Any ideas how to remake cabinet door inserts?
 

I stopped at my local thrift store and found a new cabinet for my Singer 201. The funny thing is, I didn't know I needed one! :D However, the 'new' one has more room to the right of the machine for the essentials I reach for often (cell phone, scissors, thread nippers, wooden seam roller, seam ripper, etc.).

I asked dh to make new inserts for the cabinet doors, they're ugly plastic from the 1980s. He has a woodworking shop and I know he'll come up with something nice. The back of the doors have a lot of wasted space which could be utilized better for storage. Any ideas?

The reason I'm asking, I'd like to find the kind of organizer a quilter would use on a sewing cabinet. Something with spool pins to hold bobbins, small bins to hold straight pins, etc. Does anyone know where this might exist?

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um you could just wait until 1980s gets cool again like mid century or retro... :cool:

Thanks for the chuckle! That's a thought... NOT! :D I think the solution is bins on one side, and I'll paint the other door with magnetic paint and use pegs like what you use on the refrigerator to hang scissors, a clip board to hold the pattern, etc. But I'd still like to hear ideas anyone else has tried on their sewing cabinets.

Back up the train.... Magnetic paint? Des it work well? To comment on your question, I would love to have door storage for the usual essentials such as scissors, bobbins (both filled and empty) but also to hold the attachments so they are not just a jumble in a box or drawer. Have you seen the attachment cases that come with some Bernina machines? Every foot has a spot with easy, quick access. Maybe hubby could build something like that for your door...

Yes, the magnetic paint works really well. The one I use is Rustoleum magnetic primer, it's 3 x's stronger than it used to be. I used it on the inside of my spice cupboard door. After I put the magnetic paint on the inside of the door, I let it dry 2 days and then put a coat of original paint over the magnetic paint. It doesn't even look like it's magnetic. I use the tins that have magnetics on the bottom for different spices, colored sugar and such.

After googling different ideas I was unable to find something that would hold spools of thread or bobbins... so I'm rethinking the plastic spool pin thingee that was on the door in the first place. I can still use that, and add magnetic bins or something underneath it.

I finished installing the innards of the 'new' cabinet today, it didn't come with any so I took the metal contraption out of the old cabinet. It works beautifully!

Here's a photo of what my spice cabinet looks like. It's a great way to store colored sugar, spices, etc.

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I saw where one of the members posted they had a wire grid attached to the one side of the cutting table (I believe) that you could hang hooks to hold rulers and other wire bins for extras. The wire grid itself was attached with a hood screw like a planter hanger.

End of sentence should say "hook" screw not "hood" Going to bed!

You could glue a steel washer to the bottom of the stool of thread making sure you don't cover the center hole. Then they would stick to the magnetic paint part.

Just keep the steel washer from scratching up the sewing machine..... if you do you might need a tutorial from Glenn how to fix steel washer rash from the machine's paint.