Part three of the laundry room makeover involves building a storage unit for the laundry baskets. There is a 21 inch wide space next to our deep sink just begging to be better utilized. IKEA storage is great and inexpensive, yet not always the perfect fit. The IKEA metal baskets and tower used in that space worked for a while. However, the tower was too tall and too narrow. Something more substantial was needed. Time to try something I have never before done, build a cubby from scratch.
Problem is, I can’t just copy someone else’s cubby plans because the space next to the sink is not a standard size. How do I design and build something that I have never done before? Will it be a disaster?
Well, I haven’t build a lot of cabinets in my time, but I have made a lot of original patterns for sewing projects. It seems like similar concepts being used. My thoughts were as follows: figure out the purpose, size, materials and supplies needed, come up with an overall look, and then deconstruct to make pattern pieces. In theory, it seemed like a decent enough plan but I was still anxious about the outcome.
Designing a Laundry Room Storage Cabinet
First of all, I don’t know that cabinet is even the correct term to be using here. It may be better defined as a cubby. I needed an easy to access space to store the stack of plastic laundry baskets until used on laundry day. Secondly, the unit needed to fit the entire space from wall to sink and under the rim of the deep sink. Although I wanted things to look nice I knew I wouldn’t be setting any high standards for cabinet making. Simple, with clean lines, and functional were the attributes I was aiming for.
Finding the Right Materials
Once I measured the space, I sketched out a rough drawing and looked into possible building materials. My first thought was plywood. Plywood comes in 4×8 foot sheets, so I drew out a rectangle on graph paper and then planned out my pattern pieces. To make things easier to maneuver and transport home, I laid out the cuts so the 4×8 sheet could be cut vertically by 20 inches. Once I got to the home improvement store to pick out the half inch plywood (1/4 inch seemed too flimsy and 3/4 inch seemed too chunky) I had a lightbulb moment.
Hold up.
Fiberboard is way cheaper than plywood and I plan to paint this cubby thing to match the upper cabinet. Fiberboard is also extremely smooth and it would eliminate any filling and sanding during the prep. Yep, let’s do fiberboard.
Another change is that I originally hoped to add a chunky butcher block top to the unit. All the butcher block I found was $$ for long counter lengths and not deep enough. Well, so much for that idea. Instead, I went with a 2×4 foot piece of plywood. Limited to the options because of no stock (even though I looked up online ahead of time) I went with the clearest piece I could find to make the counter top.
Finishing Touches
Paint was easy. I was going with the same paint I used on the upper cabinet; Heirloom Traditions Paint in Polo. HT paint has a primer and top coat built into their paint and it is an exterior grade paint. Eliminating the need to prime and add a top coat will simplify the painting process.
Laundry baskets will be regularly slid in and out of the cubby. The floor of the cubby needs to handle that kind of use. Left over vinyl Floor Pop! tiles from the accent wall are the perfect solution and cut back on any additional costs. With only needing to purchase the fiberboard, plywood, and molding, this project was under $50.
Supply List
For the cubby:
- ½inch 2’x8′ fiberboard (MDF) panel
- 15/32 inch 2’x4′ Radiata Pine Plywood
- ¼”x ¾” pine screen molding
- Table Saw or circular saw
- Cut off saw
- Sander
- 220 or higher grit sand paper
- Long ruler (I use a drywall T-square)
- Measuring Tape
- Pencil
- Safety Goggles
- Ear Protection
- N95 facemask
- Vacuum
- Wood Glue
- Brad Nail gun
- Air Compressor
- 18 Gauge Brad nails, ¾ inch
- Extension Cord
For Painting:
- Heirloom Traditions Paint in Polo
- 6″ high density foam roller cover
- 6″ roller
- Paint tray
- Stir stick
- Tarp or plastic sheet
- Plastic wrap
- Clear Matte Polyurethane
- Paint brush
- Masking Tape
- Tack Cloth
- Cans or something to elevate the plywood
For Tile Liner:
- Sienna Floor Pop! vinyl tiles
- Metal ruler
- Utility knife
- Pen or pencil
- Scrap wood or hard surface for cutting
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Instructions
The Prep
Step 1:
Maximizing the small area was key for me. I didn’t want any gap along the side of the cubby to the wall created from the width of the baseboard. To made the cubby flush with the wall, I removed the baseboard, being sure to preserve a large enough section to replace when the cubby was installed.
