DIY Cabinet For A Bedroom

Although this cabinet is perfect as a bedside table for a child’s bedroom, it can also be used as a bathroom storage cabinet or even a side table for a lounge. You can finish it with various techniques to fit in with your own personal style and add as little or as much detail as you want.

1. On both sides of the top and bottom, measure in 40mm from the side edges and then use a piece of 16mm board to draw a line on the inside of this mark. This 16mm-wide mark will help you to drill pilot holes centrally for mounting the sides.

2. Using the draw lines as a guide, drill pilot holes and countersink the holes on the top side of the top and bottom pieces. Bear in mind that the side sections are mounted flush with the back edge, so drill the first hole well back from the front edge.

DIY TIP:
If you are working on your own, drive in screws through the top and bottom pieces. This makes it far easier to hold and drive in screws at the same time.

3. Place one of the sides between the top and bottom, using the drawn lines as a guide and then drive in the screws that you have already placed in position. We are using smooth-shank or half-shank screws, as this pulls the sides, top and bottom sections together tightly.

Here is what your project should look like after attaching both sides to the top and bottom sections. See the 40mm gaps at the sides and the gap at the front edge.

4. Now you can place the shelf in the box and use the drawer front as a guide to draw lines for mounting the shelf. Use the drawer front on the outside and inside of the sides to draw a pencil line.

5. Before fixing in place, put the drawer front where it will go and check that the shelf is flush with the edge of the drawer front.
Make any adjustments necessary so that these pieces will be perfectly flush once you have finish.

6. Now you can proceed to drill pilot holes and countersink to mount the shelf. Again, partially drive in screws so that you can hold the shelf in place while screwing through the sides to attach the shelf.

7. To make the base for the unit you will need a jigsaw to cut angles into all four legs. Once cut, attach the legs to the base supports and then attach this entire assembly to the base of the unit as shown. Use wood glue as well as screws for this assembly to add more strength.

Here is what the completed base should look like once mounted. Note that the base is flush with the back of the unit with an overhang at the front that matches the design.

8. Assemble the drawer by using wood glue and corner braces. The sides should be lifted 3mm from the bottom of the drawer front to allow space for the drawer base to be fitted. Staple the 3mm masonite to the bottom of the drawer.

9. Use wood filler to fill in all the holes on the cabinet and let this dry before sanding with 240-grit sandpaper until smooth.

Finishing
When painting the cabinet, start with a slightly watered down base coat. Use a paintbrush to first paint into corners and then go over this with a foam roller to smooth. Paint the remainder with the foam roller and let this first coat dry.

Continue to apply paint as usual for a second and third coat, allowing drying time between coats. For this project I used Plascon Double Velvet to paint the entire cabinet in white. Once dry, this will provide a finish that is easy to keep clean.
You can choose any colour you want, you can even distress the finish or decoupage a design onto the top and drawer front.
If you use birch plywood for this project and you don’t want to stain or paint the unit, apply a wax to the top to protect it from stains.