I saw a precious little “mud bench” on Instagram….

Cute as a bug’s ear. Only one problem…I don’t have any grandgirls…just boys. Two are too old to appreciate something like this and one isn’t old enough to sit up by himself sooooo……

What to do?

As I mentioned before there is a precious little girl next door….I borrowed her to bake Christmas cookies!

She will be 8 this summer. She LOVES to make mud pies and has a raised vegetable garden. She had a little make shift “mud table” in her back yard so I knew she would love something like this!

They were on vacation a few weeks ago so it was the perfect time to build and stage a little surprise…so off to Lowe’s to TRY to find some decent wood. Not an easy task these days!

The inspiration bench looks like it is made out of regular wood and painted. I built mine out of treated wood so it would weather well. Unfortunately that means I have to wait a few months to paint it or stain it…no biggy.

For this bench I needed the following lumber (all treated):

2-4x4x6

5-2x4x6

5-1x4x10

2-8’ deck boards (they are around 3/4” x 5 1/2”)

1-1x2x8

1 plastic storage bin with a lid

I used a skill saw, chop saw, a kreg jig and my screw driver.

Remember, 2x4s are actually 1 1/2 x 3 1/2”….and 1” thick boards are actually only 3/4” thick…it’s a racket! The lengths are what they say they are….

I had all the screws and hardware so no need to buy any but you will want 2 1/2” Kreg jig screws and 1 1/2” and 2” deck screws…and some random hooks!

I decided to make the entire bench about 29-30” tall, 4’ wide and about 2’ deep. I think it may be a tad tall for a little one so I built a little “walk bench” for the front of it until she grows a tad.

I can pretty much construct something like this in my head, but if you are a novice, make sure you draw everything out on paper using the actual measurements of the lumber. Or better yet find a plan online THAT MAKES SENSE TO YOU!

The first thing I did was cut the 4x4x6s down to 4-29” pieces for the legs (remember the top will be about 3/4” thick). I used a skill saw to cut them down.

I used the 2x4x6 for the front/back frames and the side frames. The width will be 48” wide so the front frame is 48”, less 1” so the top can hang over by about 1/2” on each side, less 7”(two side posts/legs…remember they are actually 3 1/2” wide) …so the front and back frame pieces are 40”. For the sides…24” less 1” (for the overhang) less 7” (for the posts)…those are 16”. You will cut 4 of each length…2 for the top frame and 2 for the bottom.

To attach the front and side frames to the posts/legs I used my Kreg jig…love that thing. A little glue and then two screws on each end.

Just a reminder…ALWAYS attach boards with the “cup side” down…this applies to any project. To find the “cup” look at the grain at the end of the board. In other words you want the “hump” of the grain to face out. This is important to pay attention to when selecting wood…if the side that will face out is all scarred or knotted you will want to pass.

I put a frame at the top and also 2” from the bottom of the posts/legs so I could add a bottom shelf.

After I got the frame constructed using glue and the Kreg screws, I attached 47 1/2” 2x4 boards cut in 1/2, 3/4” from the top of the bottom front and back frames, on the inside…I did that so I could use 1”x4” boards as the shelving for the bottom. I just laid the 1x4s on the cut down boards then attached them with screws.

I made the top back by attaching two 2x4 boards vertically to the back frame, then attached 3 1x4x48” boards across them with screws. I laid a 1x4x48” board on top for a little shelf and trimmed it with a 1x2. Not on the inspiration bench but something that was simple to add and gave me a space for plants and such.

For the top I used deck boards. I used my jig saw to cut out a hole for the storage bin with a lid so she would have a little “sink” to mix her mud pies!

I made sure to leave gaps between the boards like you would for decking so water could run off.

As I said, we can’t paint or stain it just yet since it is all treated wood but it was super fun to stage…some cute little containers for little plants, some plastic bins for her pots and pans (all from the Dollar Store!)…a few hooks for more pots and spoons. Even a hook on the side for a little watering can.

My neighbor has a Cricket so she made a little sign so everyone will know it is her bench!

CUTE AS A BUG’S EAR!!!