How to: China cabinet

Gather your supplies

• Old wardrobe with doors and drawers or similar raw-timber wardrobe (with framed door panels)

• wood filler

• medium- and fine-grit sandpaper

• lint-free cloths

• Dulux 1 Step Primer, Sealer & Undercoat

• 230mm roller cover with 6mm nap

• 230mm roller frame

• paint trays

• paintbrushes

• Dulux Wash & Wear 101 Advanced Low Sheen in Black

• Walldots wallpaper in Bronze

• Stanley knife

• metal ruler

• wallpaper paste

• wallpaper brush

• half-moon sponge

• bucket

• two 18mm-thick MDF shelves (to be precut to size)

• spirit level; drill

• drill bits (to suit shelf support diameter and another to suit light cable)

• 12 clear shelf supports

• 6 Grundtal nickel-plated spotlights with transformer

• mouse mesh

• staple gun

• staples

• tape

• White Knight Squirts spray paint in Flat Black

• 18 x 6mm flybead half round

• protective gloves and eyewear

• replacement knobs or handles

• hammer

• tin snips

Note: Adjust instructions to suit your wardrobe.

Here’s how

Step 1 - Remove any hardware from doors and drawers. Remove hanging rail. Unscrew hinges and remove doors. Lightly hammer panels of each door to loosen them, then use claw of hammer to pry them from door. Remove any nails. If your wardrobe has deep scratches or gouges, patch them with wood filler and let dry. If finished with a gloss or stain, sand entire wardrobe inside and out, except inside drawers, with medium-grit sandpaper. This creates a key for paint to adhere to. If raw timber, sand smooth with fine-grit sandpaper.

Step 2 - Wipe wardrobe free of dust with lint-free cloth. Using paintbrush and undercoat, cut into corners and difficult-to-access spots. Allowing it to dry after each coat, roll 2 even coats of undercoat onto sanded surfaces only.

Step 3 - Wallpaper inside back and sides of wardrobe. To do this, measure length of area to be wallpapered and add an extra 10cm. Taking account of this measurement and pattern repeat, cut required number of wallpaper strips. Lay wallpaper on a flat covered surface and liberally brush back of wallpaper with wallpaper paste. Brush paste onto surface to be wallpapered. Starting at top, hang your first strip using damp sponge to smooth it in place. Smooth from centre out to sides, removing air bubbles and excess glue. Trim excess paper at top and bottom using metal ruler and Stanley knife. Repeat until back and sides are wallpapered. Wipe down with damp sponge, removing any glue on front. Wallpaper the shelves, adjusting instructions to suit.

Step 4 - Checking that they are level, mark position of shelves and drill evenly spaced holes in sides and back of wardrobe for shelf supports. Before you drill, tape drill bit to indicate desired depth of drilling otherwise you run the risk of drilling right through the wardrobe.

Step 5 - Marking their position under ceiling and shelves, attach 2 evenly spaced lights across centre. Run each cable to back of cabinet and secure to ceiling or shelf with staples. Drill holes in rear of cupboard for each cable, then thread cables through holes. Attach cables to transformer.

Step 6 - Measure opening of each door and cut mesh (sprayed black) slightly larger all around. Pulling it taut as you work, staple mesh to back of each door. Using panel pins to attach, cover mesh edges with flybead (painted black) mitring or butt joining at corners. Hang doors and attach knobs. Voila – 1 china cabinet!