The baseboard was installed prior to the tile floor. It was really wedged in tight. The typical baseboard removal method didn’t to the trick, of course. At this point, I was concerned the tone for the remainder of the project was set. Fortunately, I was able to think outside the box and I used a small saw (designed for cutting sheetrock) to cut through the baseboard in sections big enough to reuse later. On the section I wasn’t saving, I used a pry bar to pull off and break up the baseboard.
Typical baseboard removal method:Â Slide a putty knife between the top edge of the baseboard and the wall and lightly tap with a rubber mallet. Go along the length of the board, wiggling the putty knife and pulling the baseboard from the wall. It will pull loose and can be pulled away from the wall in one piece, if careful.
Step 2:
Pick up any pieces of debris and vacuum all the dust from the area.
There was a large gap from the edge of the tile to the wall. The gap would prove problematic when it came time to install the cubby. I didn’t want the cubby wobbling and one side falling into the gap. I decided to fill the gap with silicone caulking that I had left over from the accent tile wall project (see link below). Fill in and then smooth level with your finger. Let caulking set for a few days to cure.
FYI, the caulking won’t support the weight of the cubby. If you want the cubby flush with the wall, fill the space with something hard, like wood. Yep, another hard lesson learned.
Step 3:
The area was FINALLY prepped! Before heading to the home improvement store, I drew out all the needed cuts for the fiberboard sheet on graph paper.
Wrangling a large and heavy board to load alone into my car was not ideal. To make things easier, lay out the pieces so that one vertical cut can be made at the store. Also, write out all the measurements of the pieces and draw it out to scale on graph paper. My hope was that if only one cut was made there, the board would still be more manageable than in one large sheet. Fortunately for me, the employee offered to cut more and I had my cut sheet on hand to know what sizes would work.
Step 4:
Once everything was back at my garage, I finished drawing out the remaining cuts needing to be made. Measure out the cuts and use a T-square to ensure square angles are being made. Label each piece in pencil with the measurements and identify which piece it is. Eliminate confusion later when you have a whole bunch of cut pieces. Every piece is accounted for when labeled.
My good friend had offered her table saw since I am without one. A table saw will give more even cuts than free handing with a circular saw. (Always be nice to people that have better tools than you do. 😉 haha!) As always, wear protective equipment when using power tools and ALWAYS follow the safety guidelines and instructions.
Step 5:
Fiberboard (MDF) doesn’t really need to be sanded before painting because it is very smooth. However, any cut edges are a little fuzzy. Since I was already sanding the plywood top with 320 grit sand paper, I hit all cut edges as well.
As I was doing this I had a plan change. Not sure why I do these things to myself. Anyway, I had cut the plywood top large enough to overlap the back of the cubby. The baseboard would prevent the cubby from being flush with the wall. My bright idea was to use a This Old House technique I saw as a child. See Step 6.
Step 6:
Tracing the profile of the baseboard onto the fiberboard and then cutting it out with a jigsaw or scroll saw was a tip I saw in my youth. I mean, the words This Old House are synonymous with home improvement gurus, right? I’ve been itching to try this technique for years but hadn’t really had an opportunity until now. So I went for it. Everything seems to line up and will work great.
But what I failed to think of was how moving the backing forward half of and inch would mean changing the final cuts for the base and shelf of the cubby. Not a problem had I thought about it and made adjustments right then. I realized the needed changes once everything was painted and tiled. Not the end of the world, but not ideal.
Learn from my oversight.
Step 7:
Once everything was cut, sanded and labeled. (Mark on the top edges which is the right side and which is the left side, the bottom and the shelf pieces. ) The pieces were vacuumed and wiped with a tack cloth before I brought them in to be painted.
Place a painter’s tarp, sheet, or plastic sheeting down on the surface where you will be painting. I use the floor, because I no longer have littles to interfere with the paint. Use the same size containers-like cans of food- as elevation for the plywood top to be varnished.
Step 8:
Paint all wood pieces and trim piece prior to assembly. It is easier to paint flat surfaces than inside a small but deep box. Once assembled, touch up nail heads or scuffs with original paint.
