Although this traditional-style wardrobe looks like it was plucked straight out of the 19th century, it has many uses in today's more modern homes. I built this wardrobe for my bedroom. I plan to store folded sweaters and shirts in the top case, although you could make the cabinet 24" to 25" deep and add a rod to hang your clothes in the top case. Or, you could easily transform this project into a home entertainment center.

The top case can hold TVs as large as 36". You can then store media equipment on adjustable shelves installed in the top case, and use the bottom drawers to store DVDs and video game controllers. That's the beauty of a project like this — you can easily adapt the plans to create a storage unit that fits your home.

I build all of my cabinets the same way. If you've ever built one of my cabinets before, you know the drill is pretty simple no matter how challenging the finished product looks.

All of my cabinets are built using solid lumber, no plywood. The cabinets have face-frame fronts with raised-panel doors that are held together with mortise-and-tenon joints. The backs are shiplapped. The drawers are dovetailed together, and the moulding requires a few basic cuts. The base is incorporated into the lower cabinet. I gave up making a separate base assembly years ago. The scrollwork on the base is easy using our scaled template.

Frame (as Always) First

Start with the face frames for both the top and bottom cases. I use mortise-and-tenon joints to hold my face frames together. Rip your stock 1/16" wider than shown in the cutting list. This gives you some room to play when you trim your face frame flush to the case.

Now cut the tenons. Center each tenon on the end of each rail. Set up a dado stack in your table saw to cut 1"-long x 3/8"-thick tenons. For the edge shoulders of the tenons, I recommend you make them at least 3/8". Use your tenons to lay out the mortises on the stiles. Now chop out the mortises with your mortiser, going about 1/16" deeper than the length of your tenons to avoid them bottoming out.

It's time to assemble the frames. Spread a little glue into each mortise (don't overdo it) and clamp the frames up. Be sure to check for squareness by measuring from corner to corner.

While the glue in your face frame sets, turn your attention to the applied beading on the inside edge of the face frame. The bead moulding is made using a beading bit mounted in my router table and 5/16" x 3/4" stock. Miter the corners of the moulding. Then glue and nail it in place as shown in the photo at left.

Make a Case

With the face frame completed, it's time to build the top and bottom cases. Both cases, although large, are built using simple dado and rabbet joints. The overall dimension of the bottom case is 3/4" deeper and 11/2" wider than the top case. This gives the top case something to sit on with room for moulding.

First, cut all your lumber to size and glue up the panels for the sides, tops and bottoms. Grab the top and bottom case's side pieces and head to the table saw.

Start with the two sides of the top case. A rabbet joint cut at the top of the top case will keep the top flush with the top case sides. So your first step is to cut a 1/4" x 3/4" rabbet at the top of each side. Next, you need to cut a dado joint to hold the bottom of the top case. The bottom is located 2" up from the bottom edge of the sides. By doing this, the bottom will also act as a door stop. Your dados should be 1/4" deep by 3/4" wide.

Now grab your drill and bore holes in the top case side's for the adjustable shelves.

It's time to move to the bottom case sides. Some people build web frames to guide their drawers. I think it's a lot simpler and easier to use solid shelves to divide the drawer spaces.

Your first shelf is located 11" down from the top of the case side; the second shelf is located 22" down from the top of the case side. Each of these shelves fit in 1/4"-deep by 3/4"-wide dados. Go ahead and cut these dados.

Next, cut a 1/4"-deep by 9/16"-wide rabbet on the inside edges of the side pieces for both cases to accept the back.

Finish sand the interior parts. Assemble both the top and bottom cases using glue and a finish nailer. Make sure everything is square by measuring from corner to corner of the case.

Before you attach the face frames to the case, you need to temporarily install the back. I used 1/2"-thick hardwood cut to random widths to build my beaded shiplapped back. Cut 1/4" x 1/2" rabbets on the slat sides. Attach the back with screws and double check for squareness.

Once your cases are assembled, lay each case on its back, and glue, nail and clamp the face frames to the top and bottom cases. When the glue is dry, trim the face frame flush to the cabinet sides using a flush-cutting bit chucked into your router, as shown in the photo above.

Before you move on to the doors, add the screw board to the back of the bottom case, as shown in the photo above.

Raised-panel Doors

The two doors are built using both a cope-and-stick joint and a loose mortise-and-tenon joint. In my opinion the loose tenon is necessary to add strength to these heavy doors. First, cut all your door parts to size. I make my doors the exact same size as the opening in the face frame. I trim them to fit the opening later.

