are all made of plywood, the edges would show layers. I got iron-on veneer to cover the edges, and make it look more like solid wood. Even though it was made of birch, the grain and color matched the maple well.
The second set was done using a legitimate table saw, a drill and countersink bit, drywall screws, a drill press with plug-cutter head, wood glue, and finish nailer with 1.25in nails.
The second set isn't quite done yet. The shelves are set by 2 drywall screws, 3 finish nails, and a liberal application of glue.. The holes were plugged with maple pegs, glued into place, then sawed and sanded down to be flush with the sides. The bedside table only needs the door hardware installed and a back nailed on.
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