It’s the moment everyone’s been waiting for, the winner of the first ever KDH Family Build-Off is:

If you weren’t able to figure it out already, here’s who made each project, in the order of final rank:

Project #1: Eye Glass Holder – Dan (my brother)

Project #2: Michael Scott – Mike

Project #3: Display Board – Jana (my mom)

Project #4: Air Plant Holder – Me!

Thank you to everyone that voted!!

It was a valiant effort made my all, and it made for some fun competition between the family!

We’re ready for Round #2 and we have some more participants who are planning to join, (weather above 25 degrees makes everyone want to get outside and do things).

The topic has been chosen, and next round is: TRAVEL 

I’ll post the projects here for voting again probably around the end of May, so look for that later!

It’s finally here!  After an extension due to some extreme weather in February up here in Ohio, here’s the the first KDH Family Build-Off Challenge Reveal!


If you’re just tuning in, check out the competition announcement here.  But for a quick reminder, my family decided to start a friendly building competition.  We were all challenged to build something out of pallet wood based on the topic ‘The Office’, which was randomly selected from a list of topics everyone submitted.

The Rules:

1. Projects will be turned in bi-monthly, on the last day of the month.  First project to be submitted Feb 28th. (Extended to March 22nd – reason “It’s too freakin cold”)
2. Each project must be structurally made of pallet wood.
3. Projects can have other materials added to them (metal, ceramic, glass, electronics, cloth, plastic, etc.) as long as it remains primarily made of pallet wood.
4. Projects can be finished in any way you want (stain, paint, veneer, upholstery, etc.)
5. Projects don't have to be complex to win. Simply gluing the wood together if you want is fine, they don't have to last forever. Obviously, everyone is not going to be at the same ability level, but while craftsmanship is important, we should focus more on creativity.
6. No teams! This is a competition for individual creativity. Although help with power tools is allowed.

So, now it’s time to reveal the projects!  We only had 4 entries this time around: Dan, my mom Jana, Mike, and myself.  This is a competition based on creativity, not popularity, so we’ll reveal the participates responsible for each project after the voting is complete.  For now, here are the projects:

Project #1 – Eyeglass Holder


Project #2 – Michael Scott Mural


Project #3 – Display Board


Project #4 – Air Plant Holder


Now it’s your turn to vote!  Use the widget below to cast your vote. 

We’ll leave voting open for 1 week, until Sunday, March 29th.


Come back next Monday to see who built which project and who won the first KDH Family Build-Off Challenge!

We’ll also be announcing the next topic.  That’s right we’re already starting the second challenge!