Assembling cabinet furniture with your own hands: the main stages
Assembling furniture yourself at home is a labor-intensive task, but at the same time it is an excellent help for saving the family budget, as well as an opportunity to demonstrate an original design approach and aesthetic sense. Making cabinet furniture with your own hands is not very common, but it brings noticeable benefits and moral satisfaction. The created product can be very stylish and favorably emphasize the overall interior design.
Select fasteners after you have decided on the main material.
To cope with this not very simple, but fascinating task, you need to have at least basic skills in working with tools and be attentive and accurate. To create cabinet furniture, you can choose inexpensive parts or use materials available at home.
The created product can be very stylish and advantageously emphasize the overall interior design.
To assemble a cabinet or chest of drawers, you must first calculate the parameters of the future product. To make cabinet furniture with your own hands, the first thing you need to do is make a drawing with the dimensions of all the parts.
Before making furniture, prepare a drawing of the future product.
It is also necessary to determine what material you will use during assembly. Depending on this, fasteners, tools and auxiliary equipment (sandpaper, etc.) are selected.
You also need to determine what material you will use during assembly.
Wood as a material can be "capricious", it is important to select high-quality boards with a good, even texture, dried and processed. Birch, poplar, maple, aspen and other deciduous species are suitable. Conifers need special conditions, so pine or spruce should be selected in combination with some other variety. Try not to select layered species so that the base does not split during processing.
When manufacturing cabinet furniture, please note that laminated chipboard may crumble when fasteners are inserted.
Cabinet furniture can be made with your own hands from chipboard, MDF or laminated chipboard (the latter option is the most common). These materials are processed differently.
The material requires accuracy and precision in markings and actions.
All details of the future cabinet must be carefully checked against the drawings and carefully adjusted to the intended dimensions.
Wood as a material can be “capricious”, it is important to select high-quality boards with a good, even texture, dried and processed.
A specialist shop will help you make the adjustment (cutting). This can also be done at home using a ruler, pencil and a wood saw.
If desired, you can improve the appearance with original inserts.
Chipboard panels must be coated with a protective compound - this will reduce the risk of resinous substances evaporating. Other materials do not require this approach.
Do-it-yourself cabinet furniture can be made from chipboard, MDF or laminated chipboard (the latter option is the most common).
How to work with laminated chipboard – the main material for cabinet furniture?
Such material as laminated chipboard is quite actively used in furniture manufacturing. Laminated chipboard has a number of undeniable advantages over chipboard:
holds fasteners better;
inhibits the evaporation of formaldehyde;
looks aesthetically pleasing;
You can choose an interesting texture and color.
When using natural wood, it is recommended to cover it with varnish.
Do-it-yourself cabinet furniture implies the ability to process the material, for example, clean and close the cuts with an edge in the tone of the overall surface (this must be done to avoid evaporation of the adhesive composition of the chipboard. It is also necessary to remember that when cutting to size, chips and cracks in the laminated part are possible. To assemble cabinet furniture from chipboard, you will need caution, attentiveness and accuracy.
Such material as laminated chipboard is quite actively used in the manufacture of furniture.
You can use a power tool in your work, which simplifies the attachment of a particular part to the body.
The panels should be coated before assembly, not after, to avoid drips.
Furniture made of laminated chipboard is not always appropriate in a child's room, especially if the room is small, poorly ventilated or located on the sunny side, and the base itself is not very high quality. Resins and chemical compounds can evaporate quickly and create an unfavorable atmosphere. This also applies to chipboard. It is better to prefer solid wood and plywood.
Making cabinet furniture with your own hands requires the ability to process the material.
What tools are needed?
The following tools are suitable for assembling cabinet furniture:
screwdrivers;
screwdrivers;
grinding machine;
jigsaw;
wood saw;
ruler;
simple pencil.
The popular craquelure varnish finish makes the cabinet front look original and expensive.
Sandpaper is suitable as a material for cleaning surfaces. In order to measure the elements correctly, it is necessary to do this not on the floor, but on a table, preferably a carpenter's table or something similar. You can use stools as supports when cutting off extra centimeters from the board.
To assemble a wardrobe or chest of drawers, it is necessary to first calculate the parameters of the future product.
Preparation before assembly
The selected material – chipboard, laminated chipboard or solid wood panels – must be processed correctly. Preparation of the cabinet or chest of drawers parts consists of leveling the surfaces, if it is not a laminated base, as well as cleaning them from roughness and burrs. The cut edges of the laminated chipboard can be simply sanded and covered with a laminated edge in the same tone.
