[[Image:betterhomesgardens-365916884-1164672615.jpg]]Turn a bland set of drawers into a stand-out storage unit.



With a lick of paint and a little fabric you can transform an ordinary set of drawers into a pretty piece of furniture in just one afternoon. And, as you need so little fabric, you'll probably find you have all you require in your scraps basket.

You'll need
Wooden storage unit (we used Ikea Hoppe box)
Artist's acrylics or sample pots of paints in various colours
Pretty fabric to cover drawer fronts
Coloured ribbon
Sanding block
Sheet of cardboard
Tacky craft glue
Water-based satin varnish
Paintbrushes
Oval-shaped plywood discs (Spotlight)
Blackboard paint

Here's how
Step 1
Remove the drawers and lightly sand the outside of the storage unit and the edges of the drawers. If using a Hoppe box, reverse the drawers so the backs will be the front faces of the finished unit.

Step 2
Apply two coats of paint to the outside of the box, sanding between coats. Paint the front face, sides and insides of the drawers you wish to paint. Now paint the sides and inside of the drawers which are to be covered with fabric, bringing the paint over the front edge of the drawer by about 1 cm.

Step 3
To apply the fabric, trace around drawer front onto cardboard and cut out 2mm inside this line. Cut pieces of fabric 1cm larger all round than cardboard. Brush a generous amount of tacky craft glue over the cardboard, and centre fabric on it. Trim corners diagonally so they sit neatly. Fold the 1cm allowance to the back of the cardboard. Apply more glue and press allowance down. Repeat for each fabric and set aside to dry.

Step 4
Brush glue onto drawer front. Carefully position fabric-covered cardboard, aligning all edges. Let dry overnight, then apply two coats of varnish all over, including the fabric.

Step 5
To make the ribbon drawer pulls, cut 30cm length of ribbon and fold in half to form a large loop. Mark the midpoint of the top-front edge of the drawer. Hold the two raw ends together and place them about 10cm down from the mark, on the inside of drawer. Use a generous amount of glue to stick ribbon inside front face of drawer, leaving a 5cm loop above the top edge. The more ribbon you have glued down inside the drawer, the stronger the drawer-pull will be.

Step 6
To complete the unit, paint the plywood oval discs with blackboard paint and apply to the front of the drawers with craft glue.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens April 2001