I’m a DIY enthusiast and a cleaning freak. When I found that our laundry baskets were spread everywhere, I became annoyed and decided to wear my DIY hat and pulled my sleeves up.
If you’re excited to give your laundry baskets a redo and create a laundry basket dresser with actual drawers for your home, then this experiment will leave you elated.
You can stick it into a closet, in the garage or even in the hallway, it will look great and tidy!
Let’s say good bye to dirty laundry everywhere.
Materials
- Sterilite 1245 – 1½ Bushel Rectangular Laundry Basket
- 3/4″ Plywood
- 1/4″ Plywood
- 12 feet of 1” x 2”
- 2″ wood screws
- wood glue
- wood filler
- finishing supplies
- casters with screws
- Kreg Jig drill
Note: If you trust your Lowes or Home Depot to cut your boards straight, you can have them make all the plywood cuts. If not, just follow the plans and rip them down yourself with a table saw.
How To Make A Laundry Basket Dresser?
Step 1: Preparation
So I have been a long time fan of Ana-White. My very first project I attempted from Ana was her laundry basket dresser.
I remember how scared I was to make this thinking I could never build something.
Well, this little laundry basket dresser started my love for building.
The only problem with Ana’s plans was that I needed my laundry baskets to slide in lengthwise and not widthwise like her plan outlined.
I also was scared of metal angles like Ana did, so I just cut lengths of 1” x 2” down to size with my chop saw and screwed them in.
.
Step 2: Add casters
I also added casters so I can move the dresser easily and get all the dust bunnies from behind it with the vacuum when I need to.
Luckily, my husband is way smarter than I am and was able to figure out the measurements I would need.
So, in case you have been drooling over these babies, I thought I would offer you the measurements as well for the baskets to slide in lengthwise.
Step 3: Paint it
A coat of primer and a coat of light gray paint that I had in my stash, and we were in business! I had the perfect spot for it right next to the dryer. I am so excited to use it and help keep my laundry contained.
Note: You can change the color of the paint based on your interest. I love things around me in white, and hence, I chose an equivalent color scheme.
Step 4: Get set for laundry day
This is just absolutely perfect for my weekly laundry day.
I simply fold all the clothes, and my kids and hubby grab their baskets and put them away.
If you would like to make your own Laundry Basket Dresser, I have made a Step-By-Step guide for you.
For more laundry room DIY, check out these projects!
How Much Does It Cost To Make A Laundry Basket Dresser?
It costs roughly $200-$250 to make a three-level laundry basket dresser. Based on the color, pattern, number of levels, and material you choose, the cost can vary.
Though my design was similar to Ana’s in many aspects, I went one step ahead to customize some designs, and this increased my expenses by a little over 200 USD.
If you’re looking at cutting costs further, you can look for more ideas for laundry basket dressers on Amazon or Ikea and alter the design.
Tips For Making A Laundry Basket Holder
Making a DIY laundry basket dresser can be fun, but you need to ensure that the outcome is as desired.
- You can go ahead with second-hand plywood if you’re running short of budget.
- Measure the space available and then set the dresser’s dimensions accordingly. Otherwise, it can be tough to fit it in.
- If you’re unsure about leaving it open, you may have to increase plywood numbers and purchase a handle. Perhaps, it takes no time to build a laundry basket dresser with doors or shelves.
What is the difference between a laundry basket and a laundry hamper?
First of all, a laundry hamper is typically a freestanding basket-like container made out of wicker or plastic. It is often square or round in shape and has two handles for carrying it. A laundry basket is also typically made out of wicker or plastic, but it usually comes with an added feature – a lid. This makes it easier to transport the dirty clothes without spilling them everywhere.
Laundry hampers are usually taller than laundry baskets, making them better suited for storing more items at once.
Can you leave wet clothes in hamper?
My kids leave the wet towels every single time 🙁 so you gotta be quick and wash them as quickly as you can.
It is generally not recommended to leave wet clothes in a hamper for an extended period of time. Wet clothes can develop mold and mildew, which can cause them to smell bad and can be difficult to remove.
If your hamper has no holes, leaving wet clothes in it can cause the hamper itself to become moldy. It is best to wash or dry the clothes as soon as possible after they become wet.
Where do most people keep their laundry basket?
Typically, you tend to keep your laundry basket in a convenient location. Mine is next to the washing machine, for example. Most common places are:
- In the bathroom: This is a common location, especially if the bathroom has a designated laundry area.
- In the bedroom: People often keep their laundry basket in their bedroom, either in a closet or near their dresser.
- In the laundry room: For those who have a dedicated laundry room, the laundry basket is often stored in that area.
- In the basement or garage: For people who have limited space in their home, they may choose to keep their laundry basket in the basement or garage.
Ultimately, the location of the laundry basket depends on individual preferences and the layout of the home.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this tutorial and that the specifications, if not matching your needs, can be tweaked to help you build your own.
Maybe you need a different size and have more imagination to add accessories in case you place them in a kids room for example.
Check out my Laundry Systems That Actually Work.
Good job! I may have to make this one. I m a build from scratch girl. I’ve one the bed and spa bench from her site. Now I am refinishing my kitchen cabinets, thanks to a certain blogger. (you!)
“Fear is in the eye of the beholder” meaning, we do all have different fears. You did it, now I bet we see some more hefty projects from here. Can’t wait! 🙂
thats a great idea! love it! …..gives me an idea for my laundry room too….a place for me to put my garmets that need dry cleaning or delicate wash so they’re not shoved in the regular basket of dirty clothes. thanks for posting!
Love this idea! I have just the place for something like this. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I love that you guys took the plans and put your own spin on them. Looks great!
You are right, it does seem scary to try and take something like this on. And this exact piece has been on my pinterest board as well. Your tutorial makes its seem a BIT less scary especially since they will cut the wood for me at Home Depot. Maybe I could try it over Spring Break? Thanks for the inspiration!
I LOVE THIS!
Thanks for the tips and tricks! I love this idea for sorting laundry
Beckie I am so with you! I remember back to her very original blog header and very few followers. I would tell everyone about her site, and they thought I was crazy. But now you cant open pinterest without seeing something from her site! Love her! We have built doll furniture, but I am needing to build these laundry dressers asap! Thank you so much for sharing!!
I love the ideas that make some everyday object so functional and nice at the same time. Those are the bits that make life better.
Quick question, does it cost extra to have home depot cut the wood for you? I have a table saw but I have never used it and my hubby won’t be back until summer, but I really want to make this!
Nope mine doesn’t
You can totally do it. Literally it is a box with some rails on it. Go for it!
Sheer genius! This is getting pinned and going on hubby’s to-do list stat!! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
THANK YOU! for the measurements. Now I don’t have to try and figure it out by myself. It looks great.
I love that you used baskets, what a clever idea! Please stop over and share at Mix it up Monday:
http://flourmewithlove.blogspot.com/2012/02/mix-it-up-monday_12.html
I hope to see you soon 🙂
What a great idea, thank you. I pinned it 5 min ago and it has already been repined 16 times. Now i just need to show it to my husband and hope…thank you also for the link to Anna White website.
What a great project! Thanks for sharing your tips. This looks very nice!
Oh, how I love Anna White! I’ve been eyeing these plans for some time…You are lucky to have room in your laundry for it!
Wow, absolutely LOVE this project. When I get moved back into a place with a good laundry room, I’m gonna have to make me one of these!
What a brilliant little idea. You did an amazing job altering the plan to fit your baskets. I wish this fit in my tiny laundry room.
This is such a super idea! I love the addition of the wheels. How awesome for cleaning and moving it about. I am pinning this! I am a new Pinterest follower. Vicky from Mess For Less
Oh I love this! It would be great if you would share this with our readers for Fun Stuff Fridays. http://www.toysinthedryer.com/2012/02/fun-stuff-fridays-11.html
I love this! Trying to figure out what to store the laundry baskets is always a problem for us, and they always seem to get in the way. I never thought about them having their own little cubby. Thanks for sharing another option for holding them too. 🙂
This just made me super excited about my laundry and I’m sure the hubs will be glad to have the piles of (clean) laundry off the floor. Can’t wait to make this! You did a fantastic job. It looks wonderful!
I like the look of the wood instead of metal for the baskets to slide on, but I am wondering how it actually works. Does it slide easily? Does paint flake off when you slide the baskets over the wood? Thank you
I absolutely loved this idea to pick up my grandson’s toys in my living room quick and easy. I “thought” most of the projects on Ana’s site are meant to be inexpensive. Went to Lowe’s yesterday and had them make all the cuts by your laundry bin, which I liked better out of the 3/4 in plywood you suggested and am very unhappy to report that I am going to have almost $75 in this “toybox” by the time I buy the baskets. That’s not counting the screws and paint I already have. 🙁 I could’ve bought a laundry sorter and toybox for that. We’ll see when it’s put together today, but will definitely be checking out the total cost before attempting anything like this again!!!
Yah wood sure is expensive. I think I spent about that too, however I was okay with it because all the sorters I have seen before just don’t have the durability that this has. I hope you are happy with it.
I LOVE THIS!!! I saw you on Pinterest. I have been thinking of doing something along these lines. Thanks for sharing!!!
love this! have been wanting to make the original for awhile, but have needed this style more, so i’m happy you posted this. i do have a question though… might you have any ideas for keeping two of them together? i want to have them next to each other to place a tabletop ironing board on, but i don’t want them to be permanently fixed or built together. want the two units to be able to come apart. does that make any sense? any ideas or insight would be appreciated!
