DIY Child Desk using Cabinet Doors

I saw this on Pinterest (of course!) and fell in love with it. My kids constantly fight over table space so having two separate areas for them to color is a must. This little desk provides them with a personal place to craft and store their supplies.

My 2 & 5 year old can use these comfortably. I’d guess a good age for this size desk is 2-7 depending on child’s height.

I wasn’t involved with the building of the desks, the men handled that thankfully, whew!

But hopefully the photos are self explanatory.

Supplies:

Door/Drawer fronts – Found mine at Habitat Restore

Plywood

1x2’s

4 – short table legs (mine are from Lowe’s)

Piano hinge

Paint/Caulk

Wood Glue/Nails/Screws

I couldn’t find a cabinet sample with the front already attached so the guys had to create their own from plywood. They cut it to size, chopped out a hole and glued down the drawer front (will be a pencil tray later)

Sanded door cut-out. This needs to be really smooth because the child’s arms will rub all over this area.

Next step was to create a box for the cut-out area. This is where they will draw and store their coloring books.

Box attached to the cut-out area

Legs attached and ready for extra sanding, caulk and paint

Used cup hooks and metal buckets to store their crayons/pencils/markers

After painting a piano hinge was added to the door, I may eventually add a handle to make lifting the door easier.

I painted Kellan’s buckets blue….he’ll just have to live with the hearts though

The top was painted with chalkboard paint so they can personalize the top

Lego Trays

These were made by my Husband and the Grand-dads for the kids.

Super easy to make and the kids love them.

2 – 1”x2” 15” long boards

2 – 1”x2” 16.5” long boards

1 - 15'”x15” 1/2” thick piece of plywood

2 – drawer pulls

1 – Lego Building Plate 628

Tube of Construction adhesive for Plastic/Wood

Optional – Vinyl letters & Paint

Simply attach the 1x2's to the 15” plywood using pocket holes in the plywood. Nail the ends together to stabilize the sides. Sand, Caulk (optional), Paint (optional), Glue on baseplate and screw in handles. Add vinyl letters if you wish. For a complete step by step guide visit “That’s My Letter”

A couple tips: If your baseplate doesn’t fit properly after painting the wood you can always trim it down using scissors. I made my vinyl letters using a Silhouette Cameo

Christmas Wrap Storage

I prefer using a rectangular tote for storing Christmas wrap, ribbon, tags, boxes and bags. All the items are easy to access and it stores perfectly with the other Christmas totes in the attic. Add a few trays to organize the small items.

Etched Glass Money Jugs

We’ve had these three glass 1 gallon milk jugs for awhile. Something found in our grandparent’s backyard. I love using them for spare change. Divides the coins up so it’s easier to roll and makes it very difficult to reach in and grab any dollars! But they were a bit plain……

UNTIL…..

Supplies:

Twine

Armour Etch Cream

Silhouette Cameo is handy but you could use your own vinyl stencil, hand-cut using an Xacto knife

Jugs, Jars, anything glass that will hold coins

Hot Glue Gun

Step 1: Made a 1, 2, 3 design using Silhouette Software and cut it out on vinyl using a Silhouette Cameo

Step 2: Applied the vinyl to my jug and wrapped any other exposed glass with cling wrap. (Etching cream will spread to other areas)

Step 3: Applied cream as per directions, left it on for 20-30 minutes. Wash off.

Wrapped twine around tops, hot gluing as I went.

Organization Binders

Updates:

I'M GIVING AWAY A SET OF THE BINDERS USED IN THIS POST TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY FOLLOW THIS LINK : Binder Giveaway

New Files Added Nov. 26, 2012 Click here

DropBox download added/Updated Photos Dec. 10,2012

How the Binders are Organized

Here are a few FREE PDF's of the templates I made to use inside my binders. Please check back as I will continue to update this list as I design more pages ;) I’ve added a DropBox download option since so many had problems with Google Drive. You can download all the files in a ZIP file from Dropbox HERE

Binder 1: Family  

     -Family    

• Calendar, Wal-Mart sales cheap desk ones that are the perfect size (I have since stopped using a calendar in here and instead use a pocket calendar in my purse, that works better) 
• Important Dates
• To do ( use this as my long term to do list, fix the driveway, table in laundry room, for daily to do’s those go in my pocket calendar)
• Medical Information - I didn't use this in my binder because of the personal information but wanted to share in case someone else could use it

   -Travel

• Places to Go
• Travel Planner

   -School

• Supply List

   -Shopping

• Grocery list (PDF is finally available! It is our common items so not sure really how useful it will be, but may be a good guide to recreate your own)
• Bulk Menu Planner  -This is basically most of my common meals and I calculate up the bulk amounts at the bottom. Nothing fancy, but maybe it's a good guide for someone to recreate their own.
• Menu Planner - I simply put my meals on a calendar template. I do use highlighter to mark meats, produce etc for easier bulk calculation.
• Coupons ( I use baseball card sleeves to organize them)
• Things to look for while shopping (This is another long term list, anything I’m interested in but want to find at a good price, not necessity items like food or diapers…..ex: an acrylic tray or porch swing cushions)
• Recipes (Still working on this, check backs soon!)
• Wish Lists
• Take Out Numbers (Dining Out)
• Freezer Inventory

