Dear Olive,
What is your most proud house hack so far? Is it the bathroom sink made of the old Victrola player? That was pretty keen. I think ours might be the dog kennel fashioned out of that awkward kitchen cabinet. I am grateful everyday to not have to look at that plastic pet cage instead.
The handyman thought I was crazy when I asked him to cut a hole in the back of our L-shaped cabinet. But it was such an awkward space, I rarely used it for anything, and most of the stuff just got stuck in the back anyway. That old heater grate we used for the kennel door took me forever to find, but it was worth it in the end.
Here's how we did it:
Step 1: Buy an old heating grate and 3 years of thick clear plastic (available in rolls at the fabric store).
Step 2: Cut a square in the backside of your kitchen cabinet (the same size as the interior of the grate, leaving about a 1" lip overage). Staple gun the clear plastic inside the cabinet for extra wood protection.
Step 3: Paint the edges of the hole black, hinge on the grate, and add a piece of wood to the opening to lock and unlock the kennel door.
Now, sometimes when the kids are crawling in and out of it while I'm cooking... yes, we knew that was inevitable; they sometimes sing, "dogs in the kitchen." Such as
this:
