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DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box

May 11, 2015 by Brynne 19 Comments

You’ve probably caught glimpses of this DIY card catalog jewelry box in shots I’ve shared of our bedroom recently, like this one where it sat on the DIY jute-wrapped vanity.

DIY Anthropologie Inspired Jute Wrapped Vanity

It seemed like the perfect time to finally the share the tutorial, which originally debuted on Remodelaholic in December, here on the blog!

I have such a weakness for card catalogs. I’ve been lucky enough to have a few pass through my hands on their way to new owners, but at the time I wasn’t in a place where I could keep any for myself.

I still retain hope that I’ll score a set of vintage card catalogs of my own one day, but until then I’m pretty pleased with this vintage-looking miniature version I created!

Create your own miniature DIY card catalog using a few craft store supplies - take an unfinished wooden box from plain to perfectly vintage-looking! What a great idea for any library-lover!

Would you believe this started out as a plain, unfinished wooden box of drawers from the craft store?

Create your own miniature DIY card catalog using a few craft store supplies - take an unfinished wooden box from plain to perfectly vintage-looking! What a great idea for any library-lover - wait until you see the "after"!

The transformation is actually pretty simple, but I’ve carefully documented each step of the way so you can follow along and make a DIY card catalog of your own!

*Today’s post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through an affiliate link, I may receive a small commission. You can read my full disclosure here. I hope you all know by now that I do only share things I really truly love!

You Will Need:

  • Unfinished wood box with drawers – I found mine at Hobby Lobby and altered it, but if you are a little handier than I am, the shape is quite simple and you might consider constructing your own version.
  • Two 1/4″ x 36″ square wood dowels
  • Two 1/16″ x 24″ basswood strips
  • Scrapbooking card catalog label pulls
  • Antique gold Rub ‘n Buff
  • 2 pieces of felt to line drawers – I chose a tan embossed floral pattern – so pretty!
  • Upholstery/carpet tacks – these look a little like tiny antique hand-forged nails, but you could also use appropriately sized screws to attach the label pulls.
  • Stainable wood filler
  • Wood glue
  • 220-grit sandpaper
  • Stain – I used Minwax “Provincial.”

Step One – Fill Holes

Take any hardware off the drawers of the box and fill the holes left behind with wood filler.

wood filler

Step Two – Cut  & Attach Trim

Cut the 1/4″ square wood dowels to trim out the front of the wooden box. Check out this nicely color-coordinated visual for explanation:

1/4" square dowel cut explanation

1/4" square dowel cut list

Glue the 1/4″ square dowel pieces to the front of the wooden box. You can place the box on its front with something heavy on top to weigh it down while it dries.

Now, to visually the divide the drawers, cut the 1/8″ bass wood strips and stack them to the correct height on the drawer front – so the divider on the drawer front is the perfect height to meet the 1/4″ trim you just added. In my case, this was three pieces high (or 3/8″).

basswood drawer dividers

I also added a strip of basswood underneath the top trim of the box to fill a gap.

face of the wooden box

The result:

trim finished

Step Three – Sand and Stain

Fill any gaps with woodfiller and let dry.

Go over the whole thing with sandpaper until it all feels nice and smooth.

sand the wooden box

Stain the inside and outside of the box and drawers with the stain color you’ve chosen. I used Minwax “Provincial” and I think it was a pretty good match for the “antique card catalog” tone I was after. I followed up with dark Briwax for a hand-rubbed finished, but you could seal with whatever type of wax or poly product fits the look you want.

