The $16 Bench

What do you get when you have a handy guy and a $16 sheet of plywood?
A new bench for the porch!

He whipped it up one evening with a sheet of plywood and some leftover trim pieces.

It was a little rough, but with some sanding, silicone, plaster and a couple of coats of primer and paint, it now looks like this!

I added a bench seat. The fabric is Waverly Cross-section from fabric.com:

I was inspired by Megan's mudroom bench seat from Honey We're Home. So, I pretty much just followed her directions!
I attached the foam to a piece of plywood using spray adhesive. Then, we wrapped the plywood and foam with cotton batting and stapled on the fabric.

I'll be honest, the seat cost at least twice what the bench cost. The foam itself was $30, and that was a deal because I scored a leftover piece. Why is foam so expensive?
I already had the black baskets and they fit perfectly in the boxes, hiding the shoes that were piling up at the door.
I guess, all in all, the bench cost about $60 and a little bit of work. I think it's cute and it gives a bit of storage!

So, for the porch makeover, I've checked many things off the list:

• Repaint cabinet - done!
• Put in a bench - done!
• Make seat - done!
• Replace trim around new door - done!
• Paint all trim and wainscotting - done!
• Paint walls - next on the agenda.

I hope to post the finished room soon!

I'm linking over to The Shabby Nest!