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...see what I did there?

At any rate, in the kitchen we don't have enough counter/cabinet space, to fill in as a microwave stand we've been using an old computer/office desk, so for a little Christmas present to my ladyfriend I decided that I'm going to make a microwave stand/cabinet. Here is the offending desk:



And my drawing of what will replace it:



The bottom space will be occupied by the cat food dish, the first shelf above that will be the wine bottle rack, and above that will be the microwave. That portion will all be open. The next two shelves have about 7" of space between them for canned goods, and the last top foot and a half or so will be for oversized items (cereal boxes and things of that nature). The top three shelves will be closed by a cabinet door.

So this evening I bought all the wood I needed, and had the Lowe's staff cut down the biggest pieces to what I though was 7' at the time, but turned out to be 6' 11 3/4" (which meant my 7' plan went out the window... thanks jackass), otherwise I'll be doing all the cutting myself. I also bought myself a little Christmas gift, a Cobalt 4 piece tool set.

Here's the wood before I measured everything out:



And tonight i was able to get the 1x3 support boards attached to the side boards, each side piece has a front and back brace board. Here is a picture of the left one with the beams attached:



With all the measuring and marking done, my goal is to have the rest of it finished tomorrow evening, so that I don't have to worry about putting it off while I watch the Broncos smoke the Vikings on sunday

The girlfriend is out of town today until monday morning, so that is my hard deadline.

Kobalt - the blue collar Craftsman. Good tools with a lifetime warranty.

Good luck with the project.

All shelves attached, all I have to do now is put on the backboard, front piece, and I think I'm going to attach a strap on the back and screw it into the wall, for some added security.

Top and bottom attached:


A closer look at the bottom:


With all shelves attached:

Cool. Gonna stain it or paint it or just be done?

With being in the apartment with cats and such, and I don't have plastic to put under it (I know, I know) I think I'm going to leave it as done until it warms up and I can take it to my unattached/unheated/unpowered garage for a stain and a clear coat, although I've also got a table down there that needs painting/finishing, so this week with all my students in stage checks I might have to just eat the cost of plastic, stick the cats in the bedroom, and go all in. I do want my garage this winter for the car, but the table is keeping it at bay.

Go for the plastic . . . whatever you might store on it might stain the wood if it's spilled before the shelves are finished.

Oh, and the strap is a definite . . .

ANCFlyer wrote:
Oh, and the strap is a definite . . .

If it's that high it could definitely end up top heavy depending on what you put in it.

helvknight wrote:

ANCFlyer wrote:
Oh, and the strap is a definite . . .

If it's that high it could definitely end up top heavy depending on what you put in it.

Based on the way we're going to be storing things in it, it will definitely come out top heavy. I have a ton of old belts that came with cargo pants, the thick weaved fabric variety, so I'll use one of those wrapped around some extra 1 x 2, and screw that into the wall.

As for the staining and clear coat, any suggestions for how to deal with the after effects of the stuff? Plastic to lay down is a no-brainer, but what about the smell? Fan to an open window? That should be allright, even though its mid-20's outside right now.

graphic wrote:As for the staining and clear coat, any suggestions for how to deal with the after effects of the stuff? Plastic to lay down is a no-brainer, but what about the smell? Fan to an open window? That should be allright, even though its mid-20's outside right now.

It's the tropics outside right now. Go for it.

If she's as appreciative as she ought to be, definitely anchor it to the wall, and make sure one of those shelves can take her weight

The project is as finished as its going to be for now, and I am happy to report that it is 100% functional. I do plan on putting a stain on it, but I've got other priorities first. Here are some of those pics.

Top section, with the back board tacked on:


Bottom section, backboard on:


Up in its final resting spot, wine bottles installed but nothing else yet, and the area isn't cleaned up yet:


Now with everything cleaned up, notice how much more space:


And Zelda, our 5 month old, enjoying some food: