Regardless of whether you have a spacious garden or you own a small backyard space that you want to decorate with unique DIY items, today’s article will definitely provide you with some inspiration. No garden or backyard would be complete without a seating area. What better way to make sure yours is something you don’t see every day than make your own? Moreover, what better material for a garden bench than wood? For today, we’ve gathered 6 wood garden bench plans that you can follow to make your own bench. We’re going to tell you all about why they’re so great and what you have to do to get them done.
6 Wood Garden Bench DIY Ideas
1. Bed Frame Garden Bench
Do you have an old bed frame at home that is just taking up space for nothing? Or could you find a bed frame on Craigslist, the same way the originator of this idea, Brittany from Pretty Handy Girl did? Regardless of how you get your hands on a bed frame, you can turn it into a wood garden bench with some creativity, effort, handiness, and patience.
The great thing about this project is that you can stumble upon a large variety of bed frames. This will make your creation unique. You can use the headboard as the back of the bench and the footboard as the sides of it. All you have to fashion by yourself is the place where you sit, which is the easiest part of the entire DIY. We must warn you that this project can be quite challenging, especially if you’re not used to DIYs and working with wood. Still, if the complexity of it doesn’t scare you, you’ll be happy to know that Brittany offers extremely detailed instructions of every step she went through to create the wonderful wood garden bench you see in the image above. As long as you follow her advice, you should be able to make one for yourself as well.
2. Shelf Garden Bench
For the people who don’t want to venture into building complicated and time-consuming wood garden benches, this option might seem more appealing. That’s because you really don’t have to assemble anything to get a lovely, creative, and colorful wood garden bench. All you need is a bookshelf that you no longer use and that has the shape of a bench. The decorative pillows are completely optional. So don’t be afraid to be creative and experiment with different ideas of how to decorate your wood garden bench.
As you can see from the image above, all you have to do is place the shelf on its side and then start decorating it. You can choose to paint over it or leave it as it is, add multicolored pillows or stick to only one print and color scheme, place decorative items inside of the shelves or keep them empty, and many other tricks that will turn this shelf into a gorgeous bench. For more information on how the author of this DIY came up with the idea and managed to make it come true, you can visit the SYTYC website.
3. Old Chairs Bench
Yet another wood garden bench DIY that requires a little bit more time and effort, this one is all about repurposing old chairs. Again, you can use chairs that you already own or browse for some on Craigslist and in flea markets. What drew us to this project is the fact that the bench has a unique design. Thus, it defies the expectation that a bench should have a back.
If you were expecting the backs of the chairs to turn into the back of the bench, then you’ll be surprised when looking at the image above. As you can see, the backs of the chairs are placed on the sides of the bench. This creates a French-style seating area for your garden. What makes it even more French and – dare we say – romantic is the fact that it’s painted white and adorned with a white cushion.
Of course, you can also choose to bring a touch of color to the entire project by using colorful cushions or painting the bench an entirely different color. Whatever your final choice will be, this outdoor backless bench (that can also be used indoors) is guaranteed to be the center of attention whenever you have someone over. For the full tutorial of how to make this wood garden bench, make sure to visit the AnOregonCottage website.
4. Picket Fence Bench
If you’re a fan of picket fences, then why not use some pickets to create a lovely wood garden bench? The end result is a rustic looking bench that reminds us of woodland creatures and fairytales. That is not to say that you won’t need to put in quite the effort into building this. In terms of difficulty, we would recommend this project to people who have built things from wood before and who are naturally handy. If you don’t fit in the category above, you can also attempt to build this bench. Just make sure to carefully consult the instructions on the CreativeCountryMom website.
We have to say that the way the project above turned out is more than enough to convince us to give this DIY a chance. As with the rest of the DIYs mentioned in this article, the important thing is to exercise your creativity. Make sure that the end result will be something that you truly enjoy having in your garden. From the color of the bench, to whether or not you decide to paint something on it, to the things that you choose to decorate it with, every single detail can contribute to the uniqueness of your bench.
5. Cinderblock Bench
Although not entirely made of wood like the rest of the wood garden benches we presented you with up until now, we thought this idea is also worthy of being mentioned here. The reason why is because it’s a simple and creative way of building a seating area in your garden. Plus, it’s one that doesn’t require a lot of effort. All you need are some cinderblocks and some pieces of wood.
The first step is to stack the cinderblocks so as to create the left and right edges of your bench. Then, place the pieces of wood through the holes in the cinderblocks and create the actual seating area. As you won’t be able to sit on it just yet because of the space left in between the pieces of wood, you’ll have to place a cushion on top of it and some decorative pillows (if you want to). This is the extent of what you have to do to create this wood and cinderblock garden bench. It’s fast, easy, cheap, and more importantly, extremely cute.
6. Tree Encircling Bench
Finally, the last wood garden bench DIY that we would like to provide you with today is this truly creative tree encircling bench one. This is exactly what it sounds like – you’re going to learn how to make a wood bench that you place around the trunk of a tree. We’ll admit, this project is quite time-consuming and not the easiest of DIYs. Still, it’s beauty is hard to overlook. So if you have a tree in your garden or backyard, and would like to save some space by creating a seating area right around it, you should look more into this DIY on the Ron Hazelton website.
Even if the project might seem too challenging to complete at the beginning, Hazelton’s video tutorials are extremely effective in taking you through all the steps of building this wood garden bench. Although the end result is left without any adornments or even paint to cover the natural state of the wood, you can choose to do whatever you want with your project. Still, we have to admit that this rustic look is quite appealing as well.
Wood Garden Benches for Sale
If you don’t want to build your own wood garden bench and you’d much rather purchase one instead, you’ll be happy to know that there are plenty of options that you can choose from. For instance, if you’re looking for a basic bench, we recommend the Vilavita Classic Design Wooden Platform Bench. If you’re into rustic looking benches, the Tidewater Workshop American-Made Monet Bench could be the perfect choice for you.
The Bradley Eco-friendly Outdoor Wooden Garden Bench will provide any garden with a romantic look, while the Coral Coast Amherst Wood Garden Bench reminds us of the typical porch benches where you can curl up with a good book. Finally, if you have children, you can buy them the Merry Garden Kids Wooden Picnic Bench that comes with an attached table as well.
Summing Everything Up
A wood garden bench will look good in your garden no matter the season or the way you chose to style your landscape. These timeless pieces of outdoor furniture allow people to exercise their creativity and come up with unique designs for unique gardens. Whether you choose to make your own wood garden bench or purchase some commercial outdoor benches online, you won’t regret this choice of seating area furniture.
