A timeless bathroom accessory, imagine this bathtub caddy laid across the top of a clawfoot tub with the soft glow of a candle. This is how people bathed in the Victorian era. Today? A battery-operated candle and a cellphone may be found on top of a bathtub caddy. Times certainly have changed.
Fortunately, construction of a bathtub caddy hasn't changed much over the years. This particular woodworking project uses sapele wood. Sapele is a cheaper alternative to European oak, but it still provides the opportunity for solid craftsmanship. Check out the instructions below to guide you through the process of creating an inexpensive bathtub caddy.
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Materials
- Measuring tape
- Pencil
- Table saw
- Sapele wood lumber, measuring 42 inches long, 12 inches wide
- Painter's tape
- Cordless drill
- #6 wood screw drill bit
- 4 screws
- Corner sander
- Medium (60 to 100 grit) sandpaper
- Sanding block
- 2 cotton cloths
- Monocoat 1-step oil-base finish
- Measuring tape
- Pencil
- Table saw
- Sapele wood lumber, measuring 42 inches long, 12 inches wide
- Painter's tape
- Cordless drill
- #6 wood screw drill bit
- 4 screws
- Corner sander
- Medium (60 to 100 grit) sandpaper
- Sanding block
- 2 cotton cloths
- Monocoat 1-step oil-base finish
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Instructions
1. Measure the width of the bathtub. Mark the measurement on the wood. This information is pertinent to step 3.
1. Measure the width of the bathtub. Mark the measurement on the wood. This information is pertinent to step 3.
2. Rip the wood with a table saw, removing 3 to 4 inches from the 12-inch width of the plank.
3. Lay the lumber horizontally beneath the chop saw. Cut the length of the lumber with a chop saw to the width of the bathtub. Set excess wood to the side.
4. Use the chop saw to cut two strips of wood, each approximately 1 inch wide, from the wood set aside in previous step. The strips will help prevent the caddy from sliding to the left and right of the tub.
5. Place the strips cut from the previous step on the lumber.
6. Lay one strip vertically, approximately 2 inches from the left side of the lumber. Gently push the bottom of the strip to the right, giving it a slight inward angle.
7. Lay the second strip vertically, approximately 2 inches from the right side of the lumber. Gently push the bottom of the strip to the left, giving it a slight inward angle.
8. Secure the left strip of wood to the caddy. Lay painter's tape vertically across the left wood strip, then proceed to wrap the tape around the caddy.
9. Secure the right strip of wood to the caddy. Lay painter's tape vertically across the right wood strip, then proceed to wrap the tape around the caddy.
10. Use a #6 wood screw drill bit to drill a total of four holes. Drill two holes (top and bottom) in one wood strip, then drill two holes (top and bottom) in the other wood strip.
11. Drill four wood screws through the holes made in the previous step, permanently fastening the wood strips to the caddy.
12. Peel the painter's tape off the wood caddy.
13. Use the sander to sand the flat surface of the wood.
14. Wrap a piece of medium sandpaper around a sanding block. Rub the paper over the edges of the caddy to "break the edges" of the wood.
15. Apply the oil finish to the wood caddy with a cotton cloth.
16. Wait 5 minutes, then use a clean cloth to wipe off any excess oil finish.
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17. Place the bathtub caddy on the tub to test it out.