What inspired me?

Well, in light of the new 2017 maker space contest, I have been making a lot more products. I have been wanting to get back into this for a while and this contest has inspired me to get back into wood working. I have wanted to make another simple wooden phone holder for a while. A phone holder is defiantly one of my favourite things to make due to the wide range of shapes and forms you can use and incorporate into the design to make it stand out.

What will you need?

-Block of 50mm by 30mm by 60mm wood. Any natural wood will and even ply wood.

-8mm dowel (you only need 40mm of it) you can make the stand without it.

-Coping saw or table saw

-jig saw or any other hand saw to cut the block to the correct measurements.

-Dremel sander

-orbital sander or file and sandpaper

-4mm drill bit

-counter sink tool

-drill

-4x 25mm screws

-Dark wood stain

Step 1: Step 1 - the Preporation

If you don’t already have the block to the correct measurements. Feel free to use any size you want and modify the design to suit. If you do wish to make the exact one that I have, the just use a saw to make the block the correct size. I used a jig saw to cut the length down so that I could work with it. However, before I cut the piece to the correct length (60mm) I used the sander to sand off any unwanted bits on the surface. I only did this on the 60mm end that I was going to use. I then placed the work in the chuck and began to cut the piece to length.

Step 2: Step 2 - the Block

Once the measurements were met, I began to use the sander to round over all of the top corners and sand away any cut marks from the jig saw. This didn’t take that long but the longer you spend on it the better the result. For something this small I guess the sanding period should be around 5-15 minutes.

Step 3: Step 3 - the Notch

I now had to cut out the notch in the block for the phone to sit in. using my ruler and pencil I made some marks where I knew I wanted the notch to be. I also added a ridge for the home button. For some phones this is the only that will turn the phone on so I believed it important to add it, just in case. Then, using a coping saw I began to cut away the notch. I cut the two lines then used a chisel to knock the cut piece out. However, the coping saw can also be used to do this. The coping saw was also used to cut the ridge on the front.

Step 4: Step 4 - the Sanding

I then used my Dremel tool to round over the ridge and get rid of any burs that were left after cutting the notch for the phone. I also used a rectangle and triangle file to remove some of the larger pieces. If you used the table saw angled at around 15 degrees that there will be very little to remove after. This is probably the best way as each cut is clean and results in no sanding or filing after.

Step 5: Step 5 - the Legs

Now all left to do before staining is the legs. I used 8mm dowel to create four individual legs for the stand to cut on, to keep it off the desk just in case I wanted to modify the design and add a charger port. To make the legs I marked 4 legs on the dowel at 10mm intervals. Using the coping saw I then began to cut each piece. I then sanded them all down and once that was done, I used the 4mm drill bit to drill a hole in the centre of all pieces. Using the counter sink tool, I then drilled a 5mm counter sink in all four legs. Using the ruler and pencil, I marked on where I wanted the legs to go and used the 4mm drill bit to drill a 20mm hole. I drilled a ole this deep as I didn’t want the wood to split once the screw was fired in. I then added the screws.

Step 6: Step 6 - the Stain

The next step was definitely the easiest. I used the darkest wood stain I could find to finish the work. Using a cloth and a small brush, I applied a layer of the stain all over the block. I unscrews the feet and stained them separately as it was a lot easier and cleaner to do. After a few minutes the stain dried and the project was done.

Step 7: FINISHED

Thank you so much for reading this Instructable, even if you clicked onto the by accident thank you. Every view counts. I love these mini projects as it gives you people, my viewers a quick and simple project to try at home, please feel free to comment, follow and favourite for more amazing Summer DIY projects like this one.