WOODEN BOX MAKEOVER

I was cleaning out E's closet today when I came across this wooden box.  It was actually a very sweet baby shower gift that I received two years ago from a few middle school girls that I took care of at church.  Unfortunately, the stickers and ribbons they used to decorate it had started falling off little by little and left the box in a sad state.  

Reluctant to throw it away, I decided to give it a little love and turned it into a makeover project. I've been needing a place in our office to store my USB cables and such. This box seemed to be just the right size. Plus, I already had a fun fabric in mind and was excited to get started!

First, I measured and cut out the pieces for the inside and outside lining of the box. To prevent the edges from fraying, I folded the edges over and ironed them down to give them a clean finish.  

Next, I painted the corners of the box white where the fabric wouldn't cover.  When they dried, I used a thick coat of spray adhesive to attach the fabric to the box.  The important thing here is to make sure the fabric is pulled tightly across the surface and smooth away any bubbles. 

I also painted the sides of the lid white and covered it with more fabric.  After a lot of spraying and shifting of fabric around, my final product turned out like this:

This small project cost me $0 since I already had all the materials and took about two hours to complete.  Granted, I had a one and a half year old trying to "help" me the whole time...

I still need to make a label for the box (in case you were wondering about that ugly black hollow rectangle on the lid). E's little shoes will have to hide it for now :) 

For those interested in making one too, you can find similar unfinished boxes at Hobby Lobby and Michaels. These boxes are great for organizing small trinkets, storing odd-shaped items, and even helping to style bookshelves!