• Home
  • About
    • Privacy Policy
  • Blog
  • Prep-Ahead Meals Cookbooks
  • Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • Gardening
  • Kid’s Activities
  • Gluten-Free Recipes
  • Budgeting Tips
↑

Premeditated Leftovers™

Prep-Ahead Meals, Cooking Tips, and Frugal Living

  • Cookbooks
    • Prep-Ahead Breakfasts and Lunches
    • Prep-Ahead Meals From Scratch
  • Recipe Index
  • Members Area
    • Member Login
    • Join Us
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Recipes
  • Gluten-Free Recipes
  • Lifestyle
  • Garden
  • DIY
  • Kids
  • Budget

You are here: Home / Naturally Frugal Living / How to Make an Ottoman from a Crate

How to Make an Ottoman from a Crate

July 19, 2014 by Jody 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy here.
11323 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

How to Make an Ottoman from a Crate - Use a crate and fabric to create an ottoman. The lifting lid on the DIY Ottoman allows you to use it for storage.

Hubby picked up this old treasure at a yard sale for $5.00, and as soon as I laid eyes on this crate I knew it needed to become an ottoman. Perfect for toy storage in the living room  with a bright, and pretty fabric to dress it up.  If you don’t have an old similar crate on hand like this one, you can pick up unfinished wooden crates at just about any hobby and craft store, or even Walmart for about $10- stain it, paint it, or leave it as is and follow the tutorial to create a padded lid for it. Stencil letters on your crate, add handles, and a fabric that coordinates with your décor to make a beautiful accent piece for any room in your home. I think treasures that we at least add some of our own handmade touches to are so much more valuable than store bought.

 

Options for using a crate to make an ottoman.

How to Make an Ottoman from a Crate

Supplies Needed:

  • Crate
  • board
  • 2×2’s
  • cotton filler
  • fabric
  • scissors
  • staple gun
  • drill and screws

 Directions:

Measure the top of your crate, from outside edge to outside edge. Cut your board to fit ( Home improvement stores will often cut for you for free or less than $1 per cut- worth it to save a step). Use a router or palm sander to round off the corners and edges of your board, this will keep your board from poking through your fabric, and also make it a little safer without sharp edges.

How to Make an Ottoman out of a Crate

Measure your crate on the  inside of the short ends,  mark one side of your boards with the inside measurements of crate. Cut  2×2’s to the measurement of the short ends of your crate.

Measuring crate to make a lid for ottoman.

Measure fabric to fit your board plus about 6″ extra length and width. I like to use duck cloth from Hobby Lobby-  it’s sturdy, comes in a wide variety of patterns, and with a 40% off coupon it is very affordable! Starting on your board length ways staple your fabric taut, staple fabric on the opposite side, leaving fabric loose for stuffing- 1 1/2-2 ” is plenty for your stapled “seam”.   Staple one short end and leave the other open, fill with stuffing- I spent a  good 10 minutes  adjusting and making sure stuffing was even and filled in each corner well. Finally staple your remaining end. When doing the corners two short ends if folded them in at the corners like you would if you were gift wrapping a box.

How to make an ottoman out of a crate.

Screw 2×2’s onto the board over your fabric. ( or have your hubby use his super fancy air gun nail thingy to secure them).

Attaching top to crate to make an ottoman.

Fit board into opening of crate.

Finished ottoman made from an old crate.

If desired, spray your fabric heavily with a scotch guard to make it easier to clean, so minor blemishes can be wiped away without taking it apart completely.

Use your new storage ottoman for books, toys, DVDs, dog toys, or whatever needs to be corralled neatly. I plan on using mine to hold a couple of  extra throw blankets.

More DIY Home Decor Projects

  • 5 Tips for Perfectly Painted Furniture
  • DIY Wall Decor – Upcycled Hanging Vases
  • DIY Desk – Upcyled Bar Stools
  • DIY Vintage Dresser makeover
  • How to Make a Fabric Strip Valence
  • DIY Fabric Scrap Lampshade
11323 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

Comments

  1. Teri Herzog says

    July 19, 2014 at 6:54 pm

    I love this crate ottoman,. I live in Jax.Fla. what part of Fla are you from. thanks Teri

    Reply
    • Jody says

      July 20, 2014 at 10:05 am

      Thank you Teri! I am in a miss-it-if-you-blink little town in Pasco Co.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Search

Prep-Ahead Breakfasts and Lunches by Alea Milham

Recent Articles:

Free Printable St. Patrick's Prayer

St. Patrick’s Breastplate and 4 Printables of St. Patrick’s Prayer

DIY Moth Repellant Bags

Early Spring Cleaning - March Cleaning Checklist to help clear away the winter mess and organize winter gear

Early Spring Cleaning Tips and March Cleaning Checklist

Prep-Ahead Meals from Scratch Where to Buy

BROWSE:

  • Blog
  • Cookbooks
  • Recipe Index
  • Members Area

ABOUT:

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure

Welcome. I'm Alea!

On Premeditated Leftovers I share simple recipes made with whole foods, practical shopping tips, time saving techniques, and meal planning strategies. I also share tips for minimizing food waste, so more of the food that is purchased ends up on the table.

While volunteering as a budget counselor, I realized that food is the element of most people’s budgets where they have the greatest control. I set out to develop low-cost recipes from scratch to prove it’s possible to create delicious meals on a limited budget. Eating well while spending less is about more than just creating recipes using inexpensive ingredients; it’s about creatively combining ingredients so you don’t feel deprived and are inspired to stick to your budget.

Copyright ©2023, Premeditated Leftovers™. All Rights Reserved.
Design by Pixel Me Designs