How to Make a Wooden Box in Any Size

By
Kamron Sanders
Kamron Sanders
Kamron Sanders
Kamron Sanders is a home improvement expert and writer with over 15 years of hands-on construction, remodeling, woodworking, home repair, and landscaping experience. He has also written for HGTV. Kamron's expertise ranges from troubleshooting saws and lawnmowers to painting kitchen cabinets.
Learn more about The Spruce's Editorial Process
Published on 07/25/23
Small wooden box with a lid

Rumman Amin / Unsplash

Project Overview
  • Working Time: 1 - 3 hrs
  • Total Time: 12 hrs - 1 day
  • Yield: A wooden box
  • Skill Level: Intermediate
  • Estimated Cost: $15 to $50

Building a basic wooden box is a great place for beginner woodworkers to start their woodworking journey. With the right tools, building a DIY wooden box isn't difficult. However, we have several pro tricks and tips that can simplify the process while increasing the quality and look of the finished product.

Best of all, learning the right way to build a wooden box is helpful for many future wood projects, as the fundamentals have a lot of crossover with more complex projects like furniture building. To get started, follow the steps below to learn how to make a wooden box in any size, lid included.

Before You Begin

The easiest way to build a wooden box is to cut out each individual piece including the top, sides, and bottom, then join them together to form the box. However, for smaller boxes, you can hollow out a block of wood if you desire to use a solid piece.

The steps below will outline how to cut individual pieces of wood and join them to create a box. For this method, you can use one species of wood or switch up the wood species for different components of the box.

Best Wood for DIY Wooden Box

You can build a wooden box out of most woods, including softwoods like pine and fir and hardwoods like oak and poplar. Special woods like mahogany or cherry wood can be used to make stunning ornamental boxes. One of the things that makes building a wooden box such a great DIY project is the fact that you can experiment with different wood species without breaking the bank.

Building small wooden boxes doesn't require a lot of wood, which makes using costlier wood species more attainable. For larger boxes, consider using special woods like zebrawood or for inlays in the lid or sides. This can create visual interest while keeping the project cost down.

Types of Wood Pros Cons
Pine Inexpensive, widely available, versatile Warps easily, doesn't accept stain well
Poplar  Inexpensive, easy to work with, accepts paint well Some pieces have a green coloring that is emphasized by transparent and semi-transparent finishes
Oak Beautiful grain, accepts stain and oil Expensive
Cedar Doesn't require stain or paint, absorbs moisture Not ideal for joinery

Types of Wooden Box Lids

You can choose between several different types of lids for your DIY wooden box. For this tutorial, we'll outline how to make a wooden box lid that's unattached, meaning it has no hinges, and is partially inset. It will have a lip that sits on the box's sides while the middle portion sits slightly inside the box. We've chosen to forgo the handle for a minimalistic look.

If you desire to alter the look of the lid, you can also choose to add hinges, rout the wood for a slide-in lid, or add decorative handles using wood, brass, or even leather.

How to Make a Simple Wooden Box

The steps below outline how to make a wooden box with mitered corners and a bottom piece that's secured on the sides. It's a fairly simple design, but it can be simplified even further.

To make a simple wooden box, swap the mitered corners for standard butt joints and simply glue and nail a bottom piece to the bottom of the sides rather than insetting it within a groove.

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Table saw
  • Router with straight bit
  • Router table
  • Miter saw
  • Measuring tape
  • Pencil
  • Bar clamps
  • Orbital sander
  • Wood finishing tools
  • Safety glasses

Materials

  • 3/4" lumber
  • 1/4" finish-grade plywood
  • Wood glue
  • Rags
  • Painter's tape
  • 120- and 220-grit sandpaper
  • Wood finish of choice

Instructions

How to Make a DIY Wooden Box With a Lid

Follow the steps below to build a wooden box. The dimensions have been left intentionally ambiguous to allow for easy size customization. Remember to adjust steps and materials accordingly.

  1. Determine Your Dimensions

    Determine your box's full dimensions before cutting your wood. If you plan to fit an object in the box, such as a hat, use its dimensions for the box's interior. Your wood's thickness will then determine the exterior dimensions.

