How to Repurpose an Old Dresser Drawer into a Wine Rack

We’ve all seen repurposed dresser drawer projects. Turning an old drawer into a shelf. A dog bed. A planter. While I love all of these projects (anything old to new again is awesome in my book,) I wanted to try something a bit different.

I racked (get it!) my brain for a repurposed dresser drawer project I hadn’t seen before. When I saw the wine bottles on my bar cart, inspiration hit. Turn an old dresser drawer into a wine rack.

My dad gave me an old dresser drawer that, when flipped on its side, was the exact height to fit a few wine bottles. From there it took some trial and error to get the wine rack just right.

I came up with this project when tasked with producing a repurposed dresser drawer project for the Summer 2016 issue of VintageKC magazine.

I wanted to create a piece of décor that fit my style—and that I’d actually use. Sometimes it feels like so many of the DIY or craft projects you see in magazines or on Pinterest look neat but aren’t something you’d enjoy having around for years.

I think my wine rack fits the bill.

You’ll need to gather just a few supplies to do this repurposed dresser drawer project.

What you’ll need:

– Old dresser drawer (one that will fit wine bottles)
– Old boards
– Rope
– Saw
– Drill
– Paint (optional)

Here’s how I transformed an old drawer into a fancy wine rack with just a few DIY updates.

I wanted to give my drawer a rustic look, so I started by swiping on a soft layer of Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint in linen. I kept the paint light so the wood would peek through.

Next, I cut four old boards to fit inside the drawer vertically and adhered them using wood glue. The boards also got a light layer of paint before I attached them. If you’re recreating this project, you may need more or fewer boards depending on the size of your drawer. I “measured” by laying wine bottles side-by-side in the drawer to see how many would fit.

The final step was to drill two holes in the top of the drawer. Cut a piece of rope to your desired length, thread it through the holes and secure the rope by tying each of the ends in a tight knot.

Add your wine bottles (or a bottle of whiskey if you accidentally opened the fifth bottle of wine like me,) and your wine rack is complete.

What would you make from an old dresser drawer? There are so many possibilities!

Related articles:
Old Dresser Drawer
Repurposed Crate Project
DIY Wine Cork Bulletin Board