How to Build a Craft Supply Cabinet

A craft supply cabinet provides space for projects-in-progress as well as supplies. Clear plastic bins allow you to take inventory every time you open the cabinet, making you less likely to run out of something mid-project. Melamine shelf stock with pre-drilled holes for shelf-support pins allow you to adjust shelf height as needed. 35-by-24-inch interior shelf dimensions allow you to lay large projects flat while paint or glue dries. Add clear plastic shoeboxes to one shelf to keep smaller supplies organized.

Para-aramid gloves (also known as Kevlar or Nomex)
Painter's dust mask
Wraparound eye protection
2 pieces 1/2-inch-thick melamine shelf stock, 24-by-36-inches
2 pieces 3/4-inch-thick melamine shelf stock with pre-drilled holes, 24-by-47-inches
Power drill with 1/16-inch bit
Countersink bit
4 pieces 1/2-inch-thick melamine shelf stock, 24-by-35-inches
16 metal shelf pins
1 piece 1/2-inch melamine shelf stock, 36 by 48 inches
2 pieces 1/2-inch-thick melamine shelf stock, 18-by-48-inches
Piano hinges
Wood screws, 1 1/2 inches long
2 bar-style door handles
Clear plastic storage bins and shoe boxes

Instructions

- 1
  Don a painter's dust mask, wraparound eye protection and para-aramid gloves, also known as Kevlar or Nomex. Pull hair back into a bun if it is longer than chin length, whether you are male or female.
- 2
  Turn the 47-inch-long pieces of melamine shelf stock so that sides with the pre-drilled holes face inward. Place them between the 36-inch-long pieces of melamine to create a 36-by-48-inch box frame.
- 3
  Drill 1/16-inch-diameter pilot holes that go through the top 36-inch melamine sheet, along the 24-inch edge, and into the 47-inch sheets. Begin drilling 3/8 inch from the left front corner, placing a hole every 2 inches, and end 3/8 inch from the left rear corner and 3/8 inch from the left side. Repeat for the right side.
- 4
  Countersink all the holes. Secure the top to the sides using 1/8-inch diameter, 1 1/2-inch-long wood screws.
- 5
  Repeat steps 1 through 3 to attach the bottom to the sides.
- 6
  Place the shelf pins in the holes in the sides of the cabinet so that the first two shelves from the bottom are 11 to 12 inches apart and slide the first two shelves into position.
- 7
  Drill through the sides of the cabinet into the first two shelves every 2 inches from the front of the cabinet to the back. Countersink the holes and secure the shelves with 1 1/2-inch-long wood screws.
- 8
  Attach the back by inserting the wood screws every 4 inches, drilling through the back and into the sides, top and bottom.
- 9
  Open one piano hinge. Lay one side of it ridge-side-up along one of the 48-inch-long edges of the 18-by-48-inch pieces of melamine; they will become the cabinet doors. Secure the hinge to the melamine using the manufacturer-supplied fasteners. Repeat for the second door.
- 10
  Screw the loose side of one piano hinge to the front edge of the left side of the cabinet, with the ridge of the hinge facing you, as recommended by the JustKidsFurniture.com website. Repeat to attach the loose side of the second piano hinge along the right front edge of the cabinet.
- 11
  Open and close the doors several times to ensure that the hinges are secured correctly. Remove and reinstall them if necessary.
- 12
  Attach a bar-type door handle to each cabinet door, 2 inches from the left edge of the right door, 30 inches from the floor, and 2 inches from the right edge of the left door, 30 inches from the floor.
- 13
  Slide the remaining two shelves into position. Move the pins to make the shelves farther apart or closer together. Slide the bins and shoeboxes into place and fill them with your craft supplies.

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