Create an affordable and beautiful craft or work space easily! Come learn how to Build a DIY File Cabinet Desk using just a couple file cabinets and some plank boards. I also have a great tutorial on how to Paint a File Cabinet.
This last month I went through a huge transition — ALL of my kiddos are in school ALL day long! It’s so bittersweet. With my boys being gone I knew I needed a new craft/work space, because I finally have some real craft time! I wanted it HUGE — 10 feet long and spanning my whole room. I did a lot of research on how to create it and decided to use file cabinets for my base.
How to Paint a File Cabinet
I looked long and hard on Craigslist and our local thrift stores and came up empty handed for months. Dang small town living! So, I had to buck up and buy mine off Amazon
. To support the desk with how deep I wanted it, I needed deep cabinets. I wasn’t 100% satisfied with their look, so I decided that I wanted to paint them.
Before painting them I needed to remove all the hardware.
You will also need pull out the drawers. If you cant figure out how to get them out, try YouTube! It helped me! I wrapped around the drawers with paper, so only the front would get painted. On my filing cabinet, you couldn’t remove the button, so I just ended up painting mine.
For the file cabinet paint color I used Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Ivory Bisque
and for the hardware I chose Rust-Oleum Gold Rush.
It turned out awesome and I really couldn’t be happier with them!
2018 update: They’ve held up great over the years! They have received a few small scratches due to wear and tear, so I am going to repaint them next year probably!
DIY File Cabinet Desk
Now it was time to build the desk! The first step was to get the wood! I went the cheap route — Pine 1×6 planks from Home Depot. I needed 5 to make my desk about 28 inches deep. This is one of the most important parts! You want to pick out wood that will line up as best as possible. It won’t line up perfect, because the wood may be warped. You are just looking for the best fitting pieces. This process took us about an hour. Be prepared to be patient!
Once you have these planks you need wood for the underside frame. The best choice for this would be 2×2 pieces. Unfortuantly, the longest 2×2’s we could find were 8 feet long. Since my desk was going to be 10 feet long we had to buy a 10 foot 2×4 and rip it into two 10 foot long 2×2’s. We also bought two 8 foot long 2×2’s.
While at Home Depot you will also want to buy a countersink drill bit
, so you can hide your screw holes. You will also want several 3 inch screws and also inch and half wood screws.
Now it’s time to build your frame!
Find out how wide you want your desk and how long. We did this by laying our planks out first. Be sure to cut your planks the right length before you start this process! Once you have them cut the right length, you will need to build your frame the same size as the planks.
Cut your middle cross pieces to fit inside. You are going to screw it in like the arrows show using your longer screws.
On the front side of the frame you will need to use your countersink bit first so you won’t see the screws. If you have never used a countersink bit then you may want to find a video on Youtube or thoroughly read my instructions.
Drill in first with the countersink bit, just wide enough for your screw to sit into the wood and be completely under the top of the board.
You can see here how the screw goes in under the wood.
Once your frame is together it’s time to put the planks on the top.
Once again make sure you countersink on the top. We did 2 screws on each part of the plank where it hit the frame. One thing I forgot to take pictures of is that we made big holes in the top for computer cords using a spade drill bit. Like this:
When all the planks are done, it should look like this from the bottom:
This may seem out of order, but the next thing I did was stain the bottom. I wanted it stained, but I also wanted to be able to sand off any stain that might soak through. So, I stained the bottom before sanding the top.
Then it’s time too fill all the countersink holes. Because I was staining my desktop I used, Minwax Stainable Wood Filler
.
I filled the holes and even left a little out of each hole.
I let it dry completely and then I broke out the belt sander.
Because we were using cheap planks we had a lot of sanding to do. Some parts were a little higher and I wanted the top to be even and smooth. So, be patient and get the planks even. It will make all the difference when its done!
Once we belt sanded, it was time for the hand sander.
You can see how the belt sander was rough. I hand sanded for at least an hour over the whole top until it was smooth as can be!
This what your filled holes will now look like.
There were a few spots where the stain had come through so I sanded those down some.
I wanted a more rustic look, so I chose not to use a pre-stain. Here’s the process I followed to stain my desk:
I used thick paper towels (or you could use a rag), tack cloth, a sponge brush, and the Minwax Dark Walnut
stain. The tack cloth is amazing! It will get all the dust particles off of your wood. Before you use the tack cloth I would spray the seams of the desk with a compressed air duster (like you use to clean keyboards). I didn’t do that and I had dust come up during staining which was frustrating! Make sure you remove all the dust with the tack cloth before you stain.
I don’t have any staining pictures, because I was concentrating on getting it done right since it was such a large piece. The key to staining is to put an even layer on and leave it for a few minutes (until it gets the shade you want) then wipe the rest off. After the stain I added 3 coats of Minwax Polycrylic 
which gives an amazing sturdy coating over the stain. I followed the instruction and made sure to sand in between each layer and used tack cloth to clear any dust.
