You could be waiting for your furniture to arrive from overseas. You might have finally saved up the money for the down payment on your house but not for the things to furnish it. Whatever the reason you could find yourself in a position where you need a dresser but just can’t get one right now. Don’t worry, though. You won’t have to live out of clothes baskets; you can easily make a temporary dresser from a cardboard box.
The perfect cardboard box is one that’s thick and sturdy. It can be one with no lid, a removable lid or one that has two flaps that form the lid. Boxes which have four flaps are not ideal. Stand the box so that the opening is facing you. If there are two flaps on the box set it so that they open as doors rather than opening from the top and the bottom. Remove the lid, open the flaps or set the lidless box in front of you.
In addition to the cardboard box you’ll also need some large pieces of cardboard. These cardboard pieces will be used to make the shelves and other parts of the dresser. Measure the depth of the box and draw that measurement onto the additional cardboard piece. Measure the width of the box to determine how wide to cut the shelf. After drawing the measurements onto the cardboard you can then cut the shelf. Decide how many shelves you want and cut them all at the same time, all the same width and depth. Although the shelves can hold lots of clothes and things they’re not very sturdy by themselves. That’s why you’ll proceed to create shims to help hold the shelves in place.
The shims are also cut from cardboard. They can be about as wide as a yardstick but not quite as long. Cut the shims so that there are two for every shelf and so that each one reaches from near the front of the box to the back of it. Measure down the sides of the box to determine where to place the shims. They will be positioned before sliding in the shelves. Glue one shim to each side of the box, so that they are perfectly aligned. If they’re not, the shelf will be lopsided. Make sure the glue is completely set or dry before adding the shelf. Position one shelf on the first two shims, glue on two more, and add that shelf. Continue with this process until you’ve installed all the shelves and shims that hold them.
If the box is particularly wide it might be necessary to cut an additional piece of cardboard that will help sturdy the shelf. This piece will reach from one shim to the other. This piece, too, can be as wide as a yardstick and as long as needed. The easiest way to position it perfectly is to first place the shelf on the existing shims. Now place the horizontal cardboard strip so that it reaches from one shim to the other. Glue the ends of it to the shims but make sure it’s resting flush against the shelf. Do the same to the remaining drawers.
Although the dresser you’re making doesn’t have real drawers you can create the doors that will hide the inside shelves and clothing. If the box has no lid you can use a café curtain rod to make a curtain for the front of it. Simply make two holes in the top front area of the side panels, slide on the curtains, then position the rod so that it goes through both holes. This curtain can be made for a lidless box or a box that has a removable lid.
If you’re using a box that has two flaps which open like doors it’s ideal. Cut a piece of cardboard and glue it across the front of the box opening. Glue it across the top so that it comes all the way to the edge of the box opening. This will serve as the method for closing the box and keeping it shut. Use two small magnets or two pieces of velcro to close the doors. Position them on the strip of cardboard then add their counterparts to the cardboard flaps that make the doors. You can simply close the flaps like doors and they’ll stick to their counterpart magnets or velcro dots.
A different type of door can be made from a box that has a single, large flap. Position the box so that the hinge of the flap is towards the floor. Add the cardboard strip across the top and glue on velcro or magnets. Now when you want to open the dresser you’ll simply pull the magnets or velcro apart and drop the box lid down onto the floor. Get what you want out of the dresser then raise the lid back to position. The box dresser can be left as-is or can be covered in cloth, adhesive paper or other materials. It’s an easy way to store clothes while you wait for your real furniture, and since you already have the cardboard box, it costs very little to make!
Reference:
- Purchase button magnets here: www.acmoore.com
