Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Crackled Kitchen Crates

As much as I love my updated cabinets, I am always looking for a bit more storage in my kitchen. Something that wouldn't take up too much room but could hold things I use daily (coffee, sugar, bowls, etc.). I found some inspiration at the amazing blog: DIY Vintage Chic and while my project looks a bit different, I always like to give credit where it is due. I have seen wooden crates at Michaels and decided to put my 40% coupons to work.



Just a quick note, the crates are not perfect and no amount of sanding will get them perfectly smooth or measuring identically but they were about $7 each so I can't really complain.





First, I used a gray primer from Home Depot. Historically I've used white primer but because of the weathered look I was going for, I wanted the base color to be gray. 





Spray painting is such an easy, convenient way of painting or priming an object, especially a crate with slats that a brush would have a tough time getting between.



All three crates were now primed.



I wanted these crates to have the white weathered look you sometimes see in Cape Cod.


I filled a red solo cup with a little of Martha Stewart's Weather Crackle Effect, grabbed a soft bristled brush, and got to work.


This is NOT the Martha Stewart Crackle Effect you would find at Home Depot. I considered that but read a few not so great reviews and decided to use the craft type found at Michaels and most other craft stores.


I promise you, my hands are much smaller and cuter than how they look in this picture. Anyway, I lathered (for lack of a better word) on the weathered crackle effect finish all over each crate. The directions said to wait "until dry" before applying paint over it but I painted the side of one crate once it dried and felt the crackle effect wasn't quite prominent so I stopped painting. I'm glad I did.

 I grabbed my paint the next morning to try again.


I used a shade of white acrylic paint (Wedding Cake) and covered each crate with ONE coat. You don't see the weathered/crackle effect until you paint over it and that layer of paint dries. I'm glad I waited overnight to paint the rest of the crates because I was able to get the look I wanted:


Since I was balancing the crates on top of each other I wanted to connect them so they wouldn't topple off each other.


My handsome groom picked these dowels up at our local Home Depot. I can't be trusted with a drill (or the opening of a champagne bottle but that's a story for another day), so I passed this part of the project on to him.


As previously mentioned, these crates are not exactly identical in measurement but he measured and marked each one as best he could.


The bottom crate received four holes in each corner on top, the middle crate received four holes on the bottom plus four holes on top, and the top crate received four holes on bottom.


His measurements paid off and each crate was fitted with their dowels and connected. I now have some extra storage for my coffee, sugar, mugs, and bowls. This is probably the tidiest each crate will look as I plan on adding extra plates and wine glasses that have been cluttering our cabinets.


~ B

4 comments:

  1. Becca here, stopping by from DIY Vintage Chic and it looks great Beth! I love the idea. And if you want more storage you could create another stack to sit on either side! Thanks for sharing!

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  2. Thanks Becca! I was considering laying some crates horizontally to stack up next to it, we'll see. Thanks for stopping by! ~ Beth

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  3. I love this idea. I think I'm going to do it on both sides of my fridge. :)

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  4. Thanks Alison! That's a great/convenient location for these crates!

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