Project: Laundry Cabinets

Part 1: 2000 - wall-hung cabinets
Part 2: Dec 2003 - Under-sink cabinets

Part 1: Wall-Hung Cabinets

Don't argue; if it took up my shop time then as far as I'm concerned it counts as a woodworking project :-)

These are just a pair of simple plywood boxes, fastened to the wall above our washer and dryer. I built them to fit flush to the ceiling, so they are quite tall. The carcass, and doors are 3/4" maple-veneer plywood.

In order to spiff up the project, I trimmed the doors in 2" wide cherry. I really like the way maple and cherry wood look together.

The project was finished with a coat of blond shellac, to bring up some colour, followed by 3-4 coats of water based flecto-varathane. (Marine quality, it's going to have to live in a humid environment)

Photo Gallery

(Left-hand cabinet, Right-hand cabinet x2)

Part 2: Under-Sink Cabinet

We need more shoe/boot storage in the laundry room, since it also serves as the mudroom -- the entrance from the garage. There was room under the sink, but the sink legs got in the way. So I took out the sink, built a box to replace it (adding six inches in height while doing so), and remounted the sink on top of the box.

You can't see it in the photo's, but both the top and the middle shelf have cut-outs in the back to accomodate the plumbing. The overall dimensions are approx 34 inches wide, by 24 inches tall, by 26 inches deep.

I was going to paint the cabinet white. However, since there is a shortage of cheap plywood right now (something going on in the BC forestry industry), a 3/4" sheet of Poplar was actually cheaper than a sheet of construction grade fir plywood. The front trim is some cherry, same as on the wall cabinets.

So, since the carcass was actually semi-decent cabinet plywood, I decided to finish it to match the wall units. I gave it a coat of blonde shellac, to warm up the tone of the wood (gives the poplar a bit of a yellow cast, instead of the pale white it comes as) and the applied three coats of exterior satin water based flecto varathane. A light sanding of 200 grit between coats helped smooth it out.

The end result is pretty nice. The three cabinets look like a set.

Photo Gallery