We’re sorely in need of cabinets since the “fixer upper” house we purchased only had a few. So after a few years of wishing I decided to look and see if it’s possible for me to build my own. That’s when I stumbled on your website and the plans for the cabinets. So about 4 weeks ago I began the first one, and screwed up on the outset. I have access to a bunch of rough cut cypress, but nothing with a “gauge cut” edge or consistent thickness. So I elected to go with a couple of the Stain grade panels sold at Lowes, essentially a white pine. They’re edge glued and come in different widths and lengths. The screw up came when I read the wrong measurement and purchased the 16” wide panels. Built the whole box before realizing that I had just made a 17” deep wall cabinet. Turned out to be ok, the wife is happy with it, so I ran with it. The other mistake was using the wrong stain to begin with. Tuned the wood a reddish color (which the wife didn’t want), so I had to try and get some of it out, or scrap the whole thing. Ended up going with the Minwax Early American stain. Wife is happy again. For the second one I used a different method to obtain the wide panels. (The photos make the whole setup look redder than it actually is). Reason for using the boards instead of the plywood as called for in the plans was that I didn’t have an easy way (or a dry one) to bring plywood home. Plywood is expensive at the big box stores, it’s astronomical at the local stores where I live.
(first cabinet) One furthest to right
Materials: The panel is the 16”x 96” x 1” stain grade panels sold at Lowes for about $ 28.00. (2) 1”x2” 8’ long of the “select pine” sold at Lowes. About $12.00 (1) 1”x3” 8’ long of the “select pine” sold at Lowes. About $ 7.00 Wood glue, various pockethole screws and finish nails. Back panel was the 5MM thick plywood 4’x4’ section sold at Home Depot for $ 9.00 Shelves are two pieces of 1×8 edge glued, and screwed into place with pockethole screws. Door dimensions: 15”x29”. The door panels was made out of (1) 1”x6” x8’ pine tongue and groove cut to 29” (three lengths) about $5.00 at Lowes. The door frame is a 1×3 ripped down to 2 ¼” wide, and planed down to ½”. Hinges were a pack of two for less than $3.00 @ Home Depot. Also used some glazing the gaps between the boards, the covered with a light coat of satin finish.
(second cabinet) One on left.
Materials: Side panels, top and bottom: (1) 1×10 x8’, (2) 1×8 x8’ Spruce boards. Bought local hardware for about 25 dollars. Ripped to appropriate lengths doweled and glued, ripped down to width. Shelf again was two pieces of 1×8 edge glued and screwed into place. Back panel was another piece from the 5mm section listed above.
The corner cabinet was mirrored after a store bought one, using a 4’x4’x1/2” piece of birch plywood for top and sides, and 1” thick piece of cedar board that I ripped to three lengths, and doweled and edge glued together for the bottom. Standard 1×4 pine used for the incidental framing.
