How To Build a Wardrobe Using Sustainable Materials

Sustainable materials are durable, visually appealing, and environmentally-friendly. If you want to make a wardrobe using sustainable materials, you’ve come to the right place. Before choosing your supplies, consider how they’re produced, how far they’re shipped, and how much you’ll need from start to finish.

To build a wardrobe using sustainable materials, use bamboo and eco-friendly plywood for the structure, then add wool insulation to prevent warping and humidity. Add drawers, doors, and knobs if you’d like to. Remember to draw blueprints and cut the dimensions before you start making the wardrobe.

Throughout this article, you’ll also learn the following information about building a wardrobe using sustainable materials:

• The best materials to make a wardrobe without harming the environment
• Tips for building your new wardrobe in less than an hour
• Additional suggestions for handles, mirrors, doors, and drawers

Choose the Materials

Perhaps the most important part of the process is choosing the materials. Since we’re focused on sustainability, it’s crucial everything in the wardrobe falls under the correct category. They need to be long-lasting without any adverse effects on the environment. Sustainable products rely on renewability, which is why many materials are out of the question.

Here are the materials you’ll need for this project:

• Bamboo sheets (¾-inch, 4 x 8-foot sections are the best for most wardrobes)
• (Optional) Wool insulation (enough for the walls, top, and bottom)
• (Optional) Hardwood plywood (make sure it’s labeled ‘Eco-friendly’)
• (Optional) Door knobs, drawers (you’ll need sliders for drawers), a clothes hanger pole (long enough to go from end-to-end), and mirrors for the inside of both doors

Here’s a list of tools you’ll need if you’re cutting and installing everything:

• A drill
• Edge band (choose sustainable wood edging)
• Eco-friendly wood glue
• Screws (sizes vary between one to two inches)

Draw the Blueprints

Creating blueprints provides a reference for every step of the process. Rather than eyeballing it, you can look back and see what comes next. As long as you’re using the previous section’s sustainable materials, you won’t run into any problems. Make sure you know how much space you have in the room the wardrobe belongs to before starting.

Instructables offers an excellent step-by-step tutorial to build your wardrobe. They have a video you can watch here:

Cut the Correct Dimensions

Use a table saw to cut the wood carefully. It’s essential to have everything ready to go before you start drilling and gluing. You can take this time to measure, cut, and drill pilot holes to prepare every slab for the next part of the installation process. Remember to measure twice and cut once so you don’t lose too much wood.

Note: You can wait to cut the plywood and wool insulation until you’ve built the majority of the wardrobe. These parts go in later in the process. You can measure the wardrobe’s interior and then use the measurements to guide the plywood and wool. Since wool is malleable, you don’t have to worry about exact measurements.

Build the Frame

Here’s how to build the wardrobe’s frame:

1. Cut and lay the backside. This will be the biggest part of the wardrobe. It should be the length and width you want the whole piece of furniture to be. For example, standard wardrobes are about 6 x 4 feet. Lay the 6 x 4-foot bamboo sheet on its back, then read on.
2. Decide how deep you want the wardrobe. Since most wardrobes are about 1.5 to 2 feet deep, you can create the sides using these dimensions. In our example, lay a 6 x 1.5-foot bamboo slab on either side of the previous bamboo sheet for the backing. These sheets will act as the sidewalls.
3. Follow the above procedure to create the bottom and top of the wardrobe. The dimensions for both sheets should be 4 x 1.5 feet if you’re following our guidelines. Lay them at the top and bottom of the frame.
4. Use a wood-cutting router to create grooves along all four edges of the bamboo backside. Do the same on all four walls, then slide all five pieces together (both sides, top, bottom, and backside).
5. Once they’re properly fitted, use wood glue, screws, and/or wood staples to secure the pieces together.

Use Sustainable Insulation

According to Science Direct, wool insulation is one of the most sustainable materials worldwide. Wool insulation prevents the wood from warping while protecting your clothes from humidity. Moisture can cause mildew and mold, especially in porous wood and fabric.

Cut sheets of wool insulation and place them inside the top, bottom, and sides of the structure. Make sure they’re overlapping by about an inch to prevent an insulation gap.

When you’re finished, cut and place sustainable, eco-friendly plywood sheets in the top, bottom, and sides to cover the insulation. Use wood glue to secure the plywood to the bamboo sheets.

Create the Wardrobe’s Drawers

If you want drawers, now is the time to add them. Use one-foot drawer slides, such as the Yenuo Drawer Slides, on both sides of the wardrobe’s bottom. You can also install a raised shelf for the drawers.

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Once you’ve drilled the slides in place, create a drawer using the previously mentioned Instructables video. In short, use a router to create slots inside each slab, then connect them. For our example, the wood should be one foot deep, eight inches tall, and 3.5 inches wide. Secure them with wood glue.

Add a Clothes Hanger

Use a hole saw to cut holes on both sides of the interior walls. Make sure you find a hanging pole for clothes that matches the dimensions of your hole saw attachment. Cut a hole through the plywood, but not the insulation or bamboo. If you didn’t add insulation, it’s okay to go through the bamboo.

Measure, level, and cut the holes across from one another. Place an adjustable tension rod or wood rod through both holes, then secure it with wood glue.

Install Mirrors on the Doors

If you make doors, you can add mirrors on both sides. To craft doors for the wardrobe, follow these steps:

1. Cut the doors to be the same dimensions as the back but with two inches less on all sides. For example, you’d cut a 70-inch x 46-inch wood slab for our blueprints.
2. Cut the slab down the middle to create two doors.
3. Install hinges on the top and bottom of both sides. The hinges will attach to the doors and walls of the wardrobe.
4. Place mirrors inside or outside of the wardrobe.

Install Door Handles

You can add handles to the doors and drawers. Consider handles made of sustainable materials to complete the eco-friendly, sustainable structure. You could use the following materials:

• Cork
• Bamboo
• Reclaimed wood
• Eco-friendly plywood

Place the door handles about four inches from the center where the doors meet. This placement will prevent them from scraping without hindering their functionality.

Conclusion

Building a wardrobe out of sustainable materials helps the environment while giving you a long-lasting place to store your clothes, jewelry, and more. Knowing you created the project gives you a sense of pride, so enjoy your wardrobe. Check the shipping and handling processes for each material.

Here’s a quick recap of the post:

• Use wool insulation, bamboo, and eco-friendly plywood.
• Consider adding a clothes hanger and door handles.
• You can try eco-friendly wood glue and screws.
• Door handles, mirrors, and drawers are easy to install.
• Always make blueprints, measure twice, and cut once.

Sources

• Good On You: Material Guide: Is Bamboo Fabric Sustainable?
• Science Direct: Sheep’s wool insulation: A sustainable alternative use for a renewable resource?
• Instructables: How to Make a Wardrobe
• Wood Guide: Plywood