Spot lighting also serves as a practical addition.
Any material you are going to use must be of high quality and well dried so that after manufacturing the product does not create dangerous chemical fumes in the room.
Before assembling cabinet furniture, you need to carefully measure the area where the structure will be installed. For a cabinet with doors, you need to leave some free space so that the doors can open without the possibility of rubbing against the walls.
You can use a power tool in your work, which simplifies the attachment of a particular part to the body.
Repeated parts of the future product must be symmetrical to each other, otherwise there is a risk of distortion.
Select fasteners after you have decided on the main material. Try to buy reliable connecting parts. They should be bought with a reserve so that if they fail, they can be easily restored.
Sandpaper is suitable as a material for cleaning surfaces.
Main stages of assembly
Before making furniture, prepare a drawing of the future product. It is necessary to once again check the dimensions of the cabinet schematically marked on paper with the proportions of the prepared parts.
Mark the extra centimeters of chipboard panels with a simple pencil, cut along the lines with a wood saw, clean the edges and cover them with an edge.
Attach the side, bottom and top panels to the rear panel using a screwdriver and self-tapping screws.
Before hanging the doors, mark the places for the hinges. If the doors are heavy, increase the number of fasteners, otherwise the panels may warp under their own weight over time. The distance from the edge to the lower and upper hinges should not be less than 12-13 cm.
Secure the hinges and check the operation of the doors. They should fit tightly, without gaps or displacements. Do not forget to cut in a mini-lock.
For a wardrobe with sliding doors, you should select a roller mechanism that will be located at the top and bottom of the panels. Most often, aluminum elements are used for this.
If legs are supposed, they need to be made before hanging the doors. After the assembly of the cabinet furniture with your own hands is finished, check the stability of the structure, how level the cabinet stands and whether it "falls" to one side or another.
Use screws and planks to make supports for the shelves. The latter are adjusted to size after the cabinet frame is assembled. Special holders are sold for glass shelves that will not damage the base.
It is better to equip drawers (if any) with guides, then they will slide out easily and freely, without the possibility of them becoming skewed or stuck.
The selected material – chipboard, laminated chipboard or solid wood panels – must be processed correctly
When making cabinet furniture, please note that laminated chipboard may crumble when fasteners are cut in. The material requires accuracy and precision in markings and actions.
After applying each layer, time is required for drying.
Furniture fittings
The choice of fittings for cabinet furniture is no less important than the assembly itself.
Hinges for cabinet
Poorly selected hinges can ruin the results of your efforts.
Four-hinge hinge mechanism
Today, this part is increasingly used. Adjustment is carried out both at the fastening stage and after the installation work is completed.
Drawer guides
You can use roller or ball bearing ones.
Handles for drawer lids and cabinet doors
They need to be matched to each other. They may differ in style - it is important to adhere to a single design for the facade or for the interior. For children's wardrobes or chests of drawers, it is recommended to choose handles of a streamlined shape so that the child does not get hurt while moving or playing.
Any material you are going to use must be of high quality and well dried.
Furniture finishing
If desired, you can improve the appearance with original inserts. These can be mirror panels, dividers, various drawings or stencils, ornaments. Spot lighting is also a practical addition. In addition, it looks quite stylish, especially if there are glass or matte inserts.
When installing furniture, make sure that it is not exposed to direct sunlight.
When using natural wood, it is recommended to cover it with a varnish composition. It is not difficult to choose the right shade. To fix it, apply the coating two or three times, then the surface will look smooth and even. After applying each layer, time is required for drying. This will make the surface resistant to abrasion and fading. The panels should be coated before assembly, not after, to avoid drips.
Repeated parts of the future product must be symmetrical to each other, otherwise there is a risk of distortion
The popular craquelure varnish finish makes the cabinet front look original and expensive.
With the help of decoration you can not only add style to a new piece of furniture, but also improve an old one.
With the help of decoration you can not only add style to a new piece of furniture, but also improve an old one.
Advice: When installing furniture, make sure that it is not exposed to direct sunlight. This will prevent the surfaces from fading and the wooden base from drying out.
To create cabinet furniture, you can select inexpensive parts or use materials available in the house.
VIDEO: Making cabinet furniture. A couple of tricks.
