5 Easy Outdoor Storage Cabinet Ideas: How to Build Your Own

1 three white outdoor storage cabinets

Choosing outdoor furniture is not the same as choosing furniture for your home. There are other factors that you have to take into account before deciding on the best outdoor furniture options for you. Doing this will help you make sure you’ve made the right decision. While the most common furniture items for the outdoors are tables, chairs, and couches, an outdoor storage cabinet can both help you with your storage issues and improve the look of your garden or backyard.

Because we want to help you purchase the perfect outdoor storage cabinet, we’ve devised a list of things you have to keep in mind when choosing one. Then, we’ve also added 5 outdoor storage cabinet DIY ideas that are absolutely to-die-for. Let’s get into it, shall we?

How to Choose an Outdoor Storage Cabinet

1. Consider the Care Process

One of the first things you have to be aware of when choosing an outdoor storage cabinet is that some materials are more difficult to take care of than others. This is especially important when it comes to outdoor furniture. That’s because this will be subjected to weather elements that could damage it faster. You don’t want to buy furniture that you have to care of more than you can actually enjoy it.

The good news is that outdoor cabinets are usually designed with the idea of easy care in mind. Which means that you won’t probably have to worry about yours requiring high maintenance. In terms of materials, the best possible options for outdoor furniture are teak, metal, wicker, and cedar. So if you want your outdoor storage cabinet to last for years (who wouldn’t?), we advise you to purchase one made of one of the materials above.

2. Think About the Space It Will Take Up

As beautiful as some pieces of furniture are, sometimes, we have to face the truth and realize that they won’t all be suitable for the space we have available. Which is why before even browsing for outdoor cabinets, consider the amount of space you can afford to allocate to one. Remember that space doesn’t only imply space in your garden or backyard. It also implies storage space.

If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow in the winter, you’re going to have to store your outdoor furniture away for the cold season. If you don’t have a garage or a shed specifically for this purpose, this might be rather difficult. For such cases, we recommend outdoor cabinets that you can take apart. That way, you can store the pieces more easily.

3. Consider Quality

Quality is extremely important when it comes to choosing any type of furniture, not only outdoor storage cabinets. Even if you find a pricier option, if you think the quality is worth it, you should invest in it. This is a much better option than buying something cheap and then having to replace it just a few months or years.

4. Think of How It Will Look in Your Garden

Another important thing to keep in mind when shopping for outdoor cabinets is the fact that they should fit the look of your garden or backyard. For instance, if you’ve decorated it in minimalist black and white furniture, something extremely colorful might clash with the overall design. Of course, as long as you think it looks good, you should definitely go for it. Try to browse through a lot of options until you decide on the one that would look best with the rest of your outdoor furniture.

Outdoor Storage Cabinets for Sale

Now that we’ve provided you with 4 tips on how to choose the perfect outdoor storage cabinet, we thought it would also be useful to offer some amazing cabinet suggestions that you can purchase from Amazon. For instance, we absolutely love this Suncast SSW1200 Mocha Resin Wicker Cabinet that also doubles as a seat. Some other great options would be the Suncast Elements Outdoor 40-Inch Wide Cabinet, the Keter Store-It-Out MIDI Outdoor Storage Shed, and the Rubbermaid Commercial 7085 Double-Door Storage Cabinet.

How to Build Your Own Outdoor Storage Cabinet: 5 Cool DIYs

1. Planter Storage Cabinet

Especially for people who don’t have a lot of space in their backyard, this storage cabinet idea is perfect. We love furniture items that double as other things as well. That’s because they help us save space and money, and they also provide any garden with a unique look. This is precisely what this planter storage cabinet does. On top, you can plant whatever flowers you want. Inside, you can store garden tools or anything else you might need to store.

flowers growing on top of a cabinet

As you can see, this piece of outdoor furniture looks amazing. The best part is that you can build it yourself. You can find detailed instructions on how to do it on the Homedit website. With a little bit of time, patience, and craftiness, you will get a storage cabinet on which you can also plant whatever you want.

2. Repurposed China Cabinet

Even though the material of a typical china cabinet is not exactly suitable for outdoor conditions, if you have an old cabinet that you have no other use for, you can turn it into an outdoor storage cabinet that you can keep gardening or planting equipment in. The great thing about most china cabinets is that they have multiple storage areas. These are fit for different kinds of items.

gardening tools in a china cabinet

For example, in the image above, the person who repurposed this gorgeous and colorful cabinet decided to turn it into a place where they could store gardening tools, pots, materials, and so on. If you would be interested in doing the same with an old cabinet, you can find all the steps on the Better Homes & Gardens website. Of course, you don’t have to follow the same steps or use the cabinet for the same purpose. As long as you use your imagination and creativity, you can make of it whatever you wish.

3. Mailbox Cabinet

How about an outdoor storage cabinet made out of a mailbox? If this sounds impossible, but it’s not. Regardless of whether you have an old mailbox that you don’t use anymore, or you decide to buy a new one, turning it into a storage cabinet is one of the most original ideas you could choose for your garden. Think about how awesome this mailbox would look near the rest of your garden decorations. Moreover, consider how curious people will be about it whenever they drop by.

tools stored in a mailbox

You don’t even need to build anything or waste any time creating this outdoor storage cabinet. All you need to do is stick the mailbox into the ground and then deposit your things there. Even if you don’t have that much space available in it, it’s still the perfect place to keep some of your smaller gardening tools.

4. Outdoor Storage Bench

Going back to storage items that double as other things as well, we would like to show you this amazing storage cabinet that you can also use as a bench. You can find the instructions on how to build it on the Instructables website. Even if it might sound like a challenge to complete, this project is actually quite simple. Furthermore, it won’t take much of your time. Plus, you can’t deny the end result is pretty cool!

outdoor bench with pillows on it

Adding a cushion on top of the cabinet and some cute decorative pillows will make this piece of outdoor furniture one of the main attractions of your backyard. Plus, depending on how large you make it, you’ll have plenty of space to fill without crowding your home. For more outdoor storage furniture items that can also be used as benches, we invite you to take a look at one of our previous articles where we provided 13 top choices.

5. Storage Closet

Finally, the last outdoