{covered diaper boxes}

Yes, this is another Pinterest inspired DIY project.  I originally discovered the idea from Jen @ IHeart Organizing.

 

She is the queen of organizing on a dime, and has inspired several reorganization projects in my house including my Kitchen Desk re-org awhile back.  Being the mom of an eight month old, I’ve collected my fair share of diaper boxes over the past few months.  I hated to throw away a perfectly good box (or two), so I decided to “upcycle” and create some cute storage bins instead of putting them on my curb with the rest of the trash.  Here’s what you’ll need to create your own Covered Diaper Box Storage Bins:

• two empty diaper boxes (already had on hand)
• duct tape (already had on hand)
• 1 1/2 yards each of two coordinating fabrics (Both on Sale @ Jo Ann’s for $3.95/yd= $11.81 total)
• Spray Adhesive such as Krylon ($3.89 after Michael’s 40% off coupon)
• Scissors (already had on hand)
• Total Cost= $15.70

I began by cutting the flaps off of the diaper boxes, so I just had a nice, open bin to work.

 

I also duct taped the handles flat so the sides of the bins were smooth.

I used the edges on the sides and bottom of the box to make my measurements, and always cut so it was slightly larger than my traced lines.  I cut the fabric for the bottom of both boxes first and attached them with my spray adhesive.

I then measured and cut the fabric for the inside of the box and secured all sides with the spray adhesive once again.  I found it easiest to cut the fabric the length of two sides (a short and a long side).  I also recommend rolling the fabric onto the box.  Begin by rolling each length of material so that the wrong side faces out and ultimately becomes the side being glued to the box.

After the insides of the boxes were in place, I began to work with the fabric that would cover the outside of each box.  To make these sides, I cut 4 individual rectangles per box.  Therefore each side had it’s own piece of fabric.  Measure each panel to be about 1/2 inch larger on all sides so that you can fold the material over, creating an overlap.

 

Once all sides are secure, allow the spray adhesive at least 24 hours to set before loading your new storage bins with your favorite items.  Jen used hers for storing puzzle pieces and other small toys in her boys’ playroom.  Now, my little boy doesn’t exactly put his own toys away yet, but I can’t imagine these boxes actually holding up with little hands touching them all the time.  I used my fabric covered diaper boxes to store all of my craft materials in one place.  I’m hoping they’ll hold up since I will usually be the one handling them.

 

Aren’t they cute?!  If you don’t have little ones in diapers, you could use any size box really.  You might want to have a couple that are the same size, but I think it would also be cute to cover many different sized boxes for different purposes.  Has anyone else tried this?  I’d love to hear your feedback or see pictures!