DIY Dressers: How to Build a DIY Dresser at Home

A dresser is a wide, low piece of furniture, usually found in a bedroom, that has drawers for storage. Dressers are similar to a chest of drawers (which is tall and narrow) or a bureau (which is typically found in more public areas of the home). Dressers come in a variety of widths and heights, but they usually have at least one set of drawers. Some dressers have mirrors attached to the back of their top surface to provide extra convenience.

Building a DIY dresser allows you to customize a piece of furniture to suit your unique bedroom decor and size. Here are some creative ideas to give you inspiration for building your own DIY dresser.

1. 1. Crate dressers: You can use plywood to build a simple wooden frame for your dresser, then use wooden crates or pallets as the drawer boxes for your belongings, similar to a cubby.
2. 2. Upcycled dresser: Instead of building an entire dresser from scratch, you can upcycle a vintage, thrifted, or found piece of furniture. Upcycling involves rehabbing a piece of old furniture with new upholstery, fresh paint, or other design treatments to make it look new again. Visit your local antique or thrift store to see if there are any old dressers you can use for your DIY makeover.
3. 3. Vanity dresser: You can buy a new mirror (or find an upcycled one) and attach it to the top of your dresser to create a flexible vanity area. If you do this, you should make sure that your dresser is not too high. You want to make sure that you can comfortably use the tabletop as a vanity.
4. 4. Farmhouse dresser: A farmhouse dresser takes inspiration from rustic farmhouse decor. You can use natural looking wood (like pine boards) or distress a coat of paint for a slightly weathered look.
   
5. 5. Simple DIY dresser: You can build your very own dresser at home from scratch using hardware and a variety of building materials, from wood to synthetic materials. Make sure to study your building plans thoroughly before starting to work on your project to avoid wasting time and materials.

To build your own DIY dresser at home, all you’ll need are a few items from the hardware store and a few things you likely already have lying around your home. Below are some of the different supplies you’ll need to do your own furniture makeover:

1. 1. Building plans: You can find a variety of free plans online for building a DIY dresser or you can draw them up yourself. Start with an outline before you start making permanent cuts to your materials. You can use these as guides for how to assemble dressers with your chosen dimensions.
2. 2. Measuring tape: You’ll need measuring tape to plot the space of where your furniture will sit, and to measure the pieces of lumber you’ll be cutting to build your dresser.
3. 3. Building material: To build your dresser from scratch, you’ll need lumber which can be obtained cheaply from your local hardware store. If you’re not building from scratch, find the piece of furniture you’re going to upcycle or refurbish.
4. 4. Hardware: You’ll need tools like a hammer and nails, and possibly a drill and screws depending on which DIY dresser plans you follow. If you’re cutting your own wood, you may need a miter saw, circular saw, or table saw as well.
5. 5. Adhesives: Wood glue or other industrial adhesives will help you secure pieces of your dresser together as you’re building.
6. 6. Embellishments: You can etch finger-sized notches into the drawers to make drawer pulls for ease of use, or you can use other materials to make knobs or handles.
7. 7. Safety materials: When you’re working with wood, you should always wear safety goggles and gloves to protect your eyes and hands.

There are many different methods of building a dresser depending on your building plans, what materials you have, and your woodworking skill level. For a step-by-step guide on how to build a dresser, see the list below.

1. 1. Draft or obtain a building plan. Draw up some plans to build your dresser, whether you make your own or find them online. Measure the size of the piece of furniture you intend to create, as well as how many dresser drawers you can fit.
2. 2. Build your dresser frame. You’ll want to build the frame of your dresser before you build the drawers. This should make it easier to adjust the sizes of your dresser drawers to fit into your frame. It can be easier to build each piece—the side panels, bottom, and top of the dresser—separately, then connect them together at the end. Follow your woodworking plans carefully to cut, glue, and secure your frame pieces together.
3. 3. Add dividers or spacers. Include however many dividers you need to separate the necessary space for each drawer. Measure carefully, as this can affect the size of your drawers.
4. 4. Build the drawers. If you’ve deviated slightly from your original plans, measure the drawer space available in your dresser frame, then cut your dresser drawers to fit. You can also install a rolling track or drawer slide padding to the drawer bottoms to make them easier to slide in and out.
5. 5. Add your final touches. Once your dresser is built, it’s time to customize the look of your dresser. You can paint or stain your new furniture, embellish the drawer faces with decorative handles or knobs, or add a mirror. If working closely with adhesives or other chemical fumes, make sure the room you’re working in has proper ventilation.

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