I might be insane

I know there are some of you reading this who are saying to yourself, "'might be insane'!?", but hear me out. There's a reason for my confession.

I've been gifted, nurtured, born with a handy gene. Primarily this manifests in crafty ways (scrapbooking, sewing, knitting, etc.). I've also been raised to be thrifty; I pinch my nickels so hard the beaver is uncomfortable. Every so often these character traits collide in a perfect storm of thrifty creativity and I catch myself uttering the dreaded phrase:

"They want how much for it?! But I could make that!"

I've done this quite a bit lately. Buying a cottage has turned my thrift level up to 11. Where there is thrift, creativity takes hold.

"Necessity is the mother of invention!"
"Uncomfortable beavers lead to insanity!" (I just made that one up.)

I've been re-covering the seats of some teak chairs donated by a friend (you'll see that in a later post), and my fruitless search for inexpensive bunk beds is now leading me to a scary place: I think I want to make my own beds.

It always looks easier than it turns out to be in real life (much like decorating a cake). There are countless free plans on the web for bunk beds, from the bizarre to the practical to the deluxe. I drew some sketches last night of a bunk bed that might work, but then I found this on the Interwebs:

 

 (photo from http://woodgears.ca They have nice plans for single and double beds too, if you're curious)

It's kinda nice, no? I like that it's a single over double too. I'd like to put a bunk bed in every room to bump up the available sleeping space in the cottage for crowded weekends. It's made with common Big Box timber (2x4, 2x8, 2x10, 2x2, and 1x4) and doesn't look that complicated to assemble. I'd add a rail to the top bunk though. It's scary otherwise. I figure it'll be sturdy, looks not too bad, and it won't break the bank.

I have a compound-mitre saw, and I know how to use it!

UPDATE: Oh, dear. I might be in love. link (with thanks to Alison)