turning kitchen cabinets into a sideboard overview illustration

Illustration Jennifer Stimpson

Dishware, serving pieces, table linens—a sideboard packs a whole lot of storage space into a relatively small footprint, making it a handy addition to any household. A sturdy, high-quality one can leave a thousand-dollar dent in your finances, but as This Old House general contractor Tom Silva demonstrates, you can enhance a few stock kitchen base cabinets with molding, furniture feet, and knobs to produce a handcrafted piece for a fraction of the cost of buying one ready-made. Opt for unfinished 15- or 18-inch cabinets fitted with doors and operable drawers (not the fake drawer fronts used for sink cabinets) and take a day to put all the pieces together. Your handsome creation will turn heads at dinner parties for years to come.

The design for this sideboard is based on one found in the book The Find, by Stan Williams.

Paint: Fabulous Red in semigloss; Valspar. Rub n ‘Buff Metallic Finishes in Antique Gold; Amaco.