Designing Your Cabinets

To begin a cabinet project you must first design them. This isn't as hard as it may sound, and the term design does not mean you need any interior design knowledge or backround. That being said you can get ideas from websites, magazines, or your local decor store.

But before you get artsy, you need to start with layout. I'm going to measure my kitchen and show you a great tool that can help you visualize your project before you ever start cutting a board.

I've measured my kitchen and actully sketched out the layout with measurements on the side of my tape measure.

Now to the computer. I am going to draw the entire project using SketchUp. If you haven't heard of SketchUp it is a free CAD program offered by Google. It is like Auto CADD, but way easier to use. There is a link on my blog in the sidebar. I will be posting some tutorials in the near future, but in the meantime you should download it and play around with it. There are tutorials in the software and on the web. I will warn you it is super fun, and very addicting.

In this first drawing I have simply taken the dimensions I wrote down and put them into SketchUp. Notice that I measured from each side of the window. You must also measure outlets and gas lines that are supplying power to appliances like the range, microwave, dishwasher, and refridgerator. These are you limits. You can move them and change your limits, but you will definitely want to solidify that before you install the cabinets.

Next I have given a basic outline to where my cabinets are going. Notice I have stayed 3" away from the outside corner of the wall and from the start of a doorway. You can get closer to a doorway, but you won't want to get much closer to the outside corner of the wall. The reason for this is so that you have wall to return your crown into. Also notice that I have given my base cabinets a depth of 24" and my upper cabinets 12". These are standards and you can deviate from them if you want because you're building them yourself. Keep in mind that if you plan on using a pre-fabricated countertop they are going to make it for a base cabinet that has a 24" deep box (that does not include the thickness of your doors or drawer fronts) so you'll want to stick with the standard depth You can also play with staggered depths and heights, but that is more about style and preference.

Finally I have given my layout some detail. The space has been divide  into sections to give me by box widths, and my appliances have been allocated to a designated place. As a preference, corner cabinets have both been put on a diagonal so that I can put a full round lazy susan inside. Both uppers next to the window have been held 3" away to stay with the theme, and I have centered my sink cabinet under the window. You should always try to center the sink under the window unless you have a quirky floorplan. It doesn't show it in detail, but I have drawn a cabinet over the refrigerator. I will that in the next step which is to draw elevations. There I can define what heights I want for the uppers, and if I want doors or drawers for my base cabinets. The elevation can also help me determine if the widths will look functional and aesthetic.

So there you have it in a nutshell. It's not rocket science, but along the way I'll give my two cents as far as what I think is functional and easy on the eyes.

Essential Tools for Cabinetmaking

Notice in the side bar of my blog there is a box that is labelled "Cabinetmaking Tools". This is a list of tools, most of them absolutely necessary, for making cabinets. Today I'm going to highlight four of them.

Tape measure: I've gone over how to use it. Notice the tape measure I recommend is a specific brand. You don't need a specific brand, but I do happen to like these tape measures for their special features. It has a white writing tablet on the side which is very nice. It has a built in pencil sharpener (for standard #2 pencils. Don't use the big carpenter pencils.) It also has a spring in the clip that you use to put it on your pocket which makes it so much easier. Small features that help.

Drill: You might already have a drill. If you don't you will need one to build cabinets. I do recommend the Makita, but I personally own a Hitachi and a Ryobi which both work well. The brand is mostly a preference. The Lithiom-ion batteries are nice to have because the batteries hold a charge longer and are much lighter.

Miter Saw: Any kind of chop saw will work. You could even use a miter box and a hand saw, but for practicallity you can't beat the compound miter saw. It will cut your hardwood boards square at whatever length you need. It can also cut on an angle both ways (more on this later). There are several kinds though and there are limitations to the 10" non-sliding. It can only cut all the way through about a 6" board. Anything wider than that you would have to flip the board over and cut it again. Sliders can usually cut through at least 12" which is very nice when cutting the parts for the upper cabinets.

Table Saw: I have been trying to come up with an alternative to the table saw and I have come to the conclusion that there is not one really practical, safe alternative. I have come up with some alternatives that would make it so you don't need one to complete a cabinet project, but that involves other tools and/or other expenses (we'll get to that). The table saw is perhaps the most versatile tool in the cabinetmaker's shop. For a do-it-yourselfer is perhaps the most expensive. The one I have listed is a cabinet saw (named because it's top is mounted on a cabinet), and is listed solely because it is the table saw I would buy if I had the money. For a cabinet project you can get by with some contractor's saws, but I recommend a hybrid. You will at least need a ripping capcity of 24" to the right of the blade, but really you should have more like 36". If you don't get that you might as well not buy a table saw for cabinets.

So there you go. This is a start to the tools you need. Check out the complete list in the side bar. There may be other tools that make it more convenient. Let me know if you think I've left something out.

Tape Measure

Whenever I hear or think the words "tape measure", I remember when my nephew, Porter, would say it in his one-year-old voice. "Tape Meaaasure".

To begin, you have to know how to use and read a tape measure. If you already know how, then you can read this post just to make sure I know how.

As you can see in the picture there are several tick marks between each inch mark. Each one is a sixteenth. Notice there are some longer tick marks. Those are there to help you know when you are dealing with a fraction that has a common factor (4th grade math). The longest one in the middle is the 8/16" tick mark, or divide out the common factor "8" and you have 1/2". Then the second longest ones are 1/4" and 3/4" marks. Finally you have the 1/8", 3/8", 5/8", and 7/8" marks that are just longer than the marks that are strickly measured in 16th inch measurements (that means the numerator and the denomenator do not have a common factor).

When building cabinets it is usually sufficient to measure to the nearest 1/16". It is simple, but absolutely critical that you know how to use this tool.

One thing that I always wondered before I learned to use one was, 'Why does this clip at the end, move'. There is a simple explanation. When you are measuring from the outside corner you hang the clip on the corner and mearsure to your desired destination. When you measure from an inside corner you simply push the clip to the corner and measure. The movement compensates for the thickness of the clip.

There you have it. If you still can't figure it out, shoot me an e-mail and I'll be glad to help you out.

Building Cabinets For Your Home

My goal for this website is to help those who need a little guidance in their woodworking journey. I think a good place to start is in teaching the basics of cabinetry. It’s simpler to learn to build a cabinet box than to try to put together a complicated piece of furniture, and you’ll learn some important skills in the process.

I’ve seen a lot of books for sale online about how to build cabinets from start to finish. Here you’re going to get the same story from my method. As you know there is a million ways to skin a cat and although that sounds fun, I’m going to talk about a few ways (not to skin a cat, but to build cabinets).

I learned the trade from my father-in-law, Dale Porter, a cabinet maker with over 30 years experience. In fact, I literally learned how to read the tick marks on a tape measure in his shop when I was 22 years old (so don’t feel like you’re too old to learn even the basics). Kind of ironic considering I had been to his shop to build a pinewood derby car when I was 8 or 9 years old.

Join me as I start from the very beginning.