DIY Wine Barrel Cabinet
Have you ever seen a wine barrel when out thrifting or antiquing and wondered how you could use it in your home? Wine barrels take on so many different styles depending on what is displayed on them and their effortless appeal makes them very popular with designers and party planners, but they also look amazing in any home. Take a look at this amazing wine barrel turned storage cabinet and see how easy it is to turn a wine barrel into beautiful, functional, home decor. Using only a few tools and some inexpensive new hardware, I was able to repurpose the existing wood inside the barrel to create a shelf and drop down style door for a beautiful, rustic wine barrel cabinet.
You Will Need:
- Wine barrel
- Angle grinder
- Miter saw
- Drill
- Oscillating tool
- Latching hardware
- Cabinet pull
I drilled two holes in the metal banding around the barrel to secure it in place and then used an angle grinder to cut through the metal. I cut the band in four places around the barrel to create the sides of my storage door opening.
After I cut through the metal banding, I used an oscillating tool to cut the top and the bottom of the door out of the wooden barrel. I made a horizontal cut line across the barrel just under the metal banding at the top, and just over the metal banding at the bottom to the width of my door. After making those cuts, the door should just fall out of the barrel.
I removed the wooden slats, used to flavor the wine, lining the interior of the barrel and prepared to use them for shelving. I measured the depth and diameter of the wine barrel to plan the shelf, lined up the best slats side by side and marked a spot in the center and 12 inches from the back edge of the slats with a temporary screw.
I attached a 12-inch long string to the temporary screw and looped a sharpie inside the end of it to draw a rainbow shape around the lined up slats. I flipped the boards over and numbered the boards to make it easier to remember their order in the shape created. The front or bottom board in the arch shape created will be the front edge of your shelf.
I used a miter saw to cut along all of the sharpie lines on the slats. I also cut two additional cross boards to place underneath the completed shelf for support.
I used my nail gun to attach each slat to the cross supports underneath and then turned it over and bent the nails over with a hammer. Use the hammer to push and press the nails down flat onto the wood rather than striking them.
I measured where I wanted to place the shelf inside the wine barrel and installed two screws in the back of the barrel and one screw at the same height on each side near the opening of the barrel for the shelf to sit on top of. Place the shelf down on top of the screws.
I drilled holes inside three small blocks of the cut shelf wood and installed them as stops for the door. I drilled two into the base of the opening; one on each side of the opening, and also attached a stop to the inside of the bottom of the door. I chose to make a lift-out door because a hinged door would not be able to open without ripping out the hinges due to the thickness of the barrel.
I mounted a latching device to a board and installed one part on the inside of the top of the wine barrel opening and the corresponding piece on the inside of the top of the door.
I used my drill and installed a cabinet pull-style handle at the top of the front of the door with screws.
I’m so pleased with the way I was able to transform a handsome looking wine barrel into an even more functional and useful decorative item for my home. We use the barrel top as a display area and are now able to open up the inside and store items on the new installed shelf. This project was very simple and inexpensive but provides a lot of style and design impact in a small amount of space. The next time you see a wine barrel when you are out thrifting or antiquing, don’t pass it up! Remember this tutorial that shows how easy it is to transform and incorporate a wine barrel into functional home decor.
Have you upcycled and incorporated a wine barrel into your home that you use for storage and decor? Share your photos and tips for how to transform a wine barrel or other unexpected items into custom-designed home storage at Hometalk!
Comments
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Hi great job .LOVE the idea. .I have one in my kitchen. .I keep a sixteen pound bag of cat food in mine .
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much nicer than the ones I bought for 350 each but the one thing I don’t like what you used was pull-style handle Could’ve used a nicer one that would match the drum rings. That’s my opinion
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My goal was to make the handle as inconspicuous as possible. I wanted the barrel to have a "secret" opening panel.
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Frequently asked questions
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I love the look but why not make the panel into a secure piece that isn't loose when opened... chain it on both side to tilt...
do you a hack on a coat rack please
Door doesn’t fit back in on my whiskey barrel? Any thing I could do?