A Pair Of Bread Boxes

I made these same bread boxes last Christmas as gifts for family. I was recently asked to make another bread box and figured I would make two this time as well. It is one of those easy projects that will take just as long to make an extra. Because I was making two I decided it would be best to use two different construction techniques.

In previous bread boxes I used pocket hole construction. It’s a quick and easy joint but sometimes leaves a less than desired appearance. For me that’s ok as none of them will be visible from the outside. For the second box I decided I would give rabbet joinery a try. It’s another easy joint to make and relies on the strength of glue to hold it together

On With The Boxes!

You can make one bread box out of one 8′ 1×12 board. Wood quality wasn’t a concern for me as the longest piece is only 15″ long. The shorter you go with your pieces the more you can get away with lesser quality wood. Problems are amplified the longer you go.

To get started on the project I marked out all of my rough cuts. This allows me to pick and choose what parts of the board I want for each part of the bread box. For both bread boxes I was able to cut away all of the bad spots on the boards. Why pay for top dollar pine when you rarely use 100% of the board?

Cutting the pieces is pretty straight forward. Download the completed plan at the end of this article and you shouldn’t have any problems. The most important part of the project is getting the sides cut to match. There is only one cut per side but the entire assembly is based off the shape of the sides. With them cut you can decide on how you want to build the box; Pocket holes or rabbets and glue? The sides for the rabbeted box need a 3/4″ wide by 3/8″ deep rabbet along the perimeter. Remember to cut them on opposite sides so you have a left and right side.

The pocket hole box will go together faster but require a little time to cut the holes. The back will need 3 holes on the sides. These will be cut on surface facing inside the box. The top needs 2 holes cut to connect the sides and 3 holes cut to attach it to the back. The front piece gets 1 hole on either end  to attach to the sides. At this stage I like to verify that all my pieces fit together as intended with the help of a few clamps. Be sure to make note of how the door fits. You will probably need to trim a little off the length to get it to function to your liking.Bread box

After both boxes are assembled and the doors are fitted I mounted the hinges on the bottom of the door. Here’s where you can get creative with the project. 100 people can build this same box and achieve a different look via unique hardware. Don’t forget to get a knob style pull for the door. In the video I did not install any as they were going to someone who will do some artistic painting. With everything functioning properly I gave the entire box a thorough sanding to smooth all the joints.Bread box

Paint or stain? That question is for you to decide but for me I sprayed some white primer on both. I am very happy with the way these turned out. Especially considering I only have about $10 in each one and I used some very poor quality wood. If you would like to build one you can download the plan below. Remember that the design can be modified to fit your needs. Have fun with the project. Make it your own!Bread box Bread box Bread box Bread box

Free Plan:

9 COMMENTS

  1. would like an exact cut list because the sketch although it has dimensions it does not show the exact cut list on the cut sheet layout it just has the pieces color coded with no exact dimensions.

    • Hello Will. All the info needed is there. It says in the side detail diagram that all pieces are 15″ long other than the side pieces. Dimensions for those are given as well.

  2. Jay – I see all the measurements on side detail. It states 15 degree angle on the front and door bottom. Is it also 15 degrees on the top and the top of the door?

  3. Hey jay good boxes but your plans need some work. The side view does not account for the rabbits. For instance, your top piece is 4 5/8ths from where the back starts to the tip of the 15° bevel. However you have us rabbiting around the sides which will,then make that measurment to big. The same goes for the front piece. The diagram has us star the angle at the bottom in line with the lower part of the 15° cut of the front piece. In reality when you place that piece in yoir rabbit, the cut should be inlime with the top of the angle.

    • Incorrect. How does rabbeting the side pieces change the other widths? The rabbet doesn’t change any width value of the non side pieces. The side pieces are rabbeted to fit inside every other piece.

  4. Hi there,
    Is there another link for the plans. My son is going to try and make this.
    When we down load the plan – it is zipped and we can find a way to open it.
    Is there an unzipped plan available?

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