Introduction: Mini Shipping Crates

By ardee
About: Hi! You can call me Ardee. I'm a specialist (self claim) in paper and cardboard related DIY projects. You can see more of my works at ardeepapercrafthouse.blogspot.com.

This project is inspired by shipping crates by Design Studio Labyrinth (https://labyrinth-bcn.com/). I made some changes to the design of the original labyrinth’s crates. First of all, I use craft stick for the material because it’s cheap and easy to get. It is also easy to cut and shape with simple hand tools. Another reason for craft stick is that it gives the looks of a crate made out of wooden planks. Secondly, I thought of making this crate as a multipurpose box – you can store things in it (candy perhaps), it can be desktop organizer (stationery holder), or a flower pot, it can also be a tissue box, or a place to keep your spare change. Well, you get what I mean. It is an all-around multipurpose storage box, disguise as miniature wooden shipping crates.

Step 1: Gather Your Material and Tools

Materials:

  • Craft sticks.

One miniature shipping crate will roughly need a total of 74 sticks (estimated).

Tools:

  • PVA Glue
  • Small Brush
  • Cutter
  • Masking Tape
  • Needle File/Sandpaper
  • Handsaw
  • Clamp & Binder Clip (for clamping purpose)

Step 2: Build the Wall

The box structure is made out of four (4) walls with a bottom and a top lid: which makes it into a cubic shaped box. First off, let’s make the wall. Cut a strip of masking tape and lay it flat. Next, place the craft stick side by side as in the picture. You’ll need eight (8) of them to make one wall. Glue the sticks together using the PVA glue. The reason for the tape is to hold the sticks together while the glue dries.

Once it dried, measure the length of the wall, it should be around 80mm. Now you need to trim the wall’s length to be 80mm (to make a square wall). Use a hand saw for this purpose. Make six (6) of these walls.

Step 3: Add Wall’s Support

The walls will be differentiated by the following: two side walls, and two front/back walls. The front/back wall have an addition of a frame on top of it. This frame will add strength to the wall structure. As for the side wall, mark the sides where the front/back wall will be placed, and cut a piece of the stick to be glued on the top and bottom of the wall. So as not to confuse you further, refer to the pictures for the building steps.

Step 4: Glue the Wall

Attach the four (4) walls together and use masking tape to hold the shape while you add glue to the inside joints. This step is crucial because the joint walls becomes the crate’s body. Make sure all the walls are properly aligned and the shape is perfectly square (when view from top).

Step 5: Add the Bottom Cover

Get one (1) of the wall you build in Step 2 and trace the bottom outline of the joint walls (aka the crate’s body) in Step 4. Cut the bottom cover according to the marking. Glue the bottom cover onto the crate’s body. Put on a heavy weight on top while the glue dries (I use several books as the weight).

Step 6: Add the Bottom Support

Get three (3) pieces of craft sticks and glue it together. Then cut it to the same length as the bottom cover. Make three (3) of these supports. Attach it to the bottom cover.

Step 7: Build the Top Cover

Use the last piece of the wall from Step 2 to make the top lid/cover. Same as in Step 5, trace the length of the crate’s top and cut the piece accordingly. Add supports on top of the cover. There’ll be another support beneath it to fit in the top cover with the crate’s body. Check the pictures for more details.

Step 8: Smooth the Edges

Use the needle file or sandpaper to smooth the rough surface and the sharp edges.

Step 9: Cut a Slot for Coins/Tissue (Optional)

If you decided to use the mini crate as a spare change box or a tissue box, you’ll need to have a slot open on the top lid. Simply use a cutter to cut a small opening in the middle of the lid. Cut it enough for a coin to be inserted in. Small size tissue paper should be able to be pull up through this same slot. However, if you don’t want to have a hole on top of your crate then you may skip this step.

Step 10: Add Extra Details (Optional)

This is also an optional step which you may skip. I get some custom stamps to be made that match with the shipping crate theme. It was a fragile label and a shipping mark guide. I couldn’t find this anywhere so I gauge the stamp’s size for the crate and get it made. I use the standard stamp pad/ink pad for this job.

Step 11: All Done!!

I didn’t add any lacquer because I love the natural color of the wood. I have one crate that I made sometime ago (5 years to be exact) and it still looks great. Now that you have finished making the crate have fun storing things in it!