DIY Sawhorses

Last Wednesday, I wrote about projects that take time and money, but leave no visible results. This Wednesday, I am sharing another one of those projects – Sawhorses. Sawhorses do not cost much money nor does it take much time to make them, but they help out in a lot of projects. The only problem is that making them takes time that could be otherwise spent on something that people would actually notice in your home.

The first step to making sawhorses is to set up your work space. It is best to make them outside since you will create a lot of sawdust. We do not have an outdoor outlet, so this requires a power cord out the window. Here you can also see the peeling shutter, which is the reason that Douglas is making the sawhorses in the first place. Can you also see how angry Crème is to be locked in the house? Don’t worry; she supervised the whole project from the window.

Next, you will have to set up your saw area. Douglas is meticulous about this. You might think that he just grabbed some bricks from the yard and threw them down, but you would be wrong. OK, maybe you would not be wrong, but hey, it works.

Make sure to measure before you cut. My third and last quote for the challenge is to “measure twice and cut once.” There does not seem to be a clear cut origin for this quote. It has apparently been around for a while. I like that the Russian quote is to “measure seven times and cut once.” I think Douglas only measured once, but everything came out well.

Next you will make your cut. Don’t forget your safety glasses. See how good Douglas is about protecting his eyes?

I forgot to mention that you should have bought sawhorse brackets before starting this project. Douglas is thrilled to show you the brackets. If you don’t have them yet and need to make sawhorses you are going to have to go get some.

Finally, you shove the 2 x 4’s in the brackets and voilà your sawhorses are finished.

Unfortunately, as Douglas was finishing them, it started to rain. That meant that I could not get a nice after picture, so all you get is this picture of the sawhorses on the porch.

This makes me want to put them in the living room so that people can appreciate them. What do you think?

P.S. This post was written earlier and scheduled to post today. I am in Costa Rica and will not have regular access to the internet. Please, DO leave comments but understand that I will not be able to respond to them immediately. Also, feel free to extend your condolences to Douglas, Kahlua and Crème, who have been left behind to guard the fort while I am away.