Use a stir stick to mix the paint for at least two minutes, being sure to scrape from the container bottom and pulling up. This will mix the pigment the most thoroughly. Do not shake the paint to mix. Shaking the paint can will create a lot of bubbles in the paint. As much as you would like to think it, you are not as great at shaking as the mechanical paint mixer. Haha.
TIPS:
Prepare the 6″ high density foam roller cover by sliding it on the roller and rolling it over masking tape a few times. Doing so will remove any loose foam bits or fibers and make a smoother paint finish.
Pour paint into a dust free paint tray (wipe it down with the tack cloth, if needed).
Step 9:
Roll the paint onto the fiberboard pieces. Roll up and down the length of the board to apply the paint and then very lightly roll over applies paint to pop any bubbles that were created. The first coat will soak in very quickly. Let dry in between coats. I did three coats total and alternated the direction I rolled in between coats to eliminate streaking. Focus on completely painting only one side of the boards at a time. Let painted boards dry for a day before flipping over and painting the reverse side.
TIP:
The back panel, the bottom panel, and the side panel that will be against the wall will not need to be painted on both sides. This will conserve paint, time and money. Also note that the shelf and bottom panel will be covered in tiles so I only painted a rough border around the edges on the top of those. Having the edges painted will help hide any discrepancies in the cut tile edges, chances are they will not be cut perfectly.
Step 10:
In between paint coats, wrap the roller and tray in plastic wrap to prevent drying out.
While paint dries, apply a layer of water based polyurethane to the top and exposed sides of the plywood. I choose a clear matte finish because I wanted protection but not a high shine on the wood top.
Originally, I contemplated staining the wood a gray that I had on hand. After testing the stain on the underside of the plywood, I determined it just made the plywood look dirty. Not the look I was aiming for.
Let each layer of poly dry for two hours between coats. Wash out the brush with warm water and soap after each coat is applied. Follow the instructions on the can of polyurethane to achieve the best results and for instructions on proper clean up. In all, four coats of poly were applied to the plywood top.
TIP:
If you have a slight indentation in your raw plywood, apply some warm water on top of the indent and let sit. The wood fibers will swell and eliminate the dent. I had to do this twice. Once dried, sand area smooth.
Step 11:
Apply the vinyl Floor Pop! tiles to the top of the base and shelf panels. First, measure the width of the board and mark the center in a few places with a pen or pencil. Second, use a straight edge to draw a line down the center. This line will help to lay the tiles down evenly. Third, start from the front and center of the panel and apply the first tile, being sure to line up the edge of the tile with the edge of the panel. Apply whole tiles first and then use any remnant tiles for the small areas. Be sure to match up the pattern!
TIP:
Flip the tiled panel over and weigh it down overnight with heavy objects to help the adhesive grip the fiberboard or MDF.
Step 12:
Now to assemble. Before pulling out the wood glue and nail gun, I marked a straight line on the inside of the side boards for where the back edge of the back board will line up. On the reverse side (outside) of those side pieces, I marked a line for the nails. Perhaps I’m just picky, but I don’t want any nails getting off course and sticking out into the cubby.
TIP:
Draw lines on the unpainted and unseen side of the board, but for the side that will be exposed, use painters tape. Instead of drawing a line to follow with the nails, mark out the measurements (1 inch from the back edge) and create a line with painter’s tape. Nail along the tape edge and pull off the tape when assembled.
Step 13:
Perhaps I am overthinking things. But at the last moment I used a piece of remnant MDF and cut one inch pieces, dusted and painted them. These four pieces will be nailed on the side boards as added support to the shelf. (Turned out to be an awesome idea that gave so much more stability to the shelf!!)
Once the paint dried, I measured 20 inches from the bottom of each vertical board and marked with a pencil. Mark on the inside of the boards. Then add a light layer or wood glue to the back side of the MDF blocks, line up the top edge with the line made on the board. Nail in place with a ¾ inch nail. This will create a support for the shelf to rest on. 20 inches was the height chosen to accommodate six stacked laundry baskets with a little room to maneuver.
Tip:
Use the T-square as a guide when gluing the blocks in place. Having the blocks pushed up against the T-square allows both blocks to be perfectly in line with each other.
Step 14:
Apply a thin layer of glue to one edge of the backing. Line up with the drawn line. Employ a helper for this step for best success. Nail along the outside side panel to secure in place. Wipe off any glue that seeps out from the joint. Repeat for the other side. Remove tape.
