DIY Computer Desk | Cable Management, Storage, LED's

Computer desks can come in all different sizes and designs, as well as loaded with all kinds of features you may or may not need. I needed a bigger one because mine was old and really small for what I needed now. I had all theses grand plans to add wireless charging and built in USB and LED's. But the more I looked at it, that was all going to bloat the desk, then I had to find space for it all to go, plus it had to incorporate the design, and I still needed it to function at it's core for me for editing YouTube videos, my wives crafting, some gaming, and personal paperwork. So I stripped it back to those core reasons. Then I wanted it to be just big enough, no wasted space, but not heavy looking and too big for the room, so a corner desk was out, but a cabinet was in with a light looking leg on the room side to make it feel more open. LED's could still be added tastefully, but everything else seemed like gimmicks that will be replaced with new technologies in a couple years anyways, so I avoided them and this is what I was left with. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. It has everything I need, nothing I don't, and serves it's intended purpose while looking great. You could still add things if you want later on too which is nice if you decided you really wanted it. You could also add metal trim accents if you decide (I still might), and you could change the colour and even wood species to suit your desires! I hope you enjoy it.

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• Pencil
• Tape measure
• Saws (I used miter and circular)
• Drills (Impact and drill driver, but you can use just a drill driver)
• Sander and 120 grit paper
• Wood glue
• Wood filler
• 3) 2"x2"x8' pine
• 4'x4' 3/4" birch plywood
• 2'x4' 1/2" birch plywood
• 1"x8"x6' craftsman pine
• 2) 1"x2"x6' poplar
• 24"x72" pine project panel
• Edge banding and cutter
• Pocket hole jig and screws (2.5", 1.5", 1")
• Speed square
• Saw track guide
• Drawer slides one 14" and two 18"
• Drawer pulls
• Cable clips
• RGB LED's
• LED track
• Surge protector

Alrighty, the first place I looked to start was the left side leg and stretcher because it was quick and simple to assemble, but it also gave me a change to hone in my measurements for the top to make sure I had enough room for cables, without having the overhangs too big lol.

To start, take your 2x2 boards, measure and mark off 3 pieces at 16.75" long, 2 pieces at 28", and another 2 at 52.5" and chop em'. With all the pieces cut out, we can take our 3 short boards and drill 2 pocket holes in each end of them, we also need 2 pocket holes in 1 end of our longest boards so we can join it all together. Assembly is pretty straight foreword, take the two 28" pieces and two 16.75" and make a square with them. I angled my pocket holes to the outside of the square so that when I stood it up to be a leg, they would be facing up and hiding under the top, and down against the floor. This way it has a clean look because they won't be seen. Then just glue and screw them together, I added a glue sizing to them since they were end grain joints for strength. That just involves adding glue to the end grain, spreading it around and pushing it in, then adding more and putting it together. Clamps will also help to keep everything held together and level while you work. With the leg box build, take your remaining boards and assemble them, make sure your pocket hole ends of the long boards are opposite your small stretcher. Those pocket holes on the long ends are what your using to attach it to the leg box. Now you have a assembled leg and top stretcher, easy so far hey.

Face frames look awesome on cabinets, and they are surprisingly easy to build. I made mine out of 1x2 poplar, it matches my other woods well when finished. Cut 2 pieces at 28" long for the stiles (vertical pieces) and 4 pieces at 12.5" long for the rails (horizontal pieces). From there we need 2 pocket holes in each end of the 4 rails, just make sure to reset your jig for 3/4" material after your done building the legs. With the stiles sitting side by side and the ends flush, from whatever side you deem the "top" of your face frame, measure down and make marks at 8", 16" and 24". Then using your square draw a line across the 2 boards at each mark, spread them apart and set your rails in place. You should have one at the top and then "below" each make after that. Add some glue to the ends of them and attach them all to one stile first, working your way down. Then add glue to all the rail ends and add the other stile. You should have 2.5" left over below the bottom stile for the toe kick. Flip it over and check it out, easy face frame.

The cabinet body is made from 3/4" thick birch plywood, but you can use whatever plywood matches the species of wood your using. I used my circular saw and track guide to cut it, but if you have a table saw go for that, or you can even have your local shop cut it for you if you trust them. I actually did that first and they did not cut it correctly, so I came home and did it myself. I made 2 rips at 21.25" with the grain of the plywood. Then I stacked them on top of each other, flushed them up and clamped them together with a straight edge and cut them at 28". You're probably goin to want to add some painters tape to your cut line first to prevent blowing out the plywood. I didn't, but I did make sure the ends that were going to have blowout were my bottom insides so it wouldn't be seen anyways. You're also going to want one piece at 21.25" x 14" for the floor of the cabinet, then 2 pieces at 3.25" x 14" for floor supports. Then with scraps and cutoffs I made some extra strips that will be used in the cabinet to make a cubby for cable management as well as supports, but these are less specific and can be sized for your needs.

