Metal file cabinets are standard office fare, and with the number of people working from home today, home offices are on the rise. DIY Decorating & Design host Nancy Golden shows how to beautify a metal file cabinet by covering the sides with bead board and the top and drawer fronts with iron-on wood veneer for a look that's more home than office. Materials:
Metal file cabinet
Drill
Screwdriver
Iron
Bead board cut to fit the sides of the file cabinet
Boards and bricks for weight
Adhesive-backed iron-on veneer for the top and drawers
Matching iron-on veneer trim for the front of cabinet
Construction adhesive
Sandpaper
Tack cloth
Wood stain or paint
Drawer pulls
- Remove all the hardware from the file cabinet, and clean the metal surface thoroughly.
- Remove the drawers, and place the cabinet on its side. Apply construction adhesive to the side facing up (figure A), and carefully set the bead board in place (figure B). Use planks of scrap wood and bricks to hold the bead board in place while the adhesive dries. When the first side is complete, flip the file cabinet over, and cover the opposite side the same way.
- The cabinet's top and drawer fronts are covered with iron-on wood veneer. Align the factory edges of the veneer with the front and side of the top of the file cabinet. Set the iron on the cotton setting, no steam, and press the veneer in place (figure C). The heat of the iron will melt the adhesive, sticking the veneer to the metal. It may be difficult to make the previously rolled veneer lie flat. Be persistent: it will eventually flatten out.
- When the top has been ironed in place, use a sharp utility knife to trim the veneer flush with the side and back of the cabinet top (figure D).
- Cover each drawer with veneer, using the same method.
- After attaching veneer to the front of the cabinet drawers, create holes for attaching the hardware by drilling through the original holes from the inside of each drawer.
- Trim the edges of the front of the file cabinet by ironing on wood veneer trim in the same wood tone as the veneer sheets (figure E).
Note: - When applying veneer, make sure the wood grain for all pieces is going in the same direction.
- After covering the entire cabinet with wood and veneer, sand it smooth. Wipe the surface clean with a tack cloth, and paint or stain as desired. Add new drawer pulls.
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