You want your own island?? Make one! DIY Kitchen island.

I needed an kitchen island desperately as I love to cook. So I made one by buying two prefab cabinets that matched my already existing kitchen (or think outside the box and go with a different color). One cabinet was a two door/two drawer cabinet, the other a one door one drawer. I clamped them together and bolted them together from the inside. Then I bought dry erase board in white to cover the back of the island , I glued it with construction glue after cutting it to measurement. (My son loved to practice his spelling words on it and draw when he was little). Next I bought some corner molding and painted it white to seal the corners of the island for a finished look. (The granite was not my doing- had a company do it- but before I got granite I went to a Corian place and had a counter top made for my island in the measurements I wanted). I made sure when they cut the granite they gave me enough of a ledge for stools if I wanted in the future.

**I have since remodeled the kitchen again, and am now going to tackle the re-surfacing of it.**

17 Comments

Steve G Fort Collins, CO

Very creative. How did you attach the island to the floor, and what is your flooring?

on Feb 23, 2012 · Like 1
SheilaG, Plum Doodles Acworth, GA

Ana, you have some great ideas, love the dry-erase board idea for young ones. Beadboard would work well, too.

on Feb 23, 2012 · Like 3
Ana M Alpharetta, GA

Steve, I did not attach the island to the floor, instead I put felt stips all along the edges (you can not see them) so we can easily move it when I want to clean under it, vacuum or mop. It has been the smartest thing, especially when we have to change out our dishwasher , we just moved it and the installation was a breeze! My flooring is tile in two different gray colors.
Sheila, the dry erase board came about because I wanted a surface that matched the pre-fab ...»
cabinets and it happened to match it perfectly! Plus I figured it'd be a fun thing, my son used to love using it - Now he is *too* big.

on Feb 24, 2012 · Like 0
Charlene S Lawton, PA

Small wheels would have worked as well Ana, and you can still use the dry erase board for messages & lists. Great job on your project!

on Feb 24, 2012 · Like 0
Ana M Alpharetta, GA

Yep Charlene, I considered wheels, but it did not work well with the pre-fab wood used on the cabinets (compressed board- would have had to build it up and might have looked weird.) I currently have a painting hung on the dry erase board, got the idea from a friend, never thought to hang a painting in that spot but it works. I saw an island that had chalk board on the side I did dry erase. That would be cool too.

on Feb 24, 2012 · Like 1
Sheryll S Jacksonville, FL

I am interested in your dish drain/rack. Does it slide over the sink? Where did you find it if so. I don't have room in my tiny kitchen for a high rack on the side of my double sink. Nice job on the kitchen update.

on Feb 26, 2012 · Like 0
Ana M Alpharetta, GA

IKEA, it's an IKEA dish drain. It fits over sinks and
Drains into it. But my sink is very large and is
A single sink not double bowl, when I re-did the
Kitchen we got a sink that would fit a cookie sheet
In to wash it :)

on Feb 26, 2012 · Like 0
Tonya H Kimberly, WI

This is exactly what I been asking the hubby for! now i can do it myself! thanks!

on Feb 26, 2012 · Like 1
Ana M Alpharetta, GA

Tonya, if you want any info on how to do it yourself, let me know! Are you looking to put and island in your kitchen ?

on Feb 27, 2012 · Like 0
Sheryll S Jacksonville, FL

Oh Ana, be still my heart. I absolutely hate my double sink!!!! I wanted to replace mine with a big ol country sink, but did not, cause of having to redo the pipes underneath...... I love your kitchen!!!!

on Feb 28, 2012 · Like 1
Sheryll S Jacksonville, FL

And see. SEEE...... a woman did this kitchen.... a woman that COOKS and BAKES.not a man's idea of an idito kitchen.

on Feb 28, 2012 · Like 1
Ana M Alpharetta, GA

Sheryll, you might want to look into it, mine is undermount , it is not a farmhouse style so I did not have to re-plumb other that simply connect my faucets. I measured investigated and found the one with the right measurements and dimensions for no re-plumb needed. It fits a large cookie sheet, and ALL large pots with no battle.
I looked online and in stores, found the one I wanted -it was $1400.00!!! *GULP* - and then ...»
*hunted* online until I found it for $300! Had to wait a little to ship to me and all but it was SO worth it, I look at it now and I tell my hubby it's THE best part of my kitchen, I hate doing the dishes and it makes it better! And when I don't want to do dishes , I stack them in there waiting to go in dishwasher and you can't *see* the mess! I still need to do my cabinets, that is what is next on my list, my kitchen cabinets re-do but budget at time was only for the granite and the sink and backsplash.
on Feb 28, 2012 · Like 0
Ruth H Alpharetta, GA

Thanks for sharing your great idea. I love it!

on Mar 28, 2012 · Like 0
Marg C Middletown, NY

wonderful! and look at all the extra cabinet space you now have! Very creative :)

on Mar 28, 2012 · Like 0
Jeanne D Lorton, VA

This is beyond words ! I tried for years to figure out how to do this and finally bought a wine cabinet with marble top. Will save this.

on Mar 28, 2012 · Like 2
Diana N Covington, GA

I used to design kitchens for a big box store and this is how we made islands - by putting base cabinets together. One way to put it on wheels is to inset pieces of plywood into the bottom of the cabinets and mount the wheels to that. Another way is to mount the cabinets to a plywood base, put some 1/2 round molding to cover the edge and have the wheels mounted to the bottom of that. One thing to remember about putting a cabinet with a countertop overhang on it on wheels is balancing the ...»
weight. If you put granite or quartz countertops on and they overhang just a little to much, the cabinet could tip over if it's on wheels. It can tip over without wheels, but the wheels just add a little bit more instability.

on Mar 28, 2012 · Like 2
Tonya H Kimberly, WI

yeah iI love it! I need to finish my bathroom first, but would like to keep this one on file! Thanks!

on Mar 31, 2012 · Like 1