How to Build a Window Seat

I thought I would go back to an earlier post and show how I built the dormer window seat in the loft. All the wood used for this project was scraps left over from building the house so they aren't pretty, but they are covered up and eventually I'll paint them. The pictures are pretty poor, but hopefully they illustrate what I'm trying to describe.

The first step was to cut a 2x4 to fit across the wall under the window. You can see this at the back of the photo. Place this at the desired height, level it and screw it into the studs with long deck screws. Remember you probably have 1 1/2" of 2x4 and 1/2" of drywall, so make sure there is enough screw to secure this board well and make sure to hit the stud. I would recommend a 4" screw. This seat is almost too high, because the window is so high. It's good because it gives me lots of storage space for blankets and fabric, but it needs a step to actually sit in it easily.

After that I built the front wall like a regular framed knee wall on 16" centers so that I would have studs to nail the cedar to and plenty of support to hold people. The total wall height equaled the height of the first board placed. I placed this wall 3/4" inside the loft wall because I wanted the cedar facing boards to be flush with loft wall.

Then I cut 2x4s to fit along the side walls. Line them up with the front wall and the back ledger board and screw into the wall at the studs. If the height measurements were correct these 2x4s will be level. To support the seat I also nailed a 2x2 in the center between the knee wall and the back board, but this is probably overkill and would only be needed if your seat was wider than 48".

The top is made up of three pieces of wood. First, I covered the framing with a 1x4 along the back wall. (This board is under the cubbyholes, so you can't see it.) This board was joined to the lid (which was made from a scrap of Advantech flooring) with a zipper hinge and a flat handle was attached to the lid. They probably make better handles, but this was all our local Lowes had in stock. The front of the top was finished off with a piece of cedar mitered on the front edge to provide a more leg friendly surface. I left 1/8" between the lid and the front cedar to allow the lid to open and close without rubbing.

Cedar was nailed on the front diagonally to match other cedar walls in the house and was trimmed with thin strips of cedar rounded on the router and mitered in the corners.

The original plan was to cover the entire seat with a cushion, but then I found out that the foam only comes in 24" widths. To make up the difference between the cushion width and the actual window seat width I put together a cedar cubbyhole to hold books, pencils, paper, etc. This is the one item I would redo, assuming I get another spurt of inspiration. It works, but it could be refined to look better.

Hopefully this will help someone build their own window seat. Questions are welcome and I'd love to see the end results if you build a seat.