Step 15:
Remember how I changed things up a little in Step 6 without realizing until later that it would affect the length of the bottom and shelf? Here’s how I remedied that.
As of now, the cubby is just two sides attached to the back. Place the bottom panel in place, but with the front edge towards the back of the cubby. Mark the fronts of the side panels on the bottom panel. Draw a straight line with a pencil and T-square connecting the two marks. This is the cut line for the new length of the bottom panel.
Use a circular saw, a work table or saw horses, and wear protective gear for your eyes and ears and then cut along the line.
Repeat the same process for the shelf.
Step 16:
Glue and nail the bottom panel in place (tiled side up and painted edge facing out) with the nail gun. Be sure to nail low enough that the nails don’t poke out above the panel.
Add glue to the edges of the shelf, drop in place with the tiles up and the panel resting on the blocks. Once pushed all the way back, nail shelf panel in place. Again measure and mark where the nail line should be to keep from nailing above or below the shelf.
Step 17:
Have someone help you put the cubby in place before attaching the top. Here’s where I kind of messed up but not beyond hope.
I pushed the cubby into the corner only to realize that the caulking was not going to support the weight. The cubby needed to be moved to the right to rest on tile. But moving the cubby meant that there would be a gap between the edge of the cubby and the wall. Um, nope. Instead, I pushed the plywood top into the corner so it would line up fairly flush with both walls. This meant that the top no longer went to the edge of the right side of the cabinet. A new top would have to be cut, sanded, and varnished. Unless…it worked out fine to just have the edge of the cubby stick out a little from under the plywood top. The sink edge overlaps on that side and will cover the unsightly edge.
Not a total loss, but a valuable learning experience.
Glue the top to the cubby base and nail in place. I used nails sparingly where the nail heads are exposed and used many more nails where the edge is hidden by the sink.
Step 18:
Thankfully, I purchased and painted the trim piece. This came in handy along the left edge of the cubby to hid the small gap from the wall to the cubby edge. Measure and then trim with a cut off saw. Nail trim in place.
I also measured and added trim along the back edge near the sink. Pretty sure no one will ever see that edge but I will know it looks nice.
Touch up nail heads or scuffs with paint.
Step 19:
Take the saved piece of baseboard and cut off the left side to get a clean, straight edge. Measure it against the door frame and cubby edge. Mark with a pencil. Cut to length. Place cut baseboard along wall and nail in place. Finish off with paintable caulking. Use tape along the edges to get clean and straight caulk lines. See link below if you need more details about caulking baseboards.
Once caulking is set, the baseboard and wall can be touched up with paint. I may wait on the painting until the end of the projects. Then I can do all the touch ups at once.
Accessorizing the Laundry Room
Holy smokes, guys. This was a lot for one post. Thanks for hanging in there. I love, love, love how the cubby turned out. It is not going to win any awards with its craftsmanship, but it is decent and is a great improvement. Items were organized and put away into the cubby almost immediately after it was finished. One of the best things is that the sink is so much more stable now that the cubby is there next to it. Hooray!
The glass lidded canister with the laundry detergent was purchased at Target. The woven baskets (there are two on the top shelf), the blue candle and the soap dispenser were purchased at Home Goods. The vase is from my vintage milk glass collection and the flower was purchased at The Silos (Joanna Gaines store in Waco). Find the link here for the Ivory Plastic 40 L Laundry Baskets.
I’m actually looking forward to the next project for the laundry room makeover. I love having more storage and organization in the laundry room. And the personality that the room is slowly getting, is just so pleasing. This is a true example of how to make a house a home.
Related Project Posts:
How to Install Floor Pop! Tiles on a Wall
20 Tips for a Perfect Paint Job
Putting in a Peel and Stick Tile Back Splash (video)
How To Caulk Baseboard Like a Pro
Types of Paint Sheens and When to Use Them
How To Switch Out a Ceiling Light
12 Tips When Painting with Kids
How To Make Painted Furniture Look Great
130 Ways to Get Your Home Organized
How to Install a Bathroom Faucet
How to Read a Tape Measure (Plus Tricks)
10 Fast, Easy and Inexpensive Updates for Your Home
That’s such a big improvement. It looks really great!
Thank you! Couldn’t have done it without your help. 🙂
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Thank you so much and I am glad this post was helpful. 🙂