Featured Story

How to Build a Cold Frame For Winter Gardening (With Plans!)

Your plant-growing season can start long before warm weather hits—all it takes is a wooden cold frame box with a transparent roof. Here’s how to build one of these mini-greenhouses yourself.

Previous Woodworking Stories

How to Turn Easy-to-Make DIY Boxes Into Flexible Furniture If you can build a box, you can build almost anything. Build 10 boxes and you can furnish a room. Here's how to turn homemade veneered plywood boxes into a platform bed, coffee table and storage shelves. (Published in the January 2010 issue)
Pro Tips For Installing Crown Molding Crown molding is not easy to install, but the right trim can transform a room. Here are illustrated step-by-step guidelines that prove that a skillful layout and smart shortcuts can change any apprentice carpenter into a ceiling molding master. (Published in the November 2009 issue)
8 Alternative DIY Woodworking Projects These eight alternative woodworking techniques from Instructables prove that it's possible to execute a successful project using down-and-dirty methods that emphasize frugality over formality.
How to Build a Wooden Bench: DIY Woodworking Project Here's an easy weekend woodworking project. A simple wooden bench, which features a hinged top above a surprisingly spacious storage compartment. The 14 x 36–inch seat is wide enough to accommodate two adults. (Published in the August 2009 issue)
The Science of Flooring: DIY Guide Here’s a look at recent advances in flooring technology—flat, scratch-free floors that can soundproof a room, snap together without nails and sit cozily on top of concrete—and how it works. (Published in the July 2009 issue)
How to Plan and Post a Perfect Pergola Pergolas can be the perfect backyard oasis, but they're also fun to build. They're a perfect blend of big honkin' timbers, some pretty neat carpentry and a little landscaping thrown in for good measure. Here's how to plan and post a perfect pergola. (Published in the May 2009 issue)
How to Design and Cut Signature Rafter Tails for a Pergola One of my favorite things about pergolas is how unique they can be. This pattern—I'm officially naming it the Clipped Circle—is easy to lay out and replicate accurately for every rafter.
How to Build A Storage Shed: Frequently Asked Questions Over the years, Popular Mechanics has published several articles about designing and building backyard storage sheds. These articles have always generated a lot of mail from readers looking for specific answers to their shed-building questions.
How to Build a Tough Toolbox: Step-by-Step Plans With 3D Toolboxes these days look less and less like boxes. They’re bags, usually. This homebuilt box has a nickel handle as beefy as a billy club, a diamond-plate exterior, sturdy oak ends—and there’s not a stitch of fabric to be found. (Published in the January 2009 issue)
How to Build a Pergola: FAQs Pergola expert Mark Clement answers some of the most frequently asked questions on pergola design and construction to help you get started on your own pergola project.
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