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A writing desk is one of the best first furniture projects: enough parts to teach apron joinery, a top, and a drawer, but small and forgiving enough that mistakes are cheap. This one rides on 2x2 legs joined by aprons and stretchers with pocket screws, carries a single wide drawer, and wears a plywood top framed in 1x2 to hide the edges.
The pocket-hole approach here is efficient if you plan ahead: drill the 2x2 stretcher pocket holes and the bottom-stretcher holes in the same jig setup so you're not re-adjusting the Kreg twice. And drill the upward-facing pocket holes in the back apron before you assemble — those are how the top attaches later, and they're far easier to reach now.
The drawer detail that trips people up is the slide spacing. A single 2x2-legged base is wider than the drawer, so the sides of the base get 'furred out' with a 1x3 to bring the slides in to the drawer's width. Nail those spacers on before mounting slides, and the drawer will sit centered and slide square. Add an interior 1x2 divider if you want a pen tray.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| 2x2 board, 8 ftLegs and stretchers. | 2 each |
| 1x4 board, 8 ft | 1 each |
| 1x2 board, 8 ft | 2 each |
| 1x3 board, 8 ft | 2 each |
| 1x4 board, 4 ftDrawer face. | 1 each |
| 24" x 48" project panel or 3/4" plywoodTop — one smooth face. | 1 each |
| 1/4" plywood, 16" x 36-1/2"Drawer bottom. | 1 each |
| 16" Euro drawer slide | 1 pair |
| Drawer knobs or handles | 2 each |
| Pocket-hole screws, 1-1/4" and 2-1/2" | 50 each |
| Wood glue | 4 oz |
Overall cost: $$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| Legs2x2 | 4 | 1 1/2" × 1 1/2" × 28 1/4" |
| Side aprons1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 19" |
| Side stretchers2x2 | 2 | 1 1/2" × 1 1/2" × 19" |
| Drawer slide spacers1x3 | 2 | 3/4" × 2 1/2" × 15 1/4" |
| Back apron1x4 | 1 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 39" |
| Bottom stretcher2x2 | 1 | 1 1/2" × 1 1/2" × 39" |
| Top3/4" plywood | 1 | 3/4" × 20 1/2" × 40 1/2" |
| Top side trim1x2 | 4 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 20 1/2" |
| Top front trim1x2 | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 42" |
| Drawer sides1x3 | 2 | 3/4" × 2 1/2" × 16" |
| Drawer front/back1x3 | 2 | 3/4" × 2 1/2" × 36 1/2" |
| Drawer bottom1/4" plywood | 1 | 1/4" × 18" × 38" |
| Drawer face1x4Cut to fit the opening. | 1 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 37" |
Buy 11 boards at 8 ft.
3 boards
1 board
2 boards
Drill a 1-1/2" pocket hole on each end of the side stretchers — and go ahead and drill the bottom-stretcher holes now too, to save re-setting the jig. Attach the stretchers between legs with 2-1/2" pocket screws and glue, holes on the underside. Drill 3/4" pocket holes on the ends of the side aprons and attach them at the top.
Drill two pocket holes on each end of the back apron, plus upward-facing 3/4" holes for grabbing the top later. Attach the back apron to the legs with those top holes facing up on the inside, and add the 2x2 bottom stretcher with 2-1/2" screws.
Glue and nail the 1x2 front trim to the underside edge of the tabletop, flush all around, then the side trim, wrapping the plywood edges. Sand the assembly flush and smooth.
Set the base upside down on the underside of the top and fasten through the upward-facing apron pocket holes with 1-1/4" screws. Check square as you go.
Drill two pocket holes on each end of the long 1x3 drawer boards and join them to the short ones with 1-1/4" screws, pockets on the outside. Add the 1/4" plywood bottom with brads and glue; add a 1x2 divider now if you want a pen tray. Then fur out the base sides with a 1x3 spacer, nailed on with glue, so the slides come in to the drawer's width.
Mount the slides on the furred-out sides and fit the drawer into the desk. Cut the drawer face to fit and tack it on with a couple of 1-1/4" brads, avoiding where the hardware will go. Pull the drawer and secure the face with 1-1/4" screws from inside, then add the knobs. Sand and finish the whole desk.
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2 boards
2 boards
1 board
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →