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Outdoor Loveseat Glider

August 30, 2014 Rachel 10 Comments

I’m SO excited to have finished this huge project!

May I present to you, my first -ever- build:

Outdoor Loveseat Glider!

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This is what the frame looks like, sans cushions and pillows! Notice it is built entirely from 2x4s! You can use just plain pine 2x4s, but we used weather-treated cedar stained pine, after which I stained dark walnut.

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As you can see, the main design was adapted from Ana White’s outdoor sofa plans that were posted this summer on Ryobi Nation.

anawhiteoutdoorsofa
After Haven Conference in July, and meeting all the awesome Ryobi people, I knew I wanted to build something soon. When Ryobi told us about a contest for Haven attendees, with several prizes, it was just the motivation I needed to get crackin’.

So I called my good friend who also happens to love building and DIY, Kim. She and I studied Ana White’s plan and thought up of ways to modify it to make it unique. We came up with the idea of converting the sofa into a glider using Rockler’s glider hardware. The sofa plans are quite large, so it didn’t take long for us to decide it needed to be a loveseat instead. Kim drew up our basic plans with rough measurements and we went to Home Depot to get our supplies!

We bought for each loveseat:

10, 10′ WeatherShield 2x4s in cedar stain

Box of 2 1/2″ exterior screws

Box of 2 1/2″ Kreg pocket hole screws

Glider Brackets, set of 4 (from Rockler)

4, 3 1/2″ long 1/4-20 bolts

4, 4″ long 1/4-20 bolts

8 lock-tight 14/-20 nuts

8 washers to fit the above bolts

(optional) wood stain – I used Minxwax Dark Walnut- oil based

The tools we used were:

10″ compound miter saw

Screwdriver/drill

Kreg Jig (for pocket holes)

Nothing too spendy or fancy and our motto throughout the entire building process was,

“It’s an outdoor sofa. It doesn’t have to be perfect!”

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I was skeptical that the brackets would be able to support the weight of the heavy seat. But it does! And with ease! The trick is the horizontal spacing on each bracket. At first we drilled holes so the brackets were exactly vertical of one another. Only problem was it barely moved! So, we moved each of them in by 1 inch and it glides so smoothly now!

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You have NO IDEA how pleased I am with this project.

It made me realize that I’ve been missing out on so much fun, building other types of furniture!

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Now is a good time to buy outdoor cushions if you need them… practically everywhere has them on sale and I got these blue and white ones at Home Depot for 50% off. I through in a couple of my indoor pillows for the picture, just for a pop of color. I might end up sewing some custom size ones next year in a beige color. But for now, these will do!

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My partner-in-crime building, Kim, has a gorgeous, huge, white porch with all kinds of space for seating. She dressed her loveseat glider with some cute, bright pillows and cushions, and it looks so lovely here, doesn’t it?! Makes me wish summer was lasting longer… 🙁

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I would say the best part of fall approaching (besides wearing layers and jackets again) is the mums. They are such a bright spot of happy!

So what do you think?

I’m submitting this project to Ryobi Nation’s Haven Conference Contest for a chance to win $1,000 worth of power tools! Would you please vote for my project? A workshop full of power tools would be a DREAM COME TRUE! It will go live on Tuesday and voting ends on September 30th. The most votes wins!

I will provide a link as soon as it goes live, on my Facebook page, so make sure you stayed tuned and follow along!

Happy Labor Day weekend!

curb appeal, Haven, patio love

Comments

  1. LUCY says

    August 31, 2014 at 12:29 am

    Pretty dang spectacular ….Pinned and will be sharing on FB tomorrow…xo

    Reply
  2. Mary @ Orphans With Makeup says

    August 31, 2014 at 2:22 pm

    That’s amazing. Love it in the setting you have it in…..with the beautiful greenery.

    Reply
  3. ashley says

    September 1, 2014 at 3:46 am

    of course it looks amazing. would expect nothing less!

    Reply
  4. Danielle says

    September 4, 2014 at 1:11 pm

    AMAZING! You’re talents never cease to amaze me. LOVE how it came out! x

    Reply
  5. will says

    May 1, 2015 at 5:07 pm

    Are the plans you used for the glider portion of Ana White’s couch available?

    Reply
  6. Becca says

    April 1, 2016 at 7:26 pm

    I am so in love with this! Did you ever post the plans? I would love to get started on my own! Thanks!

    Reply
  7. Michael sloan says

    October 17, 2016 at 10:03 am

    Could you post some detailed plans like ana white does for her projects? Would love to build this but need a bit more direction

    Reply
  8. Heather says

    May 27, 2018 at 5:21 pm

    Did you ever post plans? I could likely create something very similar but do much better with plans?

    Reply
  9. Jenna Wilson says

    January 31, 2019 at 5:25 pm

    Do you have any plans for your Outdoor Loveseat Glider? I would love to have them if you do.

    Reply
  10. Alan Porter says

    December 5, 2022 at 12:58 pm

    Love it want to build one…will pay for basic plans

    Reply

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