How To Build This Easy Wooden Toy Box for Kids [For Only $25]
Time: 1 Hour
Cost: $25
Skill: Moderate
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This build is for all my Mom and Dad friends out there. This is the perfect little DIY toy box for kids. It also makes for a great book bin or sand table for your little ones! I built this (unfinished) in less than an hour and almost entirely for free, with leftover wood from other projects. In fact, the only things I had to purchase were the paint markers.
This particular toy box is going to my brand new nephew, and I have to admit, I am a bit sad to see it leave. On Etsy these carry a $150 price tag, but follow these plans and you can make your own for under $25, or free, if you are like me and have a stock pile of wood in your garage.
How to DIY a Wooden Toy Box for Your Kids
Overall Size: 36″ Wide x 16.75″ Deep x 18″ High
Below are the specific cuts that I used for my wooden toy box, but you could easily swap out the 1×10 sides for 1×8’s, make it longer or shorter, taller or wider! Just be sure to adjust the size of the base piece if you do make adjustments to the sides.
Materials:
- Saw
- 1×4 Common Board (31 inches total)
- 2×4 Board (Roughly 50 inches)
- 1×10 Common Board (102 inches total, I bought a 10 foot board)
- Sheet of sanded plywood (A 2′ x 4′ sheet will work)
- Nail Gun, we love our Porter and Cable Compressor Combo Kit
- Multipurpose Screws (3 1/8″)
- Wood Filler
- Stain or Paint, I used this product by Varathane
- Paint Markers (Or alternative lettering technique)
Cut list:
- (4) 2×4 cut to 13 1/4″
- (2) 1×10 cut to 36″
- (2) 1×10 cut to 15″
- (1) Sanded Plywood cut to 15″ x 34.5″
- (2) 1×4 cut to 15 1/8″
Step One: Attach the Legs to the Front and Back Piece of the Wooden Toy Box
Sizing & Placement
I had about 5 feet of 2×4 laying around. To keep things simple I cut it into four equal pieces without measuring. I laid the front piece flat and positioned two of the legs toward the end, eying it to determine the most appealing positioning/height. I knew I didn’t want the interior of the box to be super deep, so I went with an 8 3/4 inch exposure below the side pieces, which left the interior of the box with a 4 1/2 inch depth. (This is one of the easiest measurements to change based on the look you want as it doesn’t impact any other measurements)
Securing
Once you decide what height you want the legs, use the screws to secure two legs to the front piece and two legs to the back piece, placing them 3/4 of an inch from the outside, to account for the short side pieces that will be added last. The pictures below show one screw, but I actually used three on each leg.
Note: After everything was assembled, I reinforced the legs from the front with the nail gun. Much smaller holes to fill than screws!
Step Two: Attach the Base of your Wooden Toy Box & Book Bin
I made these toy box plans up as I went, based mostly on the size of the wood I had laying around. I opted to attach the base before the sides since it was easier for me to alter the width of the sides than it was for me to alter the width of the base.
After lining up the base with the outside edge of each leg, I used the 3 1/8 inch screws in each corner, and made sure to counter sink them for a smooth finish.
Note: I played a balancing game with this, but it could be helpful to grab a second set of hands just to stabilize the base between the front and back pieces while you add each screw.
Step Three: Attach the Sides to your Kids Toy Box & Book Bin
I was able to get an exact measurement for each individual side piece since I attached the base first. I think that trying to slide the base in last would have required a higher level of exactness than my circular saw offered in cutting the plywood for the base.
I used screws to attach the side board to the 2×4 legs, and when I went around with the nail gun I put a few nails through the front and back into each side piece.
Step Four: Reinforce and Install Dividers in your Wooden Toy Box & Book Bin
Once everything was in place I went around the exterior and secured everything on the kids toy box using the nail gun.
After that, I cut and checked the fit of the dividers. These dividers are optional, but if you are using the toy box as a book bin, I recommend having the dividers!
I would also hold off on actually securing these prior to staining or painting. It goes a bit smoother if you stain them separately.
Step Five: Fill any Holes & Apply Finish to your Wooden Toy Bin Organizer
I applied a quick layer of wood filler, around any visable holes in the toy box and once dry, sanded it down.
I had extra stain left from other projects, and used this beautiful “Dark Walnut” color. I like to use old white(ish) socks to apply stain!
Step Six: Adding Script to your Book Bin
I picked a delicate fairytale-esque script for this box. To start, I set a Word document to the “landscape” orientation and typed up the words so that they covered several sheets of paper (I got lucky and my first estimate was spot on!)
After printing I had to combine the letters that got cut off from each other. I did this by cutting the second piece of paper directly along the edge of the letter. Layered them and secured with double sided tape between the pages (you could also secure with tape on the back), and then cut around the entire word!
I spent days researching techniques on how to add script to wood. I am not crafty enough to own a cricket….But funny enough, after all that research I decided to just try tracing with a pen, and it worked!!
Once I had secured the lettering where I wanted it, I was ready to trace the letters. I slowly followed the outline of the script, making several passes and making sure to get a deep mark in the wood of the toy box. Which I then filled with these awesome paint markers!
It is a bit hard to see in the picture, but the pen did leave an indentation that was easy to follow. I did have to move the box around to get the light to hit it in a way that I could see the markings. I did one word at a time, and made sure not to smudge with my hand. Tracing with the paint marker first, and then filling it in. I went over it three times in total to get nice opaque white letters. (Over the course of several days).
The Final Product: A Wooden Toy Box for Kids!
I am so in love with this adorable wooden toy bin organizer! I know my nephew is going to love it…when he is old enough to appreciate these sorts of things 😉
Here it is in their space. How adorable!!
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This is a really cute idea!
Thanks Michelle! It ended up being way easier than I thought 🙂
Nice job Laura! What a special gift!!!
Thank you!! I really love it 🙂 Might be my new go to baby gift for anyone that wants one!
What font style did you end up using please?
Hi Cari, I have been MIA lately, and I can’t seem to remember which I used. I did you Microsoft Word though, so I know it is one of the scripts on there, and I believe I made it bold to get a thicker style. Sorry! Next time I will be sure to include it 🙂
What size nails did you use in your nail gun?
Hi Rosalina! The size nails may vary based on what type of nail gun you have, but ours is a 20 gauge, and I always have 2” nails on hand. You could use any length as long as it is long enough to make it through the front skirt piece into the dividers. If you don’t have a nail gun you could also try a heavy duty wood glue to secure them. If it wears down over the years you may just need to re-glue!
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This looks great! Do you suggest sanding and staining before putting it together or doing that last?
Hey! So I did it last, and I honestly didn’t need to really sand since I used such a high quality wood. I just hit the edges to smooth it out a bit. Some people find it easier to do before, but in my opinion its just personal preference 🙂 Let me know how it turns out!
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Thank you for including my project! It’s a great simple way to make a toy bin, book bin, or even a sand table!