How To Build a Kitchen Cabinet For Appliances

Hide all your small kitchen appliances inside this easy to build cabinet

Microwave who 😉

I mean we have one but if you came over today you wouldn’t see it out on the countertop!

During this never ending kitchen renovation, building an appliance cabinet was always on the list, it just kept getting pushed back.

It wasn’t until we extended the rest of the kitchen cabinets up to the ceiling that this section of the kitchen looked so out of place.

Originally we had planned to hang the microwave from that cabinet, but apparently when we were ordering our cabinets, something was misunderstood…

Check out my complete review of buying kitchen cabinets & countertops from Lowes HERE

So once the cabinets were installed we came to the realization that we would have to build a spot for the microwave ourselves.

Plus it was a good opportunity to also build a place for the rest of the small appliances that are just kind of eyesores.

Building this kitchen cabinet was such a breeze & super budget friendly I cannot wait to share it with y’all!

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Supplies:

-Cabinet Grade Plywood

-Scrap 2×4 Pieces

–Edge Banding

How To Build a Kitchen Cabinet For Appliances

When we decided to build this appliance cabinet we also thought it would be a good idea to go ahead & build a fridge enclosure too!

So the first step was to remove the existing cabinets, they were simply screwed into studs on the wall.

Next, we cut pieces of 2×4 1-1×2″ shorter than what the width our cabinet was going to be.

We attached them to the back wall, making sure to screw them into studs.

We ripped two pieces of cabinet grade plywood to the length & width we wanted the cabinet to be & attached them with wood screws to the 2x4s.

When you are deciding on your measurements don’t forget to include room for your doors.

Next, we attached 1×2 pine boards to the inside front of the plywood.

We held the boards in place with clamps, then attached them with nails.

Once the trim pieces were attached we started reattaching the old cabinet.

We added 2x4s to the ceiling studs so that we would have something solid for the cabinet to attach too.

We also added scrap 2x4s to the plywood sides to support the cabinet on the side as well.

I applied edge banding to all the rough sides that were visible on the outside of the cabinet.

Edge banding makes everything look more finished & can be painted or stained.

This is how the cabinet looked with the cabinet attached:

Building The Doors

Supplies:

-1×2 Pine Boards

-1/4″ Thick Smooth Plywood

-Pocket Screws

-Inset Hinges

First we cut the 1×2 pine boards down to size:

(4) long pieces the length of the opening divided by 2 minus 1/2″ (because there are 2 doors)

(4) short pieces the width of the door divided by 2 (because there are 2 doors) minus 1/2″

This is what the pieces will look like, they are not attached together yet!

Once the 1×2 boards were cut we drilled pocket holes at the ends of the long boards.

This is how we will attach them together later.

After the pocket holes were drilled, we cut a slot on the inside of each board using our router table.

This is the where the cabinet front will slide into.

After the slots were cut we attached a long & two short 1×2 boards together with glue & pocket holes.

Next, we measured for the cabinet front & ripped 1/4″ plywood down to size to fit into the slot.

TIP: It’s always better to rip it a little big & go back to shave/sand some off than to rip it too small

It is also helpful to lay a tape line down where you are going to cut the plywood so you won’t have a rough edge like we did, if not you will just have to sand it off a little 😅

Once the cabinet fronts were cut, I slid the plywood into place & attached the last long 1×2!

Attaching The Cabinet Door Hinges

Now that the doors are complete it’s time to attach the hardware.

Depending on the type you use will depend on how you need to install it, ours are concealed hinges.

We used a hole saw to cut a circle halfway through the marked hinge spot.

After the hole was cut, we were able to use a screwdriver to just pry the cut circle out.

It came out really easily in sections, you could also use a hinge jig like this, to make it easier.

Once the cutouts were made we attached the hinges with screws.

Finishing The Appliance Cabinet

After the doors were built & attached to the cabinet it was time to do the finishing.

I started by sanding everything down with 220 grit sandpaper & applied 2 coats of primer.

Once the primer was dry I applied two coats of Chantilly White (our cabinet color) to the entire appliance cabinet.

I ended up making a last minute design change & adding a shelf to the appliance cabinet also.

The shelf was installed using the super simple shelf method I use for all my DIY shelves.

We left a small gap in the back so that we could easily slide cords down to reach the outlets!

We also added brass latches & hardware to the cabinets.

Y’all I could not be happier with how this appliance cabinet turned out!

I strongly dislike all the appliances visibly on the counter, it feels so cluttered & now we have the perfect space to store them all.

This cabinet build literally took one day to build, including the fridge enclosure, had I known it was going to be so simple I would have done this so much sooner!

You can see the complete tour of the inside over on our Instagram page!

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