Barnboard Potting BenchOne of my favorite rustic craft projects, after twig fence building, is making garden furnishings such as seating, tables or rustic potting benches. Here is an example of re-using old salvaged fence or barn boards by making them into a potting bench. This is the perfect rustic garden accent to use for displaying a precious succulent collection, or even using it for its real purpose; re-potting. Your barn boards will dictate the eventual size of your project. Think outside the box when planning your projects – you’ll be amazed at how good you get at this. Pretty soon, you’ll be seeing projects wherever you look. Rustic crafts by their very nature are unique and challenging, but let your imagination dictate the direction to take. Given the same materials and tools, every gardener will come up with a different slant on how to use them. That's what makes salvaged art so much fun! 
To start your rustic potting bench, you’ll need some old fence boards or weathered barn boards. To me, there is so much beauty in old found items, so the older and more beat up the better. I’ve even seen other craft makers put old boards on the driveway and drive their truck over them a few times to give them even more patina! You don’t have to go to that extent, as you’ll be placing your bench in the elements to weather naturally. I’ve used larger sized twigs for legs on this bench, which you can too, or some lumber. Try and suit the size of the leg pieces to the finished size, and give them enough bulk to make it sturdy. The last thing you need is a tippy, unstable work surface when you go to re-pot your precious plants. The measurement for the best bench height for me is about waist high. To get an idea of the best height for you, decide if washing dishes in your kitchen sink is comfortable, and adjust up or down. The front legs will be this measurement; the back legs are taller so you can put a small shelf on it. Decide on a suitable width for your potting bench. I made this one big enough so two flats of plants will fit on it, but you may want it wider. Don’t make it too wide, as this will affect the weight of the finished piece. Attach all your pieces starting with the legs and the side pieces. You can use deck screws, pre-drilling a pilot hole, or nail the pieces together. Add the counter top, and then the diagonal braces. It’s helpful to have another pair of hands to help you hold the pieces as you nail or screw them. You’ll find as you go along that the bench will firm up. What seems flimsy and wobbly becomes sturdier as each diagonal piece is added. Don’t be too worried that the pieces don’t fit together perfectly – that’s the beauty of rustic crafts; they don’t have to be perfect. Other things you can add:
Keeping a scrap book of pictures will serve as a reminder when you look for ideas, and garden tours are a superb source of inspiration, too. Rustic garden crafts in general are fun to design and build; a useful and unique potting bench will be the jewel in the crown.
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