DIY Pantry Cabinet Using Custom Cabinet Doors

This idea has been kicking around in my head for awhile to build a shallow panty to add much needed storage to our tiny Kitchen.  Then a few months back I built a media console for my TV using custom made cabinet doors from Cabinet Now.  I was very pleased with their product and it got me thinking, their doors would be perfect for my pantry idea.



Our house was originally a log cabin and has been added onto and renovated many times.   I will spare you the ten paragraphs on all the tweaking that has been done to this area and just show you the before and after for this project. 

Here' s the before.  At first glance it would appear that there is nowhere that you could add onto our kitchen but it occurred to me one day that there was at least 4 or 5 inches that I could use on the right wall.  That's just enough space to stack canned goods one deep.  Perfect, I mean who likes to have to move everything around to see what's in the back anyways?  The before wall had a hole cut in it for one small upper cabinet.  The cabinet is basically a box that sticks out into the craft room upstairs.  Fancy eh?  I am not the one who cut the hole in the wall but the space is definitely needed more in the Kitchen then the Craft Room so I went with it. 

In the bottom section there are deep lower cabinets that take up the empty space underneath the craft room's floor.  My husband purchased cabinet fronts for the lower section years ago that match our other cabinets. 

I don't expect anyone to have a home quite like mine but this concept could be used on any wall.  Here's how I did it.  First up I built the shallow cabinets.  Because of my limited space I used 1 x 4 pine boards.  I built two cabinets using my pocket hole jig to attach everything together with screws.  This wall is part of the old log cabin our house is built around so I had to do a lot of tweaking to make it fit around the uneven logs and existing obstacles.  A flat wall would have been a lot easier.  I attached the cabinets to the wall using pocket holes and screws.  Since it was a wood wall it was easy but if you are attaching to drywall you will need to plan to hit studs and use longer screws.

Here I am seeing how much I can fit on the shelves.  All of that was crammed in that little cabinet.  Lookin like a hot mess at this point but it gets better.  Once I had the cabinet installed I attached our existing lower cabinet fronts to the new structure. 

Next up I built face frames for the new cabinet doors to attach to.  I used 1 x 2 select pine boards for the sides and bottom and a 1 x 4 on the top.  A 1 x 2 would work just fine for the top but I needed to hide some ugly on the wall behind it so I used the wider board.  To construct the frames I again used pocket holes, glue and screws.  I love this method it is quick and sturdy.  It only took about 30 minutes to cut and build both face frames.

   
Once I had the face frames built I dry fit and attached my cabinet doors so I could get all the holes in the right place before I installed them.

Since I already had the lower cabinet fronts it was very easy to figure out just exactly what size everything needed to be.  My cabinets were 30" wide and each door needed to be exactly 14" wide.  Cabinet Now's website makes it very easy to order you just type in exactly what finished size you need the doors to be. 

For the hinges I chose the pre-bore option of Cup & Dowel 3mm (1/8" from edge).  There are a few options or you can elect not to have them done if you are using exposed hinges like I did on my media center.

I got the hinges at the local hardware store they are 1 1/4" Overlay Hinges.  Which means the edge of the door will be 1 1/4" from the inside of the face frame leaving 1/4" of face frame showing beyond the door. (if you are using 1 1/2" face frames.) 

I found the best way to install them was to remove the screws and gently pound the plastic parts into the holes then attach the hinge with screws.

There are different types of hinges so if you are matching existing cabinetry you want to think about it a little so that the spacing is all the same.  Mine are pretty standard cabinets so it was easy to find the right hinges.

Next up the doors.  I ordered paint grade poplar in the shaker style.  They match my existing cabinets perfectly.  They arrived wrapped in several layers of cardboard and were sanded buttery smooth.  The paint grade may have some variation in color which doesn't matter because they are being painted.  They were perfectly square and plumb.  The quality is great.  My last project I used stain grade and those had no variation in color.

 

To install the face frames to the cabinets I used my finish nail gun and nailed right through the front. I then filled the holes with wood filler.  Since my wall had so many issues this worked best for my situation.   

I painted everything with two coats of primer and two coats of white paint in a satin finish. 

I am so pleased with how it turned out.  

I now have a lot more storage and am able to use the old small pantry cabinet (see how small it was) as an appliance garage to free up counter space. 

   
Looking at this I see I need to adjust my shelves, I can squeeze one more row of cans in there.

I added pulls to the faux drawer fronts and chose long pulls for the new doors to add a little interest. 

  

The rest of the kitchen is in various states of half done-ness.  I will show you all that soon, once it's done.  So far we've painted the main cabinets gray, replaced some broken appliances and will be installing a new sink and counter tops.  I splurged on a farmhouse sink after much hemming and hawing.  I justified it because I got the granite for the counter tops at a garage sale for $20.  So it's like the sink is free right?  Oh and then I need to paint the kitchen island and...........it may never be done.

To check out Cabinet Now's website click Here.  You'll be surprised at all the fancy styles they have.  It is very easy to find pricing on the doors just select your style and size and you will get the price immediately.



   
* this post was sponsored by Cabinet Now. I was given product in exchange for this post.  All opinions, as always are my own


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