NEW YORK — Ana White, who runs a popular website devoted to
woodworking for women, came out with her first book this fall.
The cover of "The Handbuilt Home" showcases a huge hammer and a
fair amount of pink. Inside, close-up shots of well-crafted,
brightly painted sideboards, console tables and play kitchens
look like they were taken from a Pottery Barn catalog, only
White includes instructions on how to build them yourself.
There are photos of smiling young women who've used White's
carpentry plans, alongside their testimonials ("This great
console table really is a simple project") and tips ("It helps
to use a shelving jig from a woodworking store").  White isn't
the first to target an increasingly visible demographic of women
who want to build their own furniture, but she's one of the
savviest. Her website,, is an amalgam of the ideals of American
womanhood, blending a pioneer woman's can-do spirit with the
intimate tone of a mommy blogger. White, once a self-described
Alaska "housewife" and stay-at-home