Hidden Desk Apothecary Cabinet

Hi everyone! Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Spring is finally here in Alaska, and I can't wait to start working on projects outdoors.

Last fall, my sister started Home Schooling her two school-aged children. Without an extra room in her home to dedicate to homeschooling, the kids were doing their homework at the dining room table.

This dining table, to be exact (you can find the plans here).

But there is no storage in the dining table, so the children had no where to store their school supplies when school is not in session.

So my sister and I decided that she needed a console or buffet or something on the far wall to add storage to the dining room. Something ....

Before I get to what we came up with here, allow me to share a few plans that have come about from a sister brainstorming session -

Two sisters, visiting from thousands of miles away, were involved in the invention of the laundry basket dresser.

One sister was involved in the original pallet shelf hack

And another sister was part of the 2x4 garage shelving design,

That sparked the design for my closet.

Good things happen when sisters with messy kids and storage needs collaborate for sure. So our homeschool problem ... what if we built a console table that was beautiful and looked amazing in the dining room -

But it had a secret. It was not even a console at all?

It was actually a desk. That some of those drawers were actually the back of stools.

And some were actually drawers that could store laptops and books and pencils.

And it could all get neatly put away by little kids in seconds.

My sister has been using this homeschool desk for several months now, and describes it as "amazing". Her children easily keep their homeschool work organized and even the first grader can quickly push her stool back in, describing the process as "easy".

This wasn't the easiest build, mostly because of all the hidden drawers, but when done, so worth it.

Here's how it was made -

The cabinet is just plywood construction with 2x2 legs and framing everywhere except for the front where 1x2s were used. The stool legs double the 1x2s on the front, making the front look like it is made with 2x2s.

You have to be pretty straight and square building because of all the drawers, so what is pretty easy does take more time because you have to be precise.

Then I just made two stools out of 2x2s, using a Kreg Jig to build them.

For the stool backs, I attached the false drawer fronts to 1x2s with pocket holes. One thing I do regret here is not using a hardwood for those 1x2 legs. I don't like that the stool back legs are 1x2s.

That's the stool back and the stool done.

Then I just used 2" screws to attach the stool to the stool back.

I later cut the back stool 2x2 legs off with a jigsaw.

Up until this point, I wasn't really sure if this idea was going to work or not.

And it does.

After putting all the drawers in and attaching the drawer faces (plans below show you how to do that)

We wiped on one coat of Rustoleum Golden Oak.

Over that we applied a clear top coat of Rustoleum Triple Thick Poly.

I can't even believe how beautiful it is - especially since it's made from 3/4" AC plywood (used for construction) and 2x2 and 1x2 furring strips.

So happy to be able to share the plans with you below. But please, please, please - DO NOT tackle this as a first project. Or second. This is a more advanced project, and when you count all the drawer slides, an expensive one, and I just wouldn't feel right about someone investing in all the materials and then having trouble building. If you are new to building, pin to your build list and tackle when you are ready.

Enjoy the plans!

XO Ana Sisters