I’ve been remodeling our blog Studio, lovingly called Organized-ish HQ, for the last month and half. The studio has served my team well, but we were in need of better storage solutions and a more functional layout. The room is long and narrow, so when I looked online for a sideboard style cabinet to hold our office supplies, I couldn’t find anything long and shallow enough to fit the area I had open. So in true Lela fashion, I decided to make one myself.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335417/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The Office Storage Cabinet Plans
The open wall in the studio can allow for a cabinet up to six and a half feet long, so I bought two stock wall cabinets from a home improvement store that are each 36″ wide. My plan is to attach the two cabinets together, add a wood top, and install tall dresser legs to make it look like a piece of expensive furniture. Once the cabinet frame is built, I’ll paint the whole thing.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335420/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
First things first, I needed to attach the two wall cabinets together. I added some scrap wood I had in my garage between the gap of the two cabinets to create a wedge, then screwed them together from the inside, top, and bottom. I ran some wood filler along the middle seam to make it look like a seamless transition, too, but it probably wasn’t necessary.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335423/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Then I added more scrap wood (which are actually slats from an old bed frame we donated) to the bottom of the cabinets to create a flat and strong surface to attach the legs. I chose 7″ tall gold dresser legs to give the cabinet some height and save our backs from bending down too far every time we need a new roll of tape.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335426/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The last step of the building process was to add a top piece. I used a ripped-down sheet of thick plywood that extends 2 inches on both sides and the front to make the cabinet look more like a piece of furniture. I glued it in place with heavy duty wood glue and secured it with some brad nails for extra safety, and filled those holes with wood filler.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335429/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Once the glue set, I used iron-on wood edging strips around the rough sides of the plywood to make it look like a finished countertop.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335432/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
That wood edging works wonders, huh? You’d never know this was just plywood!
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335438/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The last step in the building process was to paint the unit. I painted the base unit first, then the cabinet doors.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335444/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
One thing that I think worked really well for me was removing the doors before painting. Having the doors off made painting the cabinet easier, and I didn’t have to try to maneuver around the hardware. I just set up a piece of plywood on sawhorses and lined up old cans of paint to use as risers for the doors.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335456/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Ta Da! Isn’t she gorgeous? You would never know that this was two kitchen wall cabinets, would you? It looks like a fancy expensive sideboard from one of those stores you have to have an appointment to get into. And the fact that I was able to customize it to the exact dimensions I needed worked out so perfectly.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335474/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Step by step breakdown recap:
- Remove cabinet doors.
- Attach the two cabinets together using shims to fill the gap.
- Add finished end panels to the two open sides.
- Add scrap wood to the bottom corners and attach legs.
- Flip over, then apply wood glue around top edges.
- Put plywood table top on wood glue and secure with brad nails.
- Once dry, iron on wood edging to the unfinished sides of the plywood.
- Paint first coat.
- Allow to dry for at least two hours.
- Apply a second coat of paint, and let dry for 24 hours.
- Reattach doors and install handles.
![Storage Cabinet Idea for Home Office](https://cdn-fastly.hometalk.com/media/2022/05/15/8335468/diy-office-storage-cabinet-with-dixie-belle-paint.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)