Alrighty, your plywood will have 1 side that's usually nice, and another side that's even nicer. Take the nice side and have it face up, this is the inside of the cabinet. The cabinet is 28" tall, so knowing that you can determine the sides as well as front and back of the panel. From your "bottom" measure up 3.25" and make a couple marks, then using your square trace a line across to mark off the floor. Now with your floor panel drill some pocket holes along the sides of it, I stayed back from the edges 1.5" and then spaced them out evenly, 5 on each side. You're also going to want to add pocket holes to the supports you cut earlier. Add some wood glue above the line we drew on the side panel, set the floor panel in place and screw it down, doing the ends first to make sure it stays in alignment, then the center ones. From whatever side you deem the "front", measure back 2" under the floor piece and then behind the line, add glue and your floor support/toe kick. The rear support just goes flush with the back of the cabinet, but make sure to add both your floor supports with the pocket holes facing towards the inside, keeps them hidden. The upper front support goes flush with the top and front, easy, but make sure the pocket holes face up when the cabinet is complete so they will be hidden under the top. Then on the rear upper side of the cabinet we can make our cubby for the cords. I measured down 8" and traced a line, added glue and screwed on my bottom panel, then measured back 5.5" and added the rear wall. Again, this is what I needed but you can make this cubby as small or large as you need, just be aware to adjust and watch out for your drawers so nothing contacts. With all our supports added to the ones side of the cabinet, joining the 2 sides is easy. I added glue to all the plywood facing up and then literally flipped it over on the other side, make sure its oriented correctly, then lower it down as close to where it will stay as you can so your not smearing the glue all over. Go around the cabinet flushing up the edges and corners and screw it down, pulling as needed. It basically self aligns itself.

With the cabinet on it's back now, add glue to the the entire front of it. Set the face frame down on it one corner at a time to make sure it again doesn't smear. I used a 18 gauge brad nailer with 1.5" nails to fasten it, but you could clamp it if you have the means. I pinned one corner once it was flushed up, then go to the opposite corner, flush it and pin it as well. Do the other 2 corners. From there when doing the center you can pull and push the plywood walls until flush and then pin them as well. Then just fill your nail holes with some wood filler, let dry and give the whole face frame a good sanding with 120 grit. It will clean up the filler, but it will also smooth out the joints to make sure everything is good and flat to the touch.

You can leave the bottom of the cabinet as it, and that would be fine. But for a nice detail touch you can take a poplar 1x3, trim off 1 side at a 45 degree angle. Holding it flat on the toe kick, mark a line straight across flush with the face frame. Then on the far side, mark back from that line back down at a 45 again using your square and cut that off. You should be left with a small block and two 45 degree angles on it. If it looks good after a dry test fit, add some glue to the 45 angles and then press it into place. I used a 23 gauge pin nailer with 1" pins to fix it into place, you could brand nail it in or just apply pressure until the glue dries. Repeat for the other side. See, it dresses it up a bit instead of plain like most toe kicks.

Because we have a face frame, we need to build the walls out so our drawer slides can be mounted flush with the sides of the face frame, these are called cleats. Using a pine 1x3, cut 2 pieces 15" long, and 4 more 18" long. Then with your square set inside the cabinet, flushed up to the wall and face frame, trace a line with your pencil. Do this for both sides on the upper and middle openings. Then with wood glue added to your cleats rest them on the square to hold it in place, and flush it up with the face frame. Using 1.25" brad nails pin the front. Then remove the square, line the cleat up with your pencil line you drew and nail the middle and rear. That is plenty of nails since they are mostly holding them in acting as a clamp until the glue dries, the glue will do the holding. For the rear cleat, just set it on the floor of the cabinet. That's it, the cabinet is done. Not overly hard, just a bunch of pieces is all.

Everybody loves to hate drawers. Lots of people want to build them but it is too intimidating, good thing I have a whole detailed YouTube video and Instructables on how to do it. It is more involved than I want to get into here, so go check them out. I will however give you details about these specific drawers.

These drawers are made from 1/2" birch plywood with 1/4" birch ply bottoms. I didn't need them to be super heavy duty for their use and size, and this is plenty strong. They are mounted on regular ball bearing drawer slides, no soft close or anything. All the drawer bodies/sides are 5" deep. For the upper drawer you will need 2 pieces 15" long for the sides and 2 pieces 10.5" long for the front and back. For the center and bottom drawer you will need 2 pieces 18" long for the sides and 2 pieces 10.5" long for the front and back. On all the front and back pieces you'll need 2 pocket holes on each end for assembly. I also added birch edge banding to the tops for a cleaner appearance, just make sure to sand it smooth so it isn't a sharp edge. The drawer fronts are made from a 1x8 craftsman pine board all cut to 13.5" long, no ripping needed. It looked a little plain however so I added a 45 degree chamfer with the router all along the front edges.

