How to Make Pretty Drawer Liners for Kitchen Drawers
How to line desk, kitchen and dresser drawers with decorative paper. No measuring needed to get the perfect fit.
Besides my enjoyment of the changing seasons I also begin to get that overwhelming urge to clean and organize everything in my home… also known as nesting.
It hit me hard when I returned home from a 3-day trip I took earlier in the week.
I want everything to be easy to access and most of all organized.
I have always used small wicker baskets to organize all the smaller items I have in my kitchen drawers. In my previous house, my kitchen cabinets and drawers were new so the insides of the drawers were pretty.
This is not the case anymore since we moved to the lake. The kitchen is circa 1970. I painted the cabinets and both sides of the doors, but not the insides of the drawers and cabinets themselves. They are still stained brown.
To add some color, I lined the drawers with decorative paper. I looked into ready made rolls of shelf liner and contact paper, but didn’t find a pattern I liked.
I also looked into Chic Shelf Paper, but I didn’t want to spend a lot on the drawer liners. Instead I used my easy trick for lining drawers using inexpensive decorative paper.
You don’t need anything fancy or expensive. Wallpaper, gift wrap, paper table cloths, maps, even leftover pieces of fabric will work. I used gift wrap and paper table runners that I bought a few years ago.
To protect the paper so it can be wiped clean from time to time, I sealed it using Heat’N Bond Iron-On Vinyl. It is easy to apply, no harder than ironing a piece of clothing.
Many of you have asked me over the years what my favorite craft product or tool is. I never have given it much thought as I use many, but when I was lining the drawers, I knew the answer.
I love iron-on vinyl and am so happy that someone invented it for the DIYer. I mostly use the Heat N’Bond brand that is sold at craft stores in pre-cut packages or in fabric stores by the yard.
2 Different Ways: How To Cut Perfectly Sized Drawer Liners
I wrote a drawer lining post tutorial a few years ago. It is the way I measure to get the paper cut perfectly to the drawer’s size. You can read the post here: The “Easy” Trick for Lining Drawers
If your drawers are not constructed in the same way as I show in that post, then you can always use the place-in and fold-over method below.
supplies needed:
- Decorative paper or fabric – wallpaper, gift wrap, maps, or leftover pieces of fabric
- Heat N’ Bond Iron-On Vinyl in Gloss
- Scissors
- Measuring tape or yardstick
- Craft knife
- Pencil
- Optional – Clear Contact Paper
- I lined this drawer by using the method I linked to above.
2. Once I had the decorative paper cut to size, I cut a piece of iron-on vinyl to the same size. (Optional – You can use clear contact paper instead of iron-on vinyl to protect the paper. You cannot iron this on though, but it will protect paper so you can clean the drawer liners from time to time.)
3. Remove vinyl from paper backing. Lay face down on top of decorative paper. Place shiny side of paper backing on top of vinyl and decorative paper. Use a warm, but not hot iron to press over the entire surface. Let cool, then remove the paper backing.
4. The shiny vinyl will be fused to the paper or fabric if you use fabric. Place in drawer.
Place items back inside. I was lucky to find a wood silverware organizer at HomeGoods that fit into the right side drawer perfectly. No drawer liner needed. I could make small liners for each section of this organizer, but I will do that once the bottom begins to wear.
How to Line Drawers Without Removing or Measuring the Drawers
This is my kitchen utensil junk drawer. It holds mostly longer items so I don’t have any baskets that fit their length.
- Cut paper a little larger than the drawer. You can lay the paper over the drawer to make eye-ball sizing easier. There is no need to have all sides even. You will custom-fit it in the next few steps.
2. Place paper in drawer and fold over excess. Make a crisp crease by running your finger over the folded over section. Repeat on all sides.
3. Remove the paper and fold the paper where you creased, back under the paper. Repeat on all sides.
4. Place back in drawer. I do not glue the paper into place as I find the contains of the drawer keep it from moving.
I purged some of the contents, but think I may end up making my own drawer dividers like I did for my desk and bathroom vanity drawers to help organize the contents of this drawer even more.
Now that I have all the drawers lined…
I just made over a small pantry closet in my kitchen a makeover. It is not as large as the pantry above that was in my previous house, but I did create better and more organization to hold and store a lot more than it does now.
How do you organize your drawers? Do you line them? Any tips to share with other readers?
How I Organize Drawers Using Small Baskets
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Sharing post over at Tip Junkie’s TipMe Tuesday
