Kids Built In

Back in October I had mentioned to our kids that we wanted to make a space for them where they could draw and eventually do homework in the kids den. They were so excited! It was like I had told them we were going back to Disney Land. So my husband and I along with my parents decided to build it for them for Christmas. Well we finally finished and its Febuary!! It turned out so cool and I am so excited for them to get to use it. 

After much deliberation we finally came up with a game plan we both agreed on. We wanted each kid to have their own work area and cabinet to hold their stuff. To get started I got unfinished base cabinets at Lowe’s and a few sheets of bead board. I cut the bead board to size and used wood glue and a brad nailer to secure it to the sides of the cabinets. 

With the side panels in place it was time for paint. I picked a light blue that I had used on a few other projects and really liked. I have 2 girls and a boy so I needed a fun color that wasn’t to girly or to boyish. This blue fit perfectly and was a good pop of color. I removed the drawers and doors to paint them separate. It took 2 coats of paint to evenly cover the cabinets. With the painting done it was time to for wax. Using the clear wax first then following with brown wax I did a piece at a time. It’s important when waxing to put the brown wax on before the clear wax is set. So don’t clear wax a piece and come back the next day to add your dark wax. By putting the brown wax on right after the clear wax this allows you to work the brown wax in where you want it and wipe away extra brown wax you don’t want. I let the cabinets set for a few days so that the wax could set and then I put the doors and drawers back on them and they were ready to be moved into the house. 

This next part was where I brought in reenforcement, my dad! He came into town to help. We placed the cabinets where we wanted them against the walls.  The goal was to try and secure the cabinets into studs.  We did have to do some minor adjustments on the cabinet placement. Once each cabinet had its spot we leveled them with shims and screwed them into the wall with 3 inch screws. Once the cabinets were in place we put a ledger along the wall, it was made out of 2 x 2, for some extra support. The ledger we screwed into the studs as well with 3 inch screws. 

It was then time to work on the top, which we made out of 2 x 10’s. The pieces along the wall went in first and we worked our way out. We took our time lining each piece up with the one it was sitting against. This required some extra sanding but the finished top has a great fit and looks amazing. We Kreg Jigged each piece together and also attached each piece to the cabinets and ledger. I was worried about the sturdiness of the top especially in the corner where the pieces came together but I can sit on it and it doesn’t move.

With the top in place I stained it with Minwax Dark Walnut and let it dry, then I applied 4 coats of Minwax Spar Urethane for added protection. The reason I love the finish so much is that there isn’t any brush marks, and leaves the look to be really smooth and shinny. I do like to sand lightly in between the first few coats, it gives a smoother finish in my opinion but isn't always necessary. 

With the top done it was time add the finishing touches. I measured and cut the trim pieces for the sides against the wall and floor as well as the kick board.  After they were cut, I painted them and brad nailed them into place. Using the same waxing process as before I waxed each piece to match the cabinets. I then made sure that the doors opened the right way, if they don’t no worries just unscrew the hinges from the cabinet and flip the door around. Both sides of the cabinet door frame have holes for the hinges to attach to. Once the doors were on correctly, I measured and drilled my holes for the knobs and put them on. The work station is now complete and ready to add all the tools young minds need for creativity. We put a thin sheet of pluxie glass down where each kid would do most of their writing so they had a really smooth work surface and to help protect the wood. I found some desk lamps that were on clearance at Bed Bath & Beyond for each kid and some fun baskets to organize their crayons, colored pencils and markers. I also found some stools to redo on Letgo for cheap but haven’t quite figured out what I want to do with them yet, so stay tuned for an update, they are just using them as they are for now. Hope this has inspired you to do a project of your own! 

Thank you for spending time with me and until next time....

Addie