Then you can place your file cabinets and set your beautiful desk on top!
This is what the holes looked like when stained.
I love that I have room to pull out my Cricut or my sewing machine and still have room to work!
Pottery Barn Inspired Inspiration Wall | How to Build a Plank Wall | Creating an Inspiring Office Space
I hope you loved this tutorial and you can build an inspiring workspace too!
I’d also love it if you’d pin one or both the images below!!
Tamara
I love the desk! I was wondering what is the height of the desk and the file cabinets?
Calvin
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blogging.
Samantha
Have you had any issues of the 1×6 boards cupping over time?
ncdodo
Hey– if you used 5 1×6’s your depth is a little less than 30″. How did you get the wood to sit on top of the filing cabinet if your cabinet is only 25″ deep? Did you have to use extra wood?
Chris
It’s actually 3/4”x5.5” not 1×6
Cyrus
I love the ideas of your DIY cabinets! Nice ideas and the approach was so unique,.
Donna Andruskiewicz
That is a wonderful job…thanks for sharing…very well put together tutorial! I’m going to try it!
Stacey
What is the color of the stain?
Melinda
Do you remember how much the wood cost you?
Angie
I’m working on similar desk now. Just bought the metal filing cabinets (with smaller drawers for pens and supplies) and tried spray painting. How did you get the spray paint to not drip downwards as you sprayed it?
Danielle
Spray about 6-8” away starting before the cabinet and only in one direction helps so you don’t get too much spray in the sides. Light coats and build up. Don’t ever hold the sprayer down for more than a couple seconds and NEVER stop moving your hand if you’re spraying.
Myria
I was wondering if the desktop sags at all with the length it has to span? Thanks so much. The desk is gorgeous! It’s inspired me to try my own.
Pam Dana
No sagging! That’s why there’s a frame on the underneath side!! Good luck! I hope you love it as much as us!
Katie
Wow! I loved this, I’ve been searching youtube for an easy step-by-step tutorial for a wood desk and finally found it! I’m going to tackle this project. Did you glue the planks together or have to use any type of clamp? Or did just drilling the frame onto it work to hold it together?
Thank you!
Ellen P
Did you glue the 1×6 planks together or just screw them to the frame?
Sam
Curious why you didnt use wood filler or bondo to fill the gaps where the boards werent flush against each other.
Lisa M
i need to print this i am getting a friend to build this for me so i will need all the information so he can do it right. can you help. i have sent the link to him but it will not come up on his computer.
thanks Lisa M
Julie Duffy
Did you use polycrylic in the can and brush it on or did you use a spray can of it and spray it on?
Pam Dana
I used a can and brush, but I would really say just do what you prefer! Both would be fine!
Jackie - Ardensea Photography
I love this! I’ve been looking for an easy to follow tutorial for this exact look!
Pam Dana
Yay! Hope you helped you!
Emily
I’m making one that’s similar in length but I was wondering how the middle has held up over the years? Did you need to put support in the middle?
miryam leiderman
Me encantó este diseño de escritorio y me animaré a hacerlo.
Mil gracias
Miryam
vicky
hi, i saw someone here.asking.how the frame sat.on top of the caninets…does the frame goes over the cabinets and is held in place or does it just sits on top of the cabinet? thinking about this for the small kids, do you think the table top would.stay in place, and would the seams between each plank keave marks on papers if the kids draw or write? lastly, how tall are your cabinets and what was the final height with the table top on? tha nk you
Wally
I am making this for my daughter. I am using biscuits to provide a good connection between boards and I am screwing the top to the frame from under neither which will not show on the top. Also add some white glue.
Pam Dana
Great idea! Thanks for the suggestion!
Max
How did you attach the frame to the top from underneath?
I was wondering if I could drill pocket holes in the 1×2 to secure to the top all the way around the frame with 1 1/4″ kreg screws so that I would not need to have any screw holes to cover in the top off the desk.
If I used wood glue plus those pocket screws I would expect the hold would be plenty strong.
thoughts?
Pam Dana
Max – because of the weight the top, it is just sitting on top of the file cabinets! It is not perminantly attached. If you feel the need to attach it, that sounds like a great idea. But, in my opinion the top is heavy enough and doesn’t need to be attached.
Good luck!
DeAnna D
Hi. We are following your plans to make this desk. Ours will be 9.5 ft long. Did you have any problems with sagging in the middle? Did you reinforce it at l or was the frame enough?
Pam Dana
We haven’t had any problem with sagging! If you feel like it’s need, you just may have to put something in the middle, creating two work areas! I really don’t forsee it being a problem though! Good luck!!
DeAnna D.
Hi. Love your project. We are currently building this following your plans. One question. Ours will be 9.5 ft long. Just curious if you used anything to keep it from sagging in the middle. Or if it was fine with just the frame.
Julie Kern
LOVE this so much!
