Mid-Century Modern Landing Zone

Check out how we made a mid-century drop zone out of thrift store finds!

For more detail, please visit our website MotherDaughterProjects.com!

This project started with a well worn mid century teak record cabinet. We upcycled a garage utility cabinet to provide the wood for encasing the cabinet. Cedar molding from a mid century cabinet was used to finish off the "new" landing zone. The only materials that were new in this upcycle was a set of midcentury legs and mounts but even those were sourced in a yard sale and were from the now defunct Scotty's hardware.

The legs were damaged and split necessitating removal. We used a circular saw cutting close to the bottom of the cabinet. We also added a upcycled piece of wood to add a supportive top to the piece. We used a Kreg Pocket Hole Jig to make the pocket holes.

Because the original garage cabinet was so large, we ended up using only a small portion of the lumber for the new landing zone. We cut it to size and used a brad nailer with wood glue to attach it to the sides, top, and bottom.

Since we had no molding to spare, we were very careful to be sure we measured correctly and had the orientation of the molding correct. We were successful! The molding was also brad nailed and glued into place.

We made a template for the leg hardware to be sure they were consistently placed onto the bottom. We used a nail set to mark the screw holes and predrilled the holes for the screws. Once the hardware was attached, we screwed in the legs.

We knew we wanted to use this Behr "the real teal" color on the interior of the cabinet, but were undecided about the finial finishes of the rest of the cabinet. At the last minute we decided not to paint the three removable shelves in the main cabinet. The teak was in excellent condition once it was cleaned up so we decided to let the wood shine. That left us with the problem of how to tie the other two types of wood with the orange looking teak. We ended up staining the cedar molding and using shellac on the Douglas fir plywood top, bottom, and sides giving everything a cohesive look.

The landing/drop zone now sits at my (Vicki's) back door. It's a convenient place for my keys, purse, shoes and staging area for things to be returned. This original record cabinet was destined for the trash, but by making some alterations and additions, it is a piece that has been saved from the landfill.