    If you plan for the box to fit on a certain shelf or space, plan the exterior dimensions accordingly.

  2. Cut the Sides

    To create the sides, cut the 3/4-inch lumber to length with your miter saw set at 45 degrees. Each side should represent a parallelogram when placed flat on your work surface and the length of the long side should match the dimension of your box.

    Take your time with the measurements and cuts to ensure everything lines up and joins cleanly when it comes time to glue.

    Tip

    There are many ways to join wood when making a box and some joints are more complex and stronger than others. If you have the tools and woodworking experience, using a half-lap, dovetail, or rabbet can make for a strong connection with loads of style.

  3. Mock Up the Sides

    Mock up the box shape following these steps:

    1. Lay the four pieces flat on your work surface with the short side down. If the sides are the same length, simply lay them end to end. If two sides are shorter than the other, alternate the lengths.
    2. Place a short piece of painter's tape across each joint, then turn the boards over and fold up the pieces to mock up the shape of the box.
    3. Check for fitment and make adjustments if needed.

  4. Cut the Dado for the Bottom

    Remove the tape and set up a table saw or router table to cut the dado that will hold the bottom. The depth of the dado should penetrate the side boards about halfway and be spaced 1/8 to 1/4 inch from the bottom of the box.

    The width of the dado should match the thickness of the material that you're using for the bottom, which will be determined by your intended use.

    For example, if you plan to build a hat box, 1/4-inch material is plenty strong. However, if you plan to store photos, books, or something heavier, you should bump up the thickness to at least 1/2 inch. We're using 1/4-inch plywood.

    What Is a Dado?

    A dado is a three-sided groove cut into a piece of stock for another piece of stock to fit into, forming a right angle. This simple joint is often utilized for furniture building, such as shelving, cabinetry, and drawer dividers.

  5. Measure and Cut the Bottom Piece

    Tape the sides together once more, then measure the internal dimension plus the depth of the dado on each opposing side. This will give you the dimensions of your bottom piece. Cut the piece to size using a table saw or circular saw, then slide it into place to check the fit. It should be a slightly tight squeeze to account for sanding.

  6. Sand the Sides and Bottom

    Sand the sides and bottom piece using 120-grit sandpaper and progressing to at least 220-grit.

  7. Glue the Box Together

    Reassemble the box using the tape method. Before closing it together, apply a thin layer of wood glue to each side of each joint. Slide the bottom into place without any glue, then close the sides together. Tape the fourth corner and check the alignment.

    If everything looks good, clamp the box together until the glue dries. Remove any glue that squeezes out immediately.

  8. Cut the Lid

    While the glue dries, cut a piece of wood that matches the dimension of the box to be used for the lid.

  9. Cut the Inset

    Cut a rabbet on each side of the lid to create the inset. The rabbet should be the width of the sides of the box and the depth should be half of the thickness of the lid. You can cut the rabbet with a table saw or a router table fitted with a straight router bit.

    What Is a Rabbet?

    A rabbet is a dado cut at the edge of a piece of material, giving it two sides rather than three.

  10. Check the Lid's Fit

    Remove the clamps from the box and slide the lid into place to check the fit. Cut more material if necessary.

  11. Sand the Lid

    Sand the lid with 120-grit paper, increasing to at least 220-grit. Pay close attention to the rabbet and clean up any splinters or rough areas.

  12. Finish the Wood

    Finish the box however you wish. Stain, paint, clear coat, oil, or leave it bare. To determine the best wood-finishing procedure, consider your intended use for the box as well as the best finish for the wood species.

FAQ
  • What is the best wood to use to make a wooden box?

    Oak is considered by many to be the best wood for making a wooden box. It's strong, easy to work with, dimensionally stable, and accepts stain and oil incredibly well. That said, you can use many types of wood to make a wooden box.

  • How do you hollow out wood for a box?

    You can hollow out a solid piece of wood to build a wooden box by using a Forstner drill bit to remove most of the material. Then, clean up the remainder with a router and sandpaper.

  • How do you hollow wood without a lathe?

    While a lathe is the preferred tool, you can hollow wood using many different tools. You can drill a series of holes into the wood, use a router to remove the wood, remove the wood by hand using chisels, or build a template to remove the wood using a table saw.

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