Tabletop Office Cube for Under $3

Working from home can be distracting especially when your "office" is in a high-traffic and noisy area like the kitchen or dining room. An easy solution is to build yourself a sturdy tabletop office cube from a moving box for under $3.00!

Before you get started, measure the perimeter around your tabletop workspace to determine the total length of your cube wall. This will help you pick the size of the moving box you'll need. Remember, when you cut a box vertically from one corner and lay it flat, you will get the total length of your cube wall (2x length + 2x width).

Next, determine how high you would like the cube wall to be. Measure from the tabletop upwards. Pick a box with a height nearest to that of your desired wall height.

With your measurements on hand, find an empty moving box lying around in your garage or secure one from a big box store (no pun intended).

To construct this cube, you will need:

• 1 large moving box (I got mine from U-Haul. Extra Large 24" x 18" x 24" for $2.49 + tax)
• a hobby cutter and cutting mat
• a glue gun

1. Pick one corner of the box and cut from top to bottom, opening the box and laying it flat.
2. Cut off the top and bottom "flaps" of the box. Note. Save these cardboard flaps for the next step.
3. If you have wires that need to come in from the back of the cube into your workspace, cut a hole from the bottom of the wall. WARNING: Be sure that the cube is away from any power strip to avoid the risk of fire in case of any electrical issues from the outlet!

1. Measure the thickness of the table top.
2. Sketch your hook on a scrap piece of cardboard. Each hook is made up of two layers of cardboard to provide strength and rigidity.
3. Cut out the hooks from the cardboard. Make two pairs of hooks.

Install the hook at each bottom edge of your cube.

1. With the glue gun heated and ready, adhere the hooks to the bottom corner edges of the wall. The hooks should be facing the tabletop, away from you.
2. After this step, you should have two hooks at the bottom edges of your cube: one on the left and the other on the right.

Attach the cube by placing it on the tabletop, securing the hooks on the edge. Pass any wires underneath any wall holes you provisioned earlier. WARNING: Keep power strips away from your cardboard cube.

At this point, you now have a functional, distraction-free work environment. With a pair of noise-cancelling headphones, you wouldn't know if you were working in an office or in a busy kitchen!

Feel free to deck your cube with paint, string lights, post it notes, calendars, and do not disturb signs! The possibilities are endless!

Be sure to store the cube when not in use. Unhook the cube from the table, then fold and stow till the next time you need to use it. WARNING: Do not leave your cube unattended for a long time especially when any electrical appliances (i.e. laptops, monitors) are running inside it.