Now mill 3/8"-wide by 11/16"-deep mortises in the rails and stiles where the two meet and cut a 3/8"-wide by 2"-long loose tenon from scrap wood. Using a router in your router table, cope the ends of the door's rails with the coping bit. Now cut the mating stick profile on the inside edge of the door's stiles and rails. You can see how this joint fits together in the drawing at right. Don't assemble the door panel frame yet. First you want to size your door panels.

My panels have a 12° bevel on the front face, but depending on the cutter set you own, the degree of your bevel might be different. That's OK.

I pre-cut all my raised panels on the table saw, and then finish raising them using my shaper. This keeps my shaper blades sharper longer, reduces the chance of major blowout and is safer.

Place your door panels into the door panel frames' grooves. Don't use glue. The door panels must float in the grooves to allow for wood expansion and contraction. You do want to use glue when assembling the door panels' frames. I like to peg my loose mortise-and-tenon joints for extra strength and authenticity.

Now it's time to fit the doors. Joint all four edges so that you have a 1/16" gap around the entire frame. You can make some 1/16" shims to help you fit the doors. Go ahead and sand the doors and hang them on their hinges.

Dovetailed Drawers

You can make your drawers any way you like, but for a traditional piece of furniture like this, I think dovetailed drawers are most appropriate. I cut all my half-blind dovetails with a simple router jig I created that costs $19.99.

You can download free instructions for this technique at popularwoodworking.com. Click on "Free Project Plans" and scroll down until you see "$19.99 Dovetail Jig."

Basically, the dovetail jig works like this: First you cut notches on one end of a piece of scrap using a dado stack in your table saw. One notch equals one pin socket. This is your template. Then you clamp your template to the back side of your drawer front. Install a template guide and dovetail bit in your router, set the depth and run the router in and out of the notches, as shown above. That's how you cut your pins.

Here you can see the finished pins on the drawer front.

After I lay out the tails on the drawers' sides, I cut them out using my band saw.

Next, you use the pins to lay out the tails on the drawer side. Then you simply cut the tails using your band saw, as shown at right. The first time you try this, you might have to do a little fitting. But I guarantee this jig is an easy (and inexpensive) way to cut snug-fitting dovetails.

Before you fit your drawers, install the drawer runners to the two shelves in the bottom case. Four pieces of 3/4" x 1" x 19" hardwood will do just fine. Screw them in place flush against the sides of the lower case.

Moulding and Finishing

Now it's time for the pieces that give a project like this some pizazz. Start with the waist moulding that goes on top of the bottom case. Waist moulding plays an important part in projects when dealing with a top and bottom case. The top case sits on top of the lower waist mould. Once the waist mould is attached to the lower waist mould, gravity holds the top case in place. This way, you don't have to permanently attach the top case to the bottom case, making this piece of furniture much easier to move. You can see how the waist moulding fits together at right.

The first step in creating the waist mould is to cut a 3/4" bullnose on the 3/4" x 2" lower waist mould. This moulding should hang over the outside of the bottom case by 1/2", and it will give you 3/4" of moulding to nail into the bottom case. Miter the lower waist mould and nail it in place.

The crown is attached to the top case, along with a filler block and the top cap.

Now cut a 1/2" cove profile on the waist mould. Don't attach the waist mould to the lower waist mould yet. Set the top case on top of the lower waist mould that's attached to the bottom case. Make sure all sides are even. Draw a pencil line all the way around the top on the lower waist moulding.

Take the top case off of the bottom case. Now attach the waist mould to the lower waist mould, leaving the pencil line visible so you only have a pencil line amount of room to play. (The sharper your pencil, the better the fit.)

Next, turn your attention to the moulding on the top of the top case. Attach a temporary board to the top of the top case, as shown above. This board will allow you to attach your top crown at a perfect 45° angle. I bought my crown off the rack. You can do the same, or cut your own. Go ahead and attach the top crown. Now, cut several filler blocks and place them between the top crown and the top case, as shown above. This gives the top crown extra support. Once your filler blocks are in place, attach the top cap.

Your last moulding step is to attach the base moulding. Use the scaled detail drawing as a pattern and cut out the scrollwork using your band saw or jigsaw. You'll need to cut away part of the lower case sides to get the base moulding looking correct. Miter and nail it in place.

I sand everything to 180 grit. Finish the project using your favorite stain or dye, and two or three coats of lacquer. PW

Supplies

The pulls for the doors and drawers can be purchased from Horton Brasses (800-754-9127 or horton-brasses.com) or from Ball and Ball (800-257-3711 or ballandball.com). Call for pricing and availability.