A $22 STORAGE BED

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You can solve the problem of space in which to stash off-season and the like with...

by BETTY L. WILEY

Waste of any kind irritates me ... and I was long frustrated by my inability to make good use of the dusty, narrow space beneath my family's beds. Of course, there are ready-made "dresser beds" available, but I found the prices to be just too high. And though I went so far as to hunt up a number of plans for do-it-yourself storage sleepers, it seemed that those sets of instructions were more confusing—and potentially time-consuming—than I'd hoped.

Finally, I decided to take the situation (and a hammer) in hand ... and design and build my oldest son a storage bed, from scratch! To my surprise, the project turned out to be downright easy. For an investment of $22 worth of plywood, a bottle of white glue, and some finishing nails, I was able to build a simple (some would even say crude) but functional piece of furniture.

By following the cutting and assembly instructions below, you too can transform some under-bed space—which is probably not being used for anything other than breeding dust balls—into a valuable storage area!

CUTTING INSTRUCTIONS

SHEET A

[ 1] Cut the 4" waste strip from one end. (Always measure and cut one piece at a time to allow for "kerf" which is the wood removed by the saw blade.)
[2] Cut the 17"-wide piece that'll form one end and onebrace.
[3] Rip the 3" waste strip from one side of the remaining panel.
[4] Rip the 7"-wide top piece from the remaining board.
[5] Cut the end piece to 37-1/2" long . . . leaving the 17" brace.