We created a custom built-in closet in our hallway to replace our boring bifold doors and it turned out fantastic – we eliminated those pesky bifold doors and ugly wire racks. We built custom box-joint drawers with mortise and tenon face frames and built-in shelves. All of this using affordable tools and picking up skills along the way. We’ll show you how we did it with tips and tricks, including ways to flex your woodworking skills if you so desire or keep it simple.
TIP: To maximize space we chose to build a custom cabinet box for the lower portion and built-in full-width shelves for the upper portion.
Here’s what we started with – let the journey begin! For more decor and style tips, follow us on LIKETOKNOW.it LIKEtoKNOW.it/design.style.love!
1. Partial Demo Day and Surface Prep
We needed good measurements for our build, which required removing the bifold doors and trim pieces. Our return air vent for our furnace was in the wall to the left of the closet so we didn’t remove all the closet frame pieces. We did remove the outside trim, which you could save for reuse if the opening isn’t changing. We did not remove the carpet at this time because we were still figuring out what the transition from carpet and walls to our built-in would look like — a little internet magic and we trimmed the carpet, leaving about 3/4-inch giving our base cabinet a floating look.
TIP: See here to remove trim easily without damaging the wall – save yourself some time on your project by removing trim using a few simple tricks – it will stop the drywall face paper coming along for a ride leaving a big hole for you to mud, sand, texture, and paint.
You’ll also want to patch, paint, and texture the walls inside the closet unless you are doing a different type of treatment. We decided afterwards to wallpaper – I’m trying to think of it as an experience-building exercise in patchwork. Here are some great options for peel and stick wallpaper to bring more character to your space: Wallpaper ideas.
2. Build Custom Lower Drawer Cabinet
With your width and depth measurement of your project build area (in our case, our closet), it’s time to build your custom lower cabinet. This includes the cabinet carcass, drawer slides, drawer boxes, and face frames.
PART #01 – Build Your Cabinet Carcass
We built our cabinet carcass with 3/4-inch cabinet grade plywood and 3/4-inch poplar that we cut down to size. Glue, pocket screws, and nails, along with a dado joint, hold it all together.
This section also includes the answers to these three questions I wish I learned during researching this build:
#01: How to size the carcass.
#02: How to calculate the drawer mount hardware length.
#03: How does the door overhang on hinges impact the door and drawer placement.
See here for detailed instructions on how to build the carcass
PART #02 – Install Undermount Drawer Slides
In my opinion, undermount drawer slides are the way to go. They were way easier to install than a prior side mount project. We used Blum 21-inch mounts which were perfect.
See here for a surefire way to install undermount drawer slides with ease!
PART #03 – Build Drawer Boxes and Install Them
Drawer boxes don’t have to be intimidating as there is a range of options to expedite your project or flex your woodworking skills
We built our drawers from 1/2-inch baltic birch plywood using box joints at the front and nailing the back. We trimmed the tops with real wood veneer.
Building drawer boxes can be challenging and rewarding – see how we did it!
PART #04 – Drawer Faces Make Them Look Professional
We built our drawers using 3/4-inch poplar and 1/4-inch baltic birch plywood. Using a dado stack, we put it all together with mortise and tenons. And the doors, they are just much larger drawers in our case.
See here for constructing cabinet drawer faces and cabinet doors!
PART #05 – Spray Paint for Professional Results
We finished our drawer faces and doors using a HomeRight sprayer and Benjamin Moore’s Scuff-X paint – this combination produced professional-looking results. We even added a little extender to help the process.
Part #06 – Build Cabinet Base
We waited to build the cabinet base because we weren’t sure how it would sit in the closet. We knew we wanted to maximize space, so having the drawers be able to open with minimal clearance was the goal. We ended up using the cut-offs from the face frame and made 3/4-inch pieces. These were used to lift the cabinet base off the ground enough so the drawers could be opened without touching the carpet. We set the base back about 3/4 inches to give space for the carpet and pad to be tucked under. This also gave it the illusion that it was floating.
3. Ensure Lower Cabinet can be Secured to Wall
You’ll want to make sure your lower cabinet can be secured when you determine where it will sit in your space. To maximize our cabinet depth (and space for all our stuff) we wanted the cabinet to sit as far forward as possible – this happened to be near flush with the wall trim. Because the face frame on the cabinet and upper door frame is only 3/4-inch thick, we trimmed the closet sides in wood. The wood trim was simply nailed to the studs. We used 3/4-inch spruce because it’s what we had. We then applied mud (rather than a trim piece) inside the closet between the wall and the wood we added – we just used joint compound to fill the hole left from removing the drywall corner beads.
