This DIY Adds Storage to Your Kitchen Cabinet End Panel

Jun 09, 2023

You probably don’t think a lot about the end panel of your lower kitchen cabinets. It’s kind of just there, hanging out. But one Instagram user saw her end panel as wasted space so she decided to turn it into extra kitchen storage. And this DIY project is pretty straightforward.

“When we upcycled the kitchen, the units needed some TLC, especially this end panel,” Mia Felce wrote in a recent Instagram caption. “I saw something similar on here so we decided to make a bookshelf and it looks so much better!”

Perfect for cookbooks, extra glassware, or even spices, this shelf makes great use of the blank slate at the end of Felce’s bank of cabinets.

A post shared by Mia Felce (@miafelce)

To do the same in your kitchen, you first need to measure your end panel and cut four pieces of wood to make an outer frame. “We used pine strip wood,” Felce wrote in another post, but you can use whatever wood you have on hand and whatever thickness you’d like your shelf (or shelves!) to be.

Fix the frame pieces together with screws. “We used a pocket jig to make holes for the screws and fixed it together this way, but you can fix [it] differently as I’ve shown on the video,” Felce continued. “Then just fill the holes.”

Cut a fifth piece of wood that fits in the middle of the frame and attach it the same way. “I added a trim to the front and cut some really small bits of wood and stuck these on so I had something to fix it to,” she said. “You could just stick it across the front.”

Finally, attach the shelf to the cabinet by screwing through the back of the cabinet or by using strong adhesive glue and clamps. Then you can fill all your holes and paint it.

In just a couple of hours, you can give yourself added kitchen storage and make great use of what was once wasted space.