Guerilla Furniture Design: How to Build Lean, Modern Furniture with Salvaged Materials

The author is a young man of vision and precision, and this fascinating book shows that he's creative and talented in bringing new use to ordinary items that we may not give a second thought to repurposing. You can almost feel the joy that Will has experienced in visualizing what he can do with "salvaged materials" and then bringing them to a new identity of usefulness and enjoyment. No doubt he's had some fun in his searches for the materials he had in mind. This is a top-quality book with incredible photography and amazingly detailed instructions, with precise drawings and measurements of each part in the process. Maybe he should work for IKEA so we could put their stuff together more easily!! He also instructs readers that you don't have to have a boatload of tools in your "workshop," whatever and wherever that may be. Applause for this great publication that should get your creative juices flowing! My own talents lie in creative sewing projects for window treatments and decor, but Will can lead you to so much more -- with some fun along the way. No matter the size of your wallet or your living space, you'll find some great ideas and instructions to furnish them. Definitely a 5 Star book.

Not what I was expecting. I was hoping the furniture designs were made with more lasting materials like reclaimed woods and metals. Cardboard furniture is cool but not functional in a house with kids and pets. The instructions seemed easy enough, the layout is very well done, and the pictures are great, but I was hoping it was a little more advanced. It's great for a beginner and can inspire some cool ideas, so it depends on what you are looking for.

What a detailed and interesting book, I gave away my first copy, and ordered a second: I could tell within reading the first few pages that this was written for everyone, but its interest levels are somethings average people don't consider (when looking at what goes into their finished wood projects).

I was excited to get this and try out some of the projects. I've now done three: the flat-pack sawhorses, the bracket chair and a bedside table. As a beginner "furniture maker" with some hack carpentry experience, it seemed like a good start of a book. But, the poor editing--which for a book such as this, should mean getting a third party to do the projects following the instructions that we'd read--has caused me frustration, and to waste my time (though it could be argued that I'm learning from these errors) and to a lesser extent, material (the ones I had to buy). A minor error for the chair: How many mending plates are needed? I counted 12, not 16. Though I ended up using two of the extras to strengthen the back support because the instructed number allowed it to give too much, and I was reluctant to lean back on it. A major one for bedside table: The instructions say to drill in the side panels of the box one hole 3-1/2" in and 2-1/2" down; I did this and the angle was way too great. I don't know what Mr. Holman wanted for the distance down, but I kept the box and holes as is and fiddled around with the leg supports, which meant having to cut lengths and angles and afix new top and bottom supports. My dowels were screwed so I went with wood scraps using, I guess, dado joints. Anyway, the book's been useful in getting me to think about the design to application process, and giving me the experience of trial and error to improve my skills in both areas. And expanding the limits of what I'm capable of doing with these projects as starting points. For example, I'm thinking about a stereo open cabinet and LP shelf using what I've learned with the bedside table. But before that, I will next try making flat-pack shelves and lamps (cubes for ceiling and variations of the scrap). One more thing:Why was the cardboard shell chair frame instructions omitted? I mean, I suppose it could be adapted to the bracket chair or some factory made chair missing a seat and back, but it would have been nice to learn other frame designs.

I'd checked this out at the local library and liked it so much that I bought it. Our lifestyle doesn't mesh well with traditional furniture and we're always looking for sturdy yet reasonably attractive budget-minded projects to better utilize apartment space. You will need some very basic tools and some work space, and you're good to go. I do have one question, though, for all the books that utilize pallet wood....do people just swipe it from the backs of stores or is there a legally acceptable way to acquire pallet wood?

Reusing, repurposing and recycling decorative objects to keep them out of the landfill.

full of great ideas! easy to build. much emphasis on sourcing of materials, which is great if you are on a budget or care about the environment.

I was disappointed. He does a lot of conceptual stuff, with unconventional materials, cardboard, for example. I wouldn't spend time crafting a piece of furniture out of cardboard, because it won't last long enough. He states the cardboard id recycle-able, but even still if I'm going to spend time making furniture, I want it to last. A lot of the stuff while functional, isn't really aesthetically pleasing. It just isn't really usable beyond a college dorm, if that.