DIY window bench

The YEARS I’ve spent planning this space!! It came together like a dream.

Let’s start from the beginning! This beautiful space has sat empty since we moved in in 2020. I’ve dreamt for years of building my own window bench, but I let myself get into my own head and keep me from doing it. All the measuring and calculating kept me from feeling confident about doing a good job. But as I’ve been working on making this first floor a place I love, I couldn’t keep walking past this space and just turning a blind eye. I had to give it a try! This is the space I was working with:

A pretty good canvas to start with! I got to work measuring and building the base. I located all my studs before screwing my 2×4 into the wall that will be the back part of my base. I built the outer base out of 2x4s as well.

I bought this 4×8 piece of sanded poplar plywood to use as my top cover. It was very smooth and just the right amount of thickness! In my original plans, I had not thought about creating a door for extra storage. As the project went on though, I knew I wanted to give it a try!

I bought a piano hinge to use on the storage door and marked the lines to cut the door out. I was nervous! But it all went off without a hitch.

I hadn’t given much thought to how I would attach the hinge, but right away I knew I’d have to put it on the outside because I hadn’t left myself enough space from the wall to put it inside. All good though! I knew I had plans for trim and a cushion so I knew it’d get covered.

Without fail, my measuring was off somehow and I ended up cutting the top too small. But again, the trim was going to save me!

I used 1×3 boards for my trim! For the top front part, I had to cut my trim where the door will be opening.

Now onto paint! I had no clue what I wanted to do originally. I bought a sample of this SW taupey paint and thought I’d just paint the window seat itself. But once I got the paint on that, it just didn’t feel right. So I decided to keep going!

While I sat on my paint decision, I got to work on my bench cushion! I searched high and low for a fabric I liked and couldn’t find a thing. But then I remembered a quilt I had saved to my favorites on Amazon and I don’t know why I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It was the perfect color, perfect pattern. I just had to try it.

Now, I will never claim to be proficient in anything upholstery lol. So while I know this isn’t washable, it was what I could do with what I had. The stapling was super easy, and if I ever need to change out the fabric, I think it’ll be pretty easy! I needed to have something to staple to, so I used some construction adhesive to attach a piece of leftover plywood. It worked perfectly!

The funnest part was putting it all together and bringing in the details I’d been imagining in my head. I had ordered a beautiful handmade lumbar pillow off Etsy that I knew would be the star of the show. And the brass details from the rods is just the cherry on top. Here’s the final product!