My wife pinned this and asked me to make it for her. I must say it is one of the rare Pinterest ideas that is as easy to make as it looks. I used the measurements given but shortened the height by 1″ since we have a cabinet obstructing that high up where we are wanting to put it. I also did not put the bottom rail in as the basket can simply rest on the bottom of the box. This meant I had to buy only 1 2×4″ rail (8 feet long.) It took me a few hours. I had to buy a single 4×8 plywood (3/4″) and a 2×4 of the 1/4″ had to be cut. Home Depot made all the cuts except the rails. I spent about $50 only but I will use old paint that I have in the garage.
My baskets don’t slide easily. They need a little push but fit snug. Not too snug though. My thought was that I should build this to meet the space I want to put it in and find baskets that fit. Laundry baskets come in all shapes and are fairly cheap. As it is, my baskets that I already have are going to work.
Nice idea, thanks !
Way to go Karl….. You are a terrific husband. Glad you liked the project and it worked out so well for you.
I currently use 4 laundry baskets that are just lined in a row for whites, darks, regular, and towels/linens. What three groupins do you use since you only have 3? I need to build this too, just wish I had a spot beside the washer/dryer to put it. Ours is in the garage and there is a door going outside in the way.
I use one for my son, daughter and husband’s clothes after I fold it. I put mine right away so I didn’t need one.
Yay! I’ve been wanting something like this to replace the hamper in our closet so we can sort clothes when we take them off. I could have figured out the measurements, but since you’re hubby did it…I’ll be getting started on this this weekend! Thanks for posting 🙂
Glad I could save you some time. You will love this laundry basket holder!
my hubby is currently outside finishing the construction on one of these for me. he is making one 6 tall for me (double the height) as we have a TINY TINY laundry room that already houses a stacked washer and dryer and a small vertical chest freezer. our current laundry sorting system isn’t working AT ALL now that we have 6 members in our family (most of whom are under 6 years old) and now i cannot shut my wash room door to keep a certain 2 year old from climbing in the washer…. the casters will make it safer for us as the only place to put our laundry is in front of our back door, so we need to be able to roll it out in case of emergency, not to mention dust bunny extraction….
for those wondering we have 3 girls and 1 boy so there are LOTS of pink/red clothes in this house
our loads are/will be:
whites
light colors
pinks/reds/oranges
darker colors
pants/jeans
towels
I’d love to see it, Joanna, when the hubs is done and hear how it’s working for you.
I think this project is sooooo smart! My home is tiny and there’s nowhere for this here now, but in a different home, maybe. I love how you put the wheels on, so you can pull it out and clean behind of make laundry deliveries too 🙂
The wheels definitely make it more functional, and I love that it doesn’t take up as much floor space since it utilizes vertical space.
Actually, I think it’s great. I am looking for laundry baskets so I can make my own!
It is great! I love mine. 🙂
I am not sure how you all built this from the cuts that you listed! We went and got all the wood from your cut list and there is not enough room for 3 baskets. If you have the instructions for your cut list then can I please have them? If not I am out $50 and will have an upset daughter who we are doing this project for! Thanks
Hi Stacy, Did you get the exact baskets that it’s built for?
Hello there from Greece!
I love your work.
I am having a really difficult time to convert feet and inches to cm. Unfortunately it is the only way I can buy all supplies you suggest. Can you please help by giving me all the dimensions needed in cm?
Thank you very much.
Marina
Hi, Marina! I am so glad you found my site. Have you tried this website to convert the dimensions? http://www.metric-conversions.org/length/inches-to-centimeters.htm
Just be careful what wood you use. I made a set of these several years ago. I let the guy at Homey De-pot to talk me into using a cheaper grade of wood, particle board, to save money. I also had them cut it, because why not, way easier. But I got tons of splinters just screwing it together. And after a while the wood warped and the dresser is no longer able to hold the baskets. Very annoying!
Ugh, that stinks. I usually use pine and haven’t had anything warp beyond use.
How much did everything cone out to?
I would say it costs about $40, but it depends on what you already have on hand.
how do i price the lumber??? which one would be cheaper to use but still last a long time??
I usually use pine for all of my projects. Any wood is going to be pretty stable except maybe OSB or a thin plywood. If you choose to purchase plywood, I would get birch or oak. Hope that helps!
I can’t get the link to work for the measurements. Can you email them to me please?
red195@yahoo.com
Thanks!
I could not get the measurments to download either. Could you e-mail to me also? Thanks
I’m not really understanding the measurements. Can you please spell them out for me (e.g., 3 4ft pieces of 3/4 inch plywood). Thank you!!!!
Hi! I’m unable to see the link to download the plans, are they still available? If so, are you able to email them to me @ cnemeth4491@yahoo.com
Thank you!!
Are these plans still available? They don’t seem to be in the post anymore. Thank you so much!!
Where is the actual building plan?! Like cut list and instructions?!? I so need this!!
Where are the measurements for this?