Binder 2: Finances

  -Finances

• Bills ( I also keep a list of bill due dates in the front of my pocket calendar)
• Budget (Laminate and reuse with dry erase markers!)
• Register (We use the Dave Ramsey Cash system (with individual registers for each category) but this binder register is great for keeping up with bank account’s balance and marking down future bills to be prepared for (school year book or quarterly garbage bill)
• Bills Due/Envelopes/Checkbook (keep these in the snap pocket plastic sleeve)

  -Taxes

•  Taxes ( I keep up with each expenditure that comes in throughout the year which we can deduct on our taxes, this saves me from that end of the year headache of digging through piles of receipts)

   -Home/Auto

• Cleaning Schedule (Here is another schedule I made for cleaning my mother-in-law's house: Cleaning Schedule 2) Laminate and reuse with Dry Erase Markers!
• Home Costs (I keep up with this just for our records, incase we might be able to deduct anything after selling the house)
•  Home Maintenance
• Auto Maintenance Log 

   -Contacts

• Business Cards (just a few business card sleeves to store them)
• Emergency Contacts
• Contacts
• Birthdays

Binder 3: Fun   

   -Blog

• Posts to post

    -Home Planning

• Projects
• Dream home (just a bunch of sketches, magazines pages, paint samples)

    -Craft Projects

• Current Projects/supplies needed

    -Fun

• Movies to Watch
• Books to Read

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Page Previews

Binder 1 is for keeping up with the family, Binder 2 is for all the important stuff, Binder 3 is just for me :) I chose not to include anything in my binder that I would be very worried about if the binder was lost (SS cards, marriage licenses, birth certificates, account info, personal info etc). I did this because I wanted to be able to take the binders with me on the go and not be stressed over losing something. Also, I prefer to keep important documents in our safe in case of burglary or fire (see bottom of post for my safe filing system). Unlocking a safe every time I wanted to use my binders just didn't make sense to me.

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Drop Zone

My binder cabinet :) This is why I didn't want any important documents in my binders, they are too pretty to be shoved in a safe! Here is a link to all my Drop Zone features!

Buy Acrylic Box here at your local Walmart

*Updated tabs since Photo*

I keep a Hanging File Folders with a section for Temp Receipts (for possible returns or limited warranties), To be filed (paperwork that I need to file long term in the safe, tax papers, statements etc.). I also decided to remove my Incoming/Outgoing mail and instead made a file for each of my tax receipt categories (Medical, Business, School etc.) It was a bit of a headache to constantly have to re-sort these receipts when they were grouped in with my “To be Filed” stuff. A few changes just to streamline my filing system.

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How the inside is organized

I used these Tab Write-On Dividers to break up all the major sections. Then used card stock to break up the smaller sections inside the tabbed dividers. I simply ran them through my Epson Printer to print the section titles on each divider.

I used my Labeler Machine to print labels for the tabs.

Here are the individual sections printed on cardstock, probably not necessary but it does help to catch the cardstock while thumbing through, saves a bit of time.

There is a Plastic Pocket behind every tabbed divider to keep temporary papers (receipts, bills etc)

I placed these Snap Envelopes in each binder for bulky items (pencils, calculator, checkbook, etc)

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Long Term Storage

This is the filing system I use for long term storage, important documents and just any paperwork I want placed inside my safe for protection. The box I use can be found here: Set of 2 File Boxes

I have tabbed Hanging File Folders and inside each file is an Envelope with individual categories. I absolutely love this system. It saves space and is so easy to keep up with. Yes, it was a bit of work to organize it but now I can find and file things faster. It’s a breeze even to send my husband in to look for papers where before he could never locate anything.

I intentionally chose a smaller box. By the end of the year it is pretty much packed (like the below photo). I then go through and clean out all the excess or expired papers and it leaves me with the perfect amount of space for the upcoming year. I don’t hold onto every bill or scrap of paper….. only the most important things. Depending on your family size a bigger box may be needed, this one works perfect for my little family of four.

What to Keep and Toss? 

Keep for 7 Years

• Charitable Contributions Papers
• Brokerage Yearly Statement
• W-2's
• 1099's
• Bank Deposit Slips
• Bank Statements
• Receipts used for tax filing
• Tax Records
• IRA nondeductible contributions
• Credit Card statements
• Cancelled checks showing tax deductions
• Warranty Receipts/paperwork (keep for the length of warranty)

Keep Forever

• Personal Papers - Marriage, Birth, Social Security, Divorce
• Estate Documents
• Tax Returns
• Retirement Annual Report
• Use your judgement on any other documents not mentioned

Trash It (always cut up documents before throwing away!)

• Out-dated Insurance Policy Information
• Investment Statements
• Utility bills
• Paycheck stubs
• Expired ID cards
• Cancelled Checks
• Pre-approved credit offers
• Expired Credit & Debit Cards
• Credit Card Statements
• Receipts not used for tax or warranty purposes