DIY Base Cabinets With Drawers for Desk, Nightstand, or End Table

In this instructable, I show you how to build base cabinets with drawers for a desk, nightstand, or end table. Even if you don’t need to make these cabinets, the DIY tips and techniques in this tutorial can be used on other woodworking projects.

There are several things which are difficult to fully explain with words and images, so checkout the video tutorial for this cabinet build.

Cabinet Drawer Slides

Drawer Slide Wood Screws

Jig Drawer Slide

Wood Glue

Glue Bot

Drill

Brad Nailer

1.25″ Brad Finish Nails

Air Compressor

Retractable Air Compressor Hose

Pilot Hole Drill Bit

Bar Clamp for Cabinet Assembly

F-Clamp for Drawer Assembly

Paint Sticks

Craft (Popsicle) Sticks

Wood Filler

Festool RO125 Sander

220 Grit Sandpaper

Festool Dust Extractor

90 Degree Positioning Squares

Combination Square

Dewalt Router

1/2″ roundover bit

Magnetic Torpedo Level

Pocket Hole Jig

Table Saw or Circular Saw

Chalk Paint Brush

Drawer Pulls

The first image provides a general overview of cabinet parts:

1. Drawer Fronts (Pink)
2. Drawer Boxes (Aqua)
3. Side Panels (Red)
4. Face Frame Cabinets (Green, Yellow)
5. Cabinet Carcass (Dark Green, Purple, Orange)

First, line up the corner pieces and put down a line of glue on one edge of the ‘Front Short’ piece. Spread the glue with a glue spreader or your finger.

Next, flip the ‘front short’ piece on a flat side facing the ‘front long’ piece. The ‘front long’ piece should be upright on its side as shown below. Using a speed square or L-Square, perform a quick 90 degree angle check.

After the pieces are aligned, secure them with 3 brad nails (2 sides and middle). Keep in mind, the brad nails simply hold the 2 pieces together until screws are used.

Next, take 2 corners you just made and 1 ‘side outside’ as labeled in the cut list.

Then, lay the corners down on the flat surface and make sure the ‘front short’ piece is laying flat and the ‘front long’ piece is perpendicular. Apply and spread glue on the ‘front short’ piece from the top and 25” down on each corner pair.

Afterwards, lay the ‘side outside’ piece on top of the glue and secure with brad nails. Repeat the same process with the pilot hole, countersink bit, and pocket screws as before.

Get one side from the previous step and lay it perpendicular on flat surface. Next, place glue on each one end of the ‘inside runner’ and place it on the side as shown in the picture below.

Then, use a speed square or L square to make sure the inside support pieces are perpendicular to the side. A 90 degree corner square is a great way to keep the interior panels square. Use 2 brad nails to secure the piece followed by 2 screws in the pilot hole.

As a next step, spread a liberal amount of glue on one side of the ‘inside side’. This piece is supported from the bottom runner and top stretcher, so a clamp is not needed to secure it.

Next, use brad nails to secure the piece. Then, drill a pilot hole in each corner (4), followed by a countersink bit and screws.

The easiest way to assemble drawers is to start with the bottom, front, and back piece.

First, lay the bottom down on a flat surface. Next, spread glue on the front bottom and back bottom. Then, stand them in place (bench dog or something similar helps) and check for 90 degree angle.

Additionally, you may find it easier to hold the L square on the drawer bottom and push it against the front/back while driving 3 brad nails in the middle and both sides.

Like before, make pilot holes, countersink them, and drive in 3 screws.

Afterwards, turn the drawer on its side and spread glue along the bottom, front, and back piece. Lay the drawer back down on the flat surface, push the side piece in place, check for square, secure with brad nails, and then screws.

This DIY base cabinet with drawers has inset cabinet doors, which means the drawer face will be flush with the face frame or front of the cabinet.

I cut the drawers and ran them through my router with a ½” roundover bit.

First, you don't need to make these knobs. I made these knobs because of the style of table top I used (Florida Themed).

I used epoxy resin silicone molds of sea creatures and mickey mouse ears. Also, I made most of these with excess epoxy resin after a resin pour. Although these are not the easiest knobs to install, they certainly match the table well.

I used wood putty to fill the holes and allowed it to dry per the instructions. Next, I used my orbital sander with 220 grit sandpaper to sand it down.

I painted the entire cabinet carcass and drawer faces with chalk paint that I mixed myself from leftover Sherwin Williams satin paint (color SW7008).

Also, I have a ton of experience with painting and I really don’t like doing it, which is why chalk paint is the perfect solution for many of my projects.

What are the advantages of chalk paint?

1. Chalk paint goes on evenly
2. Dries quickly
3. Leaves a flat finish
4. Covers more surface area

First, find the center of the drawer face. Then, measure the width and divide by 2. The center of the drawer face is where these lines intersect.

Next, place a small amount of CA glue around the hole on the drawer face and spray activator on the back of the resin knob. Press the resin knob on the center of the drawer and hold for roughly 5 seconds.

First, make sure the bottom drawer has a support which is even with the bottom frame.

Next, I had to get creative with this step because I didn’t want to waste a piece of wood for the base cabinet support for the bottom drawer.

A leftover piece of wood from a previous project along with 2 paint sticks and 2 popsicle sticks was perfect for a base support. Keep in mind, Each paint stick is ⅛” thick and a popsicle stick is 1/16” thick.

I turned the scrap piece of wood to 45 degrees so that it would balance the drawer when placed on top of it. Next, I cut 2 pieces of scrap ¾” plywood the length of the cabinet frame (18”) and 1.5” wide for the drawer slide to rest on.

Then, place the drawer slide on top of the scrap piece of plywood and make sure it is aligned/flush with the back of the ¾” cabinet face frame. Remember, this is an inset cabinet so ¾” of an inch is needed for the drawer face.

Also, it is a good idea to place the magnetic torpedo level on top of the drawer slide to make sure it is level. Next, gently slide the drawer slide forward to reveal the holes in the back of the slide. While holding the slide in place from the rear, drive 3 cabinet screws in the holes provided.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what holes are used as long as they are spaced appropriately (rear, middle, front). Finally, remove each scrap piece of plywood.

Place 2 paint sticks on top of the bottom support to lift the drawer ⅛” from the bottom as depicted in the drawing at the beginning of this section.

Next, place the drawer on top and ensure the paint sticks are supporting the drawer evenly.

The drawer should fit snugly between each drawer slide.

First, drill 2 pilot holes and counter sink into the back of the drawer front. Next, place 2 popsicle sticks on top for the 3 bottom drawers and on bottom of the top drawer. Then, align the drawer face so that it is flush with the popsicle sticks minus about a tiny bit (1/32”).

Afterwards, drive 2 pocket screws to secure the drawer face from the rear. Lastly, check to make sure the drawers fit and adjust if needed.

I used my kreg pocket hole jig and clamp to make 2 pocket holes per cabinet base – one on the left and one on the right.

Moreover, this prevents the table from moving or sliding. Pocket holes are perfect for this application because I may want to remove it in the future.

I hope this instructable provided you with value. Please feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions - I'm happy to help.

Be sure to checkout my YouTube channel and my website for more DIY tutorials.