Homemade Craft Cabinet

Patty Anderson
by Patty Anderson
4 Materials
$62
2 Days
Easy
I was one of those people who kept a neat home, keeping things that I truly needed, and casting away all the other things that tend to clutter up a life. Then I started hanging out with you all........icon .......and I found that I needed to keep all those little things, wine bottle corks, crown royal bottles, spare pieces of leather, glitter, paint, tape, you name it, because all these things could possibly be used in a DIY project! My desk drawers where stuffed with possibilities, layers upon layers, and something had to give. I decided to build me a Craft Cabinet! All-righty, then! Off to Lowe's we go!
I re-arranged a few pieces of furniture, and found a good spot to put a cabinet. I did some measuring to make sure I didn't cover an electrical plug. I'll tell you all my measurements here, but when you make your own, build yours to fit your area. These will just be ideas and guidelines. I found some lovely white pine, the least expensive type of pine, and bought 6 pieces of 1X10's, 8 feet long. I'm 5'4", and didn't want to have to reach over my head (too much!) to reach the top of the cabinet, so I decided to make them 5'6" tall. I cut 4 boards to that length, and decided I wanted a width of 26 inches, so I cut 4 boards to that length. I had the chopsaw and the fan in the bed of my truck; being a shade tree carpenter!
I had a plan. I figured I could handle seven shelves, so I used the bandsaw to cut me some shelf runners, 1 inch by 18 inches.
Here's my shelving layout. Remember those beautiful Royal Crown bottles that were painted like stained glass? Uh-huh, have to have room for those! And the Plaster Of Paris containers. So I measured those items, and made sure my lowest shelf was high enough to accommodate them. I drew lines where I wanted my runner to be, and used my DeWalt finishing nailer to put them in place.
Okay, top, bottom, sides, now for shelves. I had several 1X4's that I cut for shelving. With 5 pieces making a shelf, I figured this puppy was gonna be a heavy cabinet! Ah well, gotta have......
By now, after hanging out with you all, I was keeping just about everything, including these old freezer shelves. Nice. Light. And by golly, they would fit, with a bit of trimming! I didn't plan for this, but this will lighten the load!icon
I took my top, bottom and sides into the shop that has a flat surface. I propped my wood up, squared the corners, and began finish nailing the 1X4 shelving into place, starting with the bottom, then the lowest shelf.
Got the top, bottom and the 3 wooden shelves on. Looking good!
I needed to trim the freezer shelves to fit, so I got the jig saw with a metal cutting blade, and trimmed them to fit. They were perfect in depth, just needed a bit cut off the sides.
Just look at that! Fits like a charm! Never saw this coming!!!
I had some bead board pieces laying around, so I trimmed them for the back, and finish nailed them on. Now to get the dolly and bring this into the house!!!
Well, you didn't think I could pass up an open canvas for Unicorn Spit now, could you? Went a little wild, I know....probably should have used just a few colors, but they all looked so good!icon .....watching spit dry.....then the polyurethane that sealed it.....icon
So! Here is my Craft Cabinet! I emptied out three drawers in the desk, and graciously offered them to my deserving hubby, so he could store his stuff! Now, about painting those Royal Crown bottles.......icon
Suggested materials:
  • Lumber from Lowe's
  • Some wood from around the place
  • Old freezer shelves I had here
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