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"  This planter is designed to suit a range of skills, various tools and different methods of working. Those who are up for a challenge will like its subtle double taper: Cut parts square and then trim away a few whisper-fine shavings of wood for a furniture-quality fit. For a simpler version, do away with the taper, enlarge the bottom panel and lengthen the cleats there. The planter&amp;#039;s board-and-batten construction accommodates either approach. Use a pot inside to preserve the interior from degrading, or just fill it with dirt and accept the aging process gracefully. We built ours with certified sustainable western red cedar, a wood that is responsibly harvested and will stand up to the elements outside your door.  Download an animated walk through and full printable plans for this project (PDF, 4MB). Tools &amp;amp;amp; Materials The nice thing about this planter is that you can be fussy building it or kind of casual. Either option will result in an attractive project. Use nearly knot-free cedar, with parts carefully cut and fitted, to produce a planter with clean lines and a furniture-like feel. Or, use a knotty rough-sawn cedar and dispense with careful adjustments to produce a rustic planter well suited to life outdoors. For the former, you&amp;#039;ll need a table saw, a drill driver and a well-tuned plane. For a rustic planter, a jigsaw will do, and the parts can be assembled with sawn, rather than planed, edges. The Plans Our planter is tolerant of small inaccuracies. For example, the cap has a 1/8-in. gap around its perimeter. It fits easily over the sides and hides screwheads at the top corners. Also, it can cover a gap where panels meet.  Finishing Touches Guard the planter against splintering by sanding or planing a generous bevel across the bottom edge of each panel. Also, apply your exterior finish to the endgrain of each piece to reduce the water that wicks into the wood from wet ground or damp pavement.  Making the Four Panels  Cut panel pieces to length and taper one edge of each corner piece. If you have a table saw, make a tapering guide as shown in the drawing to hold the stock safely as you slide it along the saw fence [ 1 ]. Otherwise, cut the parts with a jigsaw. Note that one tapered piece on each panel is 11/16 in. narrower than the piece on the opposite side. This makes up for the thickness of the overlapping piece on the adjacent side.  To ensure consistently shaped panels, build the planter sides on an assembly platform. Lay three panel pieces (one straight and two tapered) on a piece of plywood using 1/8-in. spacers between them. Fasten guide strips to the plywood to hold the parts in position [ 2 ].  Cut each cleat a hair shorter than its theoretical length and fasten it to the panel side [ 3 ]. Inset the cleat by 3/4 in. to allow space for the adjacent side.  Download an animated walk through and full printable plans for this project (PDF, 4MB). Box Assembly  Before assembling the planter, use a block plane to slightly bevel the edge of the narrower tapered piece of each panel. It should be a shade under 90 degrees. If you opt for a more rustic-looking planter, skip this step. Use a band clamp and some thin wedges to hold the panels together, then drive deck screws through the upper corners of the planter [ 4 ].  Next, bore a series of 1/16-in. pilot holes along the planter&amp;#039;s corners and drive a finish nail into each hole; don&amp;#039;t drive the nail into the adjacent panel [ 5 ].   Remove the band clamp and the screws; apply glue to the joints. Reassemble the box with the screws, and finish driving the nails [ 6 ]. Use a nailset and drive each nailhead slightly below the surface so that it can receive exterior-grade wood filler. Cut three bottom pieces and screw them into place.  Download an animated walk through and full printable plans for this project (PDF, 4MB). Creating the Cap  Cut the cap pieces and bore pilot holes for the finish nails used to hold them together. Place the pilot holes well away from where the miter cuts will be made. Glue and nail the pieces together [ 7 ].   Cut the miters on each L-shaped piece and dry assemble the cap using a band clamp to hold it together as you bore pilot holes for the nails [ 8 ]. Remove the clamp, apply glue to the miters, reclamp and fasten the cap assembly together.  Next, use a block plane and lightly skim the cleat tops to produce a level surface. Position the cap with an even overhang, and bore pilot holes into the cleats. Remove the cap, apply glue to the cleats and nail on the cap [ 9 ]. After the glue has dried, set the nailheads and apply wood filler. Sand all surfaces with 120- and 220-grit aluminum oxide paper.  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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