For the desk top I double checked everything I needed and wanted to put on it, without it being needlessly large, and I settled on 24"x72". Now I could have cut it out of plywood and edge banded it but I didn't want that look, I could have done my own glue up with boards as well, but I don't have the clamps for that, the easiest method is just to buy a large project panel in that size. Most big box stores sell them in a wide assortment of sizes, but this is perfect because I literally don't even have to cut it. It isn't perfect however and needs a few small touches. All of the edges are pretty sharp and need to be softened so when you lean on the desk it doesn't cut into your arms. You could soften them by hand, but that's a lot of desk to cover. You could do it with a orbital sander, that will do the job quick, but can leave a less than ideal result because it will tend to be wavy. The best looking method is a router with a 1/8" round over bit if you have one. I went around the entire perimeter, top and bottom as well as the edges. Then because it is a soft wood, there are a bunch of small defects as well as knots in the panel. Again, you could use wood filler, but that gives a less than ideal finish, you could use epoxy, but it's expensive and slow drying. I like to use a thick CA glue (super glue) to fill the holes. It helps in 2 ways, it dries nearly instantly because you can spray it with a activator, but it also stabilizes knots which can become loose over time. Once the entire tops defects have been filled, give the whole thing a good sanding with 120 grit sandpaper. Quick and easy.

When it comes to how you want to finish your desk out, that's entirely up to you, what wood species you worked with, what you like, and what you have available. For myself I chose to stain and clear the entire thing. I used a dark walnut stain mixed with a smidge of weathered grey to cool it off a bit since the walnut is a warm colour. I stained the desk top, drawer fronts, leg and stretcher assembly, and the outside of the cabinet. I left the inside of the cabinet and drawer boxes bare and then clear coated them. I like the lighter look it gives inside, and clear coated birch has a nice look to it. Once the stain was dry I sprayed on 3 coats of a water based clear, and before the 3rd coat I sanded lightly with 220 grit to smooth any dust nibs. I prefer water clears myself, I didn't want the clear to warm it back up again like an oil finish would have, but again you can choose what clear you like. I sprayed my clear because it's much faster, but I've done my fair share of brushing on clear coats. Then just let everything dry for a couple days and we can start reassembly.

Now with a hole bunch of individual parts finished, we can finally put it all back together so we have a desk. I started by installing the drawers in the base cabinet, remember the upper drawer is the shorter one, refer to my drawer tutorial for install tips. Now we can make a full desk base by attaching the leg and stretcher piece. It's pretty simple. I held the stretcher up to the cabinet side, flush with the top of it, and set back from the front the width of the face frame, so 3/4". Then from the inside of the cabinet I screwed them together using two, 2" screws. Then on each corner as well as the middle I added some small angle brackets with 1/2" screws. These will hold the desk top and has slightly larger holes than screws so it should allow for seasonal movement. Once you have the desk top sitting where you want it, I verified it was centered at each corner with a tape measure, attach it with more 1/2" screws to the brackets. To add the drawer fronts I already drilled my holes for the hardware, no jig just a tape measure and pencil and some math, again I show this in the drawer video. From there I added some painters tape to the face frame, and with my adjustable square set to 1/2" I made marks on the sides and bottom. Now I have a trick to show you, I lined the drawer front up with the lines and screwed it to the box with 1.5" screws. That holds it in place so I can open the drawer and attach it from the inside with some 1" screws in each corner, neat hey. Then remove the front screws, drill the holes out fully and install your drawer pull. Now it is finally all put together, waiting for your stuff.

Okay, I know the design of this desk doesn't fully suit LED's, but I figured since they are not visible when they are off, I was going to add them for me. I had some RGB LED's and LED track from a previous project that never used them, so I figured I'd toss some at this. The track is specifically designed for LED strips to basically make your own light, it looks better than just slapping them on too. Just cut them to length on the specific cutting zone on the strip, stick them to the inside of the track, and add the diffusing cover to it. Then take the little clips and screw them to the rear 2x2 below the top, then snap the track into it. I mounted the control box in the cable cubby and used super glue to mount the IR sensor so it is just visible to the remote from under the desk. When it comes to cable management I set everything in place and plugged them all in 1 at a time, routing the cords to the cubby and used velcro cable ties to keep each one bundled, and behind the computer I tied everything up so it was basically one large, neat cable. Inside the cubby I mounted a surge protector, with the screw mounts on it's back, to the rear wall and plugged everything in. I also bundled the cables running from side to side under the desk top and behind the 2x2 again with electrical cable clips to keep them neat and tidy and tucked up out of the way. I cleaned the cubby up a bit after I filmed this, but from the front this gives a much cleaner look than having all the cords just drooping all over the place along the wall. So it has storage, LED's because why not, and a nice big footprint without looking too big, clunky and overpowering the room. I think it turned out awesome!

I hope your project turned out awesome!

Let me know what you think, or if you have any questions and I'll get back to ya!

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Thanks for stopping by and have fun!

CanaDIYan

canadiyanjesse@gmail.com