Bathroom Cabinet

Need a little more storage in your bathroom? How about adding a toilet paper dispenser and magazine/reading material in the same cabinet? Don't have a lot of room to place a cabinet or attach it to the wall? This might be you solution, utilize the wasted space between the wall studs and make this a built in project.

To start this project you'll need to locate the studs and any hazards behind the drywall i.e. electrical or plumbing. I started with a hole just large enough for me to look inside the hole both up and down and ensure there weren't any hazards. I then cut the hole out to it's final height approximately 3 feet. The studs are the limiting factor on the sides which leaves the opening around 14.5 inches. You'll then need to install 2x4's at the top and bottom of the opening, I did this by using pocket hole screws.

You'll need to build the inside frame, I did this with cabinet grade plywood and rabbeted the backside to allow for a Wainscoating panel to be installed later. I then built the face frame, ripping the boards to 3 inches wide. I used pocket hole screws on most of this because they weren't going to be visible. I cut the inside shelving to the sizes I needed and installed them with screws through the plywood frame so there would be no pocket holes to be seen. I used a Forstener bit to drill the holes for the toilet paper roll holder.

I built the cabinet door with 2 inch wide boards and used mortise and tenon joinery to attach them. I rabbetted the back to accept a Wainscoating panel as well. I used self closing European hinges (this was the first time I'd used these hinges, they are slick and easy to adjust) and set them up for a 1/2 inch overlay.

After ensuring the fit was right I painted the inside a dark brown and used a golden oak Danish oil on the face frame and front side of the shelving. I used a triple thick polyurethane on the parts where oil was used as a final coat. I had previously pre-drilled 4 holes in the side of the plywood and after positioning the cabinet installed 4 screws into the studs.

This is a relatively easy project, and makes a good use of space that usually isn't being used. Try this one out for a nice weekend project, or contact us we can build these custom for your space.

I hope you enjoyed this project, please share the blog with anyone you know that might be interested in finding more space and an easy way to fill it. Thanks.