So this project truly was thrifty. As in it cost me the price of two cabinet pulls. That's it!
I had a problem. My kids love to color and do art projects. They are GREAT at getting the stuff out and ROTTEN at putting it back. I was so sick and tired of putting the crayons and markers away that I decided I should make it easier. And with that the art caddy was born!
I just used what I had on hand. (I have a LARGE pile of scrap lumber. Usually it just drives us nuts but every now and then it comes in handy!)
The first thing I did was figure out how long I wanted the caddy. In my case, 24" was perfect. I cut the sides to 23" long. Each end was 1/2" thick so that added the last inch. The bottom piece was also cut to 23". Honestly, it took longer to get out my miter saw than it took to cut the wood!
After the wood was cut to length, I used my finish nailer and glue. Of course I sanded the rough edges first. Afterall, little hands are going to be using this thing and I didn't want anyone getting splinters!
After the glue dried I gave it a quick coat of stain. I always have Minwax Jacobean on hand. Love that color. Since the stain alone was a little lackluster I also gave it a coat of satin water-based poly. Last but not least were the handles. Seriously easy!
Here are some vanity shots. My favorite kinds of shots:
Notice the rounded padded bottoms I stuck to the caddy. Afterall, I didn't want it scratching my mid-century dresser or my table!
For glass jars, I just used what I had on hand: a small canning jar, a pickle jar, etc. I had to clean out my refrigerator to find a few jars. I consider that a BONUS!
This system is so easy to clean up. Just throw the markers back in their jar. And ta-da. Instant clean-up!
One last shot. Cool, huh?
And there you have it. Art Caddy!
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