If your parents are like mine, they have droves
of pictures from a thousand different events, trips, birthdays, and
holidays. The only problem with this is that only about 1% of those
pictures are stored in any sort of album or scrapbook. The rest lay
in boxes, or drawers waiting to be sorted and cataloged.
Unfortunately, time marches on and memories fade in that time(Please
excuse the philosophy…). Many of these memories would be lost to
the ages if they were not stored in some sort of reasonable order.
For my mom’s birthday, my sisters and I came up with a two part
storage system for pictures. The first was the cabinet below. It
is constructed of 5/8” MDF, ¼” plywood, and 15 picture frames. The
top of the unit is hinged and contains a shelf for any picture
larger that 4 x 6, which is the new standard. The cabinet is 24” by
36” and 18” deep. The design as you see below was constructed in 6
hours, but could easily be done in 3. Each of the drawers has at
its face an Ikea “Raket” picture frame(3 for $2.00) and a small
wooden knob as a pull($.49). The concept is simple. Organize the
photos however you desire, and decorate each drawer with either a
picture detailing what is inside, or as we have with 15 photos of
our family’s newest addition.
The second part of the project is a digital
picture frame I built from an old laptop. I got this idea from
Popular science, but decided to build it for about $100, instead of
the $800-1500 they spent. Albeit theirs is a brand new computer
with wireless internet capabilities, a 15” LCD monitor, and a
computer that puts my personal computer to shame, but for the
environment, and the expense, a 10” Pentium 100 will do the trick.
I will detail the construction of that project on a different page
after I get it finished. Here is a tip…you think I would have
learned the first two times…DO NOT MESS WITH THE COMPUTER WHILE IT
IS PLUGGED IN!!!! I have killed a motherboard and a screen this
way. But even with that I am well under $200. This is an easy
project that can be completed in a day(Minus the picture scanning)
and become a centerpiece of a room. Regrettably, the wood working
is some of the worst I have ever done, but I have never been much
good with Miters, and was in way to much of a rush. Anyway, back to
the project at hand:
I used 5/8” MDF because it is cheap, lighter
than ¾” MDF and very durable/easy to machine. Remember to mark out
your cuts before you make them to get the most out of the sheet.
Here is the cut list:
2 side pieces 18” x 36”
1 front vertical 3-1/2” x 36”
1 front horizontal 3-1/2 x 24”
4 top/bottom 3 x 24”
15 drawer slides 5/8” x
17-3/8”
4 shelf supports 5/8” x 24”
5 drawer supports 5/8” x 24”
1 top piece 19” x
26”
From the ¼” Plywood:
15 drawer bottoms 6-1/8” x 17-1/2”
30 drawer sides 3 x
17-1/2”
15 drawer backs 2-3/4” x 6-1/8”
15 drawer fronts 4-1/8” x 6-1/8”
From ¼” Hardboard
1 back 23-1/4” x
28-5/8”
1 shelf 24” x
17-3/4”
If you do not cut carefully, you will exhaust
your entire 4’ x 8’ sheet of plywood as I did. I am pretty sure the
entire project can be built with one sheet of ¼” plywood(minus the
shelf and back but I made these out of hardboard). Mistake #1…but I
had some extra hardboard with which I cut the remaining drawer
fronts. This is the only part I suggest you do not modify. Since
the drawer pulls will be at the bottom of the frame, enough wood to
put a screw in is very important to keep the frames attached to the
drawers. The picture frames are available online if you do not live
near an Ikea, at this address:
http://www.ikea-usa.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10101&storeId=12&productId=16106&langId=-1&parentCats=10109*10246*10492
I was planning to make the picture frames, so
my calculations were off(due to lack of planning) and I ended up
gluing and nailing ¼” strips to each frame(the additional 3 hours)
in order keep the drawers from sliding all the way in(Mistake #2!).
My drawer openings were the same size as the frames. There are
probably several hundred vendors for cheap frames, this is simply
the first I learned about. You can of course machine them yourself,
but the time and effort saved buying them is well worth it.
Machining
The machining of this project is incredibly
simple. The Ikea frames have a dowel that supports the frame on a
table. It is centered on the bottom edge of the frame, so the hold
simple needs to be drilled the rest of the way(with a smaller
diameter) to accept and countersink the screw. See picture below.
I strongly suggest(if you are following these
building instructions) you build the drawers first. The rest will
take no time at all, relatively speaking. After all of the parts
are cut, it is time to construct a drilling jig for the frames.
This will differ if you are using other frames! Cut one more piece
of hardboard or plywood to the size of the picture frame(4-7/8” x
6-7/8”) attach along two of the edges, not the face, some strips of
wood/MDF to act as a centering point. Now, take ¼” strips and add
Figure out where you want the frame to attach to the drawer(do not
center on the bottom as that spot is already reserved. I would
suggest against using the knob assembly to hold the drawer together
in case you decide to change the pictures later on. It would be
quite a bit easier just to take a out a couple screws than wrestle
with the knob and screw at the bottom of the drawer from both sides,
but do as you will! The best place to put them in my opinion is
somewhere on the sides, slightly lower that center for stability and
ease of installation/removal.
The rabbet here is approximately 1/8” it seems
it didn’t transfer to the .JPG. This should help to align the holes
between the frame and the drawer. It is not necessary to drill the
holes at the same time, but if your holes are not even with each
other, make sure you orient the drawers the same as you did the
frames. If I had a drill press at the time I certainly would have
used that. And if I had thought up this jig, I would have used that
to. The truth of the matter is my frames are drawer specific.
Which is going to cause real problems if they ever get out of
order…(Mistake #3).