I’m a little late to the party on this post; I found it while looking for ideas for the perfect desk for my Ugly Home Office Makeover, which I’m blogging about as part of my first blog series.
Thanks so much for the detailed instructions and awesome pics! I’ll comment with an update once I’ve finished my desk.
I would actually like to have a high-top desk using taller filing cabinets so my biggest challenge will probably be finding filing cabinets in the right size without breaking the budget for my makeover.
Thanks again for the inspiration!!
Pam Dana
Thanks so much for the sweet comment! GOOD LUCK!
Shannon
Add legs to your filing cabinet ???
Mel King
Looks great! How many cans of spray paint did you need?
Sara P
I love this idea and just started working from home. I am planning to have my husband make this for me. I was wondering if the top sits entirely on top of the file cabinets, or if the cabinets sit between the frame. the file cabinets I’m planning to purchase are 26.5″ deep. It didn’t look like you cut down the boards at all… Can’t wait to have one for myself!
Gretchen
Lovely work, it reminds me of the desk my mom made for me when I was a teenager. The top was similar, but she used kitchen cabinets for the base. I’m now thinking of making a desk for a home my husband and I are moving into soon. How has the middle of the tabletop held up without any visible vertical support? Does the frame take care of that?
Eugene Drake
That’s so cool!! I recently bought the file cabinets on “offerUp” for 15$ bucks each!:) I’ll paint them soon! But the most difficult part seems to be the actual table!.. Did you finished that in one day? Does it works perfect?:)
Amanda
Beautiful…..how did you attach the top to the filing cabinets?
Pam Dana
It just sits on top of the file cabinets!! Because of the weight, it stays in place perfectly!
Rebecca
I read your wonderful tutorial carefully but cannot find what you used to attach the frame to the filing cabinet tops. Any recommendations? I know the frame must be quite heavy but I have cats who seem to be able to move any weight in my house, not to mention my own inherent klutziness. Since my desk will be freestanding, hoping to get advice for keeping the top from going anywhere when I inevitably bump into a corner.
Shawna Wilson
We are totally doing this, but dumb question: How tall were your file cabinets? We have one already, but it’s only 2′ tall and I would prefer something taller.
Sandie
i also have a file cabinet that measures 26 1/2″. Yes that is too short, even for me! But after you make the frame it measures at about 28 1/2″ – 28 3/4″ depending on the thickness of the desk top. My small desk that I use is 29″ tall and works well. You could also add casters to the bottom of the file cabinets which will increase it another 3″ – 4″. I hope this helps you.
nick
28.38″ H x 15″ W x 25″ D .. if you click the amazon link it brings you to the exact filing cabinet
Frolicking Gypsy
so cute! Love the desk, I have a similar one with an Ikea butcher block counter top and saw horses. I love the spray painted trash can. Absolutely fabulous.
Leanne
Love this! So pretty! When I made my desk/art space I just used a really big solid white door. I love the versatility of the planks for staining them. Your office space is gorgeous. What an inspiring place to be 🙂
Lisa
Thank you! I thought about using a door but my space was over 10 feet long!
Helen
I did use a door and it butts up against one that is at right angles on the other wall . Works great for me. I use one desk for computer and personal business(paying bills etc) and the other one for quilting, bought a large cutting mat and cut it down to size covers the whole “desk top” (door.
Pam Dana
Sounds perfect! I’ve been wanting to build another one of these for my sewing table! It wood be perfect!
Patricia Teeters
I love this idea. I have a 6ft island counter top I could do this with. Sure would solve a lot of my problems with computers and crafting. Thanks for the inspiration. Your desk turned out beautifully. A project to be very proud of.
Zoe Poole
I love the idea of this desk and I am trying to make one for my own room. Does anyone know where you can get cheap wooden filing cabinets from though as I have been looking for them for ages? Thanks
johnlisa02
I looked on Craigslist and even put a ad in the wanted section.
Linda Harr
I love the versatility of how one could shorten it to fit a particular window in their own space. I love this!
Chyna
Hi, I love your desk.. I am trying to make The same one. Can you tell me the measurements of the filing cabinets you used? Thanks!
Mary
We did a similar project several years ago using premade kitchen counter top. You still need to raise the counter so it will clear the file drawer opening. Not as pretty as yours but suitable for a child or teen homework center.
Annalisa
What a great idea! I love how it turned out!!! When I was a kid my mom had a huge desk like this, but not as pretty! I also have been looking for used (decent) file cabinets to buy for cheap with no luck!! I wish I was not afraid of the DIY movement. It scares me.
Heidi Schilling Fowler
This reminds me of my desk, but the top is made with used doors. Your wood top looks awesome!
Laura
Your dest turned out so awesome! I love the way you did the wood plank top. It is lovely! 🙂 What a fun giveaway! xoxo
Aimee @ LikeMotherLikeDaughter
What a great desk! And so useful with so much space and storage too!