How to Build a Small Kitchen Cabinet for Cookie Sheets

Examine your cookie sheets. Use a tape measure to determine the largest sheet size included. The typical home cookie sheet measures up to 17 inches in length and 15 inches in width, but very large sheets can reach 26 inches by 18 inches.

Sketch the cabinet outline to help you visualize the construction. Label the cabinet dimensions for width, depth and height. Plan for a size that fits your needs and the space in which you will install it, whether square-shaped, hanging from the ceiling or tall, deep and narrow sitting by itself. Allow for the largest of your sheets, extra clearance in the cabinet as well as the thickness of the cabinet material. Thus, for a mixture of small and large cookie sheets, a cabinet 33 inches high, 23 inches deep and 23 inches wide provides plenty of space and blends with standard cabinet height and depths.

Inspect each sheet of wood before working with it. Avoid using wood with structural damage such as chips and cracks or blemishes that affect the appearance.

Measure from the corner of a sheet of wood up to the height of the cabinet you desire at two points several inches apart. Repeat on the other side of the board corner, measuring over the depth desired and marking in two spots. Connect the lines to create the cut guide.

Cut two boards out to the height and depth dimensions. Label both with an "S" on one side lightly to indicate these are the cabinet sides.

Mark two more boards similarly, using the width and depth measurements instead. Cut the boards out and label with a "T" for the board you want for the top and a "B" for the bottom.

Count the number of vertical dividers you want inside the cabinet. You may choose one divider several inches over to store thicker items such as cake pans or cast iron, on edge, then two dividers spaced closely together to separate two different sizes of cookie sheets, for instance.

Measure and mark the shelve boards; use the cabinet height, minus 1 inch, plus the depth minus a few inches as the appropriate dimensions. For example, if the cabinet height is 33 inches and the depth is 23 inches, cut the dividers to 32 inches high and perhaps 17 or 18 inches. The dividers will rest in shallow channels -- called dados -- in the top and bottom pieces and the boards will stop just short of the front of the cabinet.

Cut the shelf boards out of a thinner plywood to minimize space usage from the thickness of the board. Label the dividers with a "D" to designate their final position.

Make dado cuts in the bottom and top cabinet boards. Measure over from the edge in two places and connect with a straight edge to indicate the desired positions. Having a couple extra dados allows you to readjust the position of the dividers in the future.

Use a router or even a table or circular saw to create the dados. Adjust the cutting depth to 1/4 inch and cut away the wood in a strip that is 1/4-inch-wide (or the thickness of the material you used for the shelves).

Run a very slight bead of carpentry glue along one edge of a side board. Align it with the back piece, properly positioned, and push together.

Use carpentry screws to secure the back and side boards in place every 4 inches. Take care to avoid missing the wood, causing the screw to penetrate the side board.

Continue, connecting the opposite side board, cabinet bottom and cabinet top boards similarly. Check that the dados are positioned properly as you work. Switch to finishing nails for attachment in areas where the seams will be visible when installed.

Slide the cookie sheet dividers inside the cabinet. Shave a fraction of an inch off the dividers if they refuse to slide into place and reinsert.

Cut a door out of the plywood, matching it to the width and height of the cabinet to measure. Attach a knob or pull and hinges. Paint or stain the entire cabinet and hang or set in position to complete.