4. Install Lower Cabinet
To make it easier on yourself, remove the drawer boxes and even the drawer slides to lighten the load as you maneuver the lower cabinet into position. Use shims and pieces of wood to level your cabinet and then secure it to the wall. You may need to add shims to the wood outlining the closet opening to keep it square. We used 3-inch cabinet screws to secure the lower cabinet to the wall. It’s starting to come together now!
5. Install Shelves and Protect Them
#01 – Cut Shelves to Size. Our first shelf sat on top of the base cabinet. I took measurements as best I could. To be honest, there were a few trips back-and-forth from garage to upstairs to get it to fit right – getting my steps in. I then tested it throughout the closet to make sure it would work for each shelf – thankfully, it did. I used it as a template to trace and cut the remaining shelves with my jigsaw. Don’t forget to sand those shelves!
#02 – Install Brace Pieces. We opted to install the shelves on braces along the sides and back – we cut down some 3/4-inch poplar to about 1-1/2 inch and screwed them into place. Don’t worry about the center front brace yet, we’ll add that soon. We set one brace piece and then moved the shelf up and propped it into place then added the other two pieces.
TIP: Mark the location of the studs with blue tape as it’s easy to remove and you don’t have to mar your pretty wall.
#03 – Paint, Polyurethane, and Veneer. We painted the braces the same color as the cabinet carcass face frame, which was white dove (OC 17), and applied polyurethane to the shelves. We then applied birch veneer to the shelf fronts similar to the drawer tops – See here for how to install edge band veneer.
6. Install Closet Face Frame and Paint
We cut 3/4-inch thick poplar boards to match the width of the lower cabinet face frame. Pocket holes secured the frame together and cabinet screws connect it all to the side walls. We laminated (glued together) two of the thin poplar off-cut boards and cut them to the distance between shelves. A couple of brad nails secured them in place and gave support to the front-center of the cabinet shelves – this way they won’t sag and they’re hidden from view behind the center face frame. We also felt good using as much of the off-cuts as we could.
7. Install Cabinet Doors
#01 – Install hinges on doors: We measured 4 inches from the top and bottom of the door and to the center for three hinges. We bought a handy-dandy cabinet mounting hole jig to drill out the holes the hardware fit in (see below). We tested on the same wood to ensure the depth before starting to drill into our doors. A self-centering drill bit and a Try Square help keep everything square as you install the hinge to the doors. Phew, scary part over.
#02 – Install doors: We measured 3 inches down from the face frame as we knew we wanted a 1-inch overhang on top. Having four hands helped with this unwieldy part and we really didn’t want to damage those beautiful doors.
8. Install Cabinet Drawer Faces
To make this part a little easier, we bought the Rockler drawer face clamp system. They worked “okay”, but not perfect. They did help in the process. They are clearly marked for the right and left sides, just be careful not to over-clamp them. I used a 1/2-inch piece of plywood as a spacer between the drawer faces to align everything just right.
TIP: Secure your drawers in place initially with only 2 screws. This way if you need to shift the drawer faces to align them you can use the opposite locations to attach the drawer. This way, the screws aren’t trying to find the old holes.
9. Install Cabinet Hardware
This task was a wee bit uncomfortable – drilling holes into the pristine door and drawer faces (again) that we worked so hard to build. It’s also a matter of preference in where you mount hardware and what it looks like. We used these cup pulls for the drawers that are the same as our kitchen cabinets and added these bar handles to give the doors some additional character. Here are some other affordable pulls to consider.
To install, measure carefully and use blue tape to mark on it where one of your handle drill holes should be. I created a “template” out of a block of wood and made sure the handles fit on it – this template was used to transfer drill locations to the drawer faces by placing a screw through the first drilled hole. Once drilled, place your hardware screws and mark to cut-to-length (they should have quick cut areas).
TIP: I carefully held (kept my fingers out of the way) a block of wood against the back of the drawer face to reduce tear-out when the drill bit breaks through.
10. Dress it up a Wee Bit
To add some flair to the inside you could apply some peel-and-stick wallpaper. Here are some affordable options. We love the neutral leaf pattern here, just for a little eye pleasure when we are stuffing our sheets away. Although after the staged photo I’m not sure how much will be visible once we cram all our stuff back into this catch-all location.
That’s it! Admire Your Handiwork!
This project had a lot of firsts for us – box joint drawers, using a dado stack, mortise and tenon drawer faces and doors, cabinet doors, undermount drawers, and getting good results with a sprayer. It was incredibly rewarding to finish it all up and a relief to be done – it was such an uncomfortable feeling drilling holes into those beautiful doors and drawers. We also managed it on reasonably priced tools. Best of luck in your build adventures!
