Author: E.J.

After a long baby-related hiatus from woodworking, I’ve spent most of this summer and fall returning to work on kitchen cabinets.

Our kitchen is quite devoid of counter-space, and I often find myself scrambling to find places to put things down. We had a tiny Ikea table next to the stove-top, but it was little more than a cutting board. We had an additional door in the kitchen that connected to a hallway. It was convenient, especially since the toddler’s play-room was on the other side. However, we were willing to sacrifice the door for some much needed counter space in the kitchen.

I made measurements of the space and decided that it would be a free-standing cabinet with two parts. This allows us to”undo” if we end up hating it, but also simplifies the installation process.

I set to work building cabinet frames, drawers, and doors. By this point, construction these basic boxes was quite easy and my router table made the find shaping quick and efficient. Soon, I had a basic frame for the first portion.

Thankfully, I was able to order more of the same door handles to match our existing kitchen cabinets (from my previous work). I even had some of the same old paint sitting around, so I was able to match it perfectly. The big difference was the counter-tops. Since we didn’t have the same crappy counter-tops available (not that we’d want to replicate them), we decided to go with a nice smooth red oak butcher block style. I considered making my own, but it cost about the same to just buy a premade slab. So I just had to cut it to size,1 shape the edges, and sand it nice and smooth.

I did the same work for the second cabinet (not shown) and the two were made to connect together. However, due to the slope in the floor in our 100-yr old house, they didn’t quite fit as well as I’d like, with the second cabinet having a slight lip. But overall, it’s not that bad and probably not worth the hassle to try and level out the cabinets perfectly.

The nice thing about making my own, was that I could perfectly accommodate the old heat vent on the wall, so that I can stay toasty on those cold winter days when I’m cooking. The overall result worked out quite well and goes well with the new induction stove.

The final steps are to add a top cabinet that will hang on the door frame. Additionally, I want to build a specialized “door” inset to replace the actual door. This will have matching shaping as the cabinets and even a little window so that we can still see and hear what’s going on in the toddler play-room.

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A little over a week ago, my wife and I had our first child. With that came the continuous diaper changing, 8-10 times throughout the day. We had purchased a typical ‘pack’n’play’ or play-yard, that included an attached basinet and changing station. This was a great option for us in our small house, as we could move it around a bit and have it on hand right in the main space of our house.

We quickly learned that the station had a seriously flaw. The changing station was far too low. My wife and I are both almost 40, and the constant strain of leaning over to change diapers on a screaming infant was beginning to show in our lower backs. As a woodworker, I knew I had to build a height booster for the changing pad, but also ensure that it was still safe for our precious baby.

In order to support the frame, it’d have to have a cut-out to lock onto the sides of the play-yard. So I created the heightened portions and ran a deep groove on the table saw to create a slot for the side walls of the play-yard.

The top potion had to have a somewhat rounded protruding section for the plastic clips of the changing station to lock into. I cut the sides out on the table saw, then rounded it over with the belt sander. I created a locking groove on the sides as well for extra security.

Now my risers were laminated together to create the height I needed. I then just screwed in some scraps of plywood to connect the frame together.

The contraption was a success. The baby changing station locked in perfectly to both the top of the play-yard frame, and the station locked solidly on the top.

Now changing diapers is much better on the lower back, and I feel more patient while my infant is screaming during the whole process.

My wife and I are expecting this fall and the list of woodworking projects are exploding. We have a relatively small house and needed to adapt what we have to accommodate the new baby. My wife wants to keep an existing desk in the bedroom for storage and use the top for a baby-changing station. However, the flat top doesn’t suit the needs very well. After looking at some existing models, I decided to build an adaptive top for the desk.

The build was a basic plywood box with cubbies for storage and a well in the top for the cushion. It’s a perfect adaptation to the top of the desk, putting the baby at just the right height for diaper changing.