It’s getting there!

stained diy card catalog jewelry box

Step Four – Finishing Touches

Line the drawers with felt.

line drawer with felt

The label pulls I used came in a 6-pack of multiple colors, so I used Rub ‘n Buff to make them all antique gold.

rub n buff card catalog label pulls

Attach the pulls to the front of each drawer using the little carpet/upholstery tacks. Where the ends protruded through the back of the drawer front, I used a wire cutter to snip them off.

use upholstery tacks to attach label pulls

Next, choose a font for the labels. I used a free typewriter-inspired font, Underwood Quiet Tab, sized at 10 pt in a word document to make alphabetical labels. But the labels are so easy to switch out, feel free to get creative – numbers, letters, French words, the Dewey decimal system, or simply the content you intend to store in the drawers!

typewriter labels 3

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box 8

One final step, to prevent scratching, you can attach little rubber bumper feet to the bottom of the box.

rubber feet

Step Five – All finished! Fill with pretty baubles!

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

One pretty convincing little DIY card catalog, perfect for storing jewelry, office supplies, or really any small-sized item your heart desires!

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

DIY Miniature Card Catalog Jewelry Box | The Gathered Home

Well, that was fun! I’m all fired up to make another one now – I foresee a few of these (or some sort of adaptation) making an appearance in the future as gifts!

I mean, who couldn’t use a miniature DIY card catalog, right?

Brynne


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Create your own miniature DIY card catalog using a few craft store supplies - take an unfinished wooden box from plain to perfectly vintage-looking! What a great idea for any library-lover!

Filed Under: DIY Project Tagged With: Before and After, Crafting, Tutorial

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Comments

  1. cassie @ primitive & proper says

    May 11, 2015 at 7:57 am

    this is awesome, brynne! love the finish you gave it!

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 11, 2015 at 8:47 am

      Thanks Cassie!

      Reply
  2. Trisha D. @Black and White Obsession says

    May 11, 2015 at 9:29 am

    Love the color stain you used for this piece!! I seriously need to get a tube of that rub and buff!!

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 11, 2015 at 5:43 pm

      Thanks girl! Yes, you need to give rub n buff a try – you’ll love it!

      Reply
  3. Gretchen says

    May 11, 2015 at 11:18 am

    Love this! They’d be perfect for gifts :). And, yeah, a great way to get your card catalog fix while you’re waiting to save up the ONE MILLION DOLLARS everyone seems to want for the real ones on Craigslist these days!

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 11, 2015 at 6:04 pm

      Thanks Gretchen! Still working on my first million (I mean, aren’t most of us?) so this is perfect in the interim!

      Reply
  4. Trina @ Let's Just Build a House says

    May 11, 2015 at 5:35 pm

    so cute! would make a great gift too filled with goodies.

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 11, 2015 at 6:04 pm

      Thanks Trina! What a great idea!

      Reply
  5. Corinna - For My Love Of says

    May 11, 2015 at 5:42 pm

    SO CUTE! Such an innovative little project!

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 11, 2015 at 6:04 pm

      Thanks so much Corinna!

      Reply
  6. Amber @ Wills Casa says

    May 11, 2015 at 10:34 pm

    Adorable!! I love it! So creative!! Also your jewelry is gorgeous!!

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 12, 2015 at 7:23 pm

      Aw, thanks Amber!

      Reply
  7. tania // run to radiance says

    May 12, 2015 at 10:56 am

    Love this Brynne! The stain you picked is gorgeous too! 🙂

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 12, 2015 at 7:24 pm

      Thank you Tania!

      Reply
  8. Krista @ the happy housie says

    May 13, 2015 at 9:40 am

    Oh my it turned out SO well!! I love it…

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 13, 2015 at 10:36 am

      Thank you Krista! <3

      Reply
  9. LZ Cathcart@ The Summery Umbrella says

    May 19, 2015 at 7:25 pm

    Oh wow! This stain color is truly fabulous, and what a great idea to do a mini size version of a card catalog. So cute 🙂

    Reply
    • Brynne says

      May 19, 2015 at 9:11 pm

      Thanks so much LZ!

      Reply
  10. gameel says

    March 5, 2017 at 12:06 pm

    great …i love it

    Reply

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I believe the best kind of home is a gathered one, full of treasures with a story to tell. Join me in celebrating a lifestyle of finding and making beautiful things, right where you are. Read more...

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