After the drawers are completed, run a 1/8”
deep Dado down the center of the bottom of each of the drawers.
This will ride along the drawer slides and keep them more of less
centered. I used a ¾” bit of this and would suggest against using a
5/8” because the MDF is not painted can swell until its moisture
content is the same as the room it is in, and painted MDF will be
just wider that 5/8”.
The rest is simple…If you do not have a router
table or table saw with dado blade, I suggest building a dado jig.
I rabbeted all of the front pieces individually which is a huge
waste of time. The jig is really simple. If you are unfamiliar
with it, here is an example:
Machine this out of MDF as well so it is the
same height as what you are routing. Attach all of it to a board
and make certain it is square and parallel. Then, test some sample
pieces to get the depth correct. I used a C clamp to keep the
pieces from moving, and index board to keep each pair of routes the
same distance from the end. The beauty of doing the boards at
3-3/8, is you have all of your finished boards(1-1/16”) plus your
saw kerf and the dados are perfectly parallel the their counterparts
in the finished front frame. You even get to cut the boards to the
right size on the table saw in case your math was off! Beautiful!
Cutting the front pieces after the routes is
simple, but make sure you have a tight fit. You shouldn’t need to
force the routes together, but the should be tight and together the
joint should be almost exactly 5/8” in width. When all of the
joints are ready to be glued, get as many C clamps as you can find,
or at least a couple and some screws. If you do not have many(I
have four) you will need to join the compressed joints temporarily
with screws. Only trouble is you then have to fill the hole, but it
is isn’t too bad. This part will have to go quickly, as the MDF is
absorb the water of the glue and swell! Put glue(not much) on all
the pieces and don’t forget the sides of the joints. Use the C
clamp or Quick Clamp to squeeze the joint together, then go to the
next until all of the intersections are together. Drive screws into
any that do not have a clamp at the joint. With MDF it is sometimes
necessary to pre-drill.
Let the frame dry and begin working on the
sides and the bottom. The sides will be joined to the front using
good old fashioned drywall screws because they are cheap and work
really well. I use 1-1/4”, and wouldn’t suggest much shorter that
1”. The bottom front has a decorative arch(which is optional) and I
carried this over to the bottom of each side piece. If you have
never done one of these, get a jig saw and a cup. Figure out the
beginning of each arch, and the height of each arch and use the
cup/can to draw in the ¼ circle. Then join the tops and you’re
done. Simple and effective.
These patterns are really simple to make if you
get a template cutting router bit. It looks just about the
same as a flush cut bit, but has a larger cutter and extended shaft
with the bearing on the top of the blade. This bearing height
can be adjusted, so after you are satisfied with one side, just join
the two with some clamps and machine them to match. It is well
worth the price(<$30) for the time savings and aggravation
minimization. There are better pictures of the bit on the
Assembly page.
The front top and bottom will need to be
pre-drilled to accept the screws that will join them to the new
frame. Make the holes almost all the way through the top and
bottom, approximately 2-3/8” from the uncut piece at the points
where they will receive the frame. While you are at it, drill the
sides at the corresponding spots to receive the top, bottom, front,
and rear drawer supports. The top of each drawer support will be ½”
below where the corresponding front horizontal is.
After the glue has dried in the front, drill
the holes(pilot and countersink) in each drawer opening to receive
the drawer slide. These will sit 1/8” or slightly less above the
drawer opening to guide the drawer and keep it horizontal. You will
need to bore 30 holes, 15 pilots, 15 countersinks for the front and
back. Next drill the pilot holes in the end of each of the drawer
slides. These will split of you are not careful. Err on the side
of caution and use nearly the same size drill bit as the screw…The
glue will swell the MDF around the screw.
The final step before assembly is route a dado
in the back of each side to receive the back. If you are using the
sizes listed above, simple route ¼” deep and ¼” wide. This should
fit great. The routes for the bottom and top will be much
wider(relatively) to support the back until screws can be driven
into the shelf supports.
Assemble should be very straightforward. Use
pilot holes anywhere you are assembling the MDF, and use generous
amounts of glue. If the MDF squeaks as you drive in the screws
everything is going very well. Use a tape measure to check the
openings for each drawer to make sure they are all the same. If
they vary widely, you may have a serious problem. After the front,
sides, and supports are in place, you can begin with the drawer
slides. It may be worth the trouble to do this with a hand
screwdriver to prevent any tears in the MDF. Do not attach the rear
of the slides until you test each one with a drawer. If for some
reason it is off, you can adjust the rear of the slide to
compensate.
Next, cut and apply the shelf supports at the
lowest point above the top drawer. After it is in place, test fit
the shelf, they glue in place. It should be a very solid fit.
The top of the cabinet is fairly
self-explanatory. I used an Ogee bit to give the top a little
detail and only routed it on three sides. The hinge mortising is
the most difficult part that remains. I had to route a small rabbet
into the top and the back to receive the knuckle of the hinge and
keep the top flat. Pre-drill for the screws of you will end up with
mushrooms on the top of your cabinet! I bought about 18” or brass
chain and put a couple cup eyehooks on the top and inside the side
to keep the top from opening too far. It only opens just past
vertical so it can stay without any problems.
Finally, round over the sides just to clean it
up, fill the holes(I use Bondo with MDF) and sand everything
smooth. Attach the back to the top and bottom before attaching it
to the drawer supports.
Assembling the drawers and attaching the
picture frames is the worst part of this project. The drill jigs
should help out a lot. I would suggest beginning with the drawers
prior to building the frame, as that takes hardly any time at all.
Sorting the pictures will take you 10 times as long as it will to
build this cabinet. Feel free to email me with questions and please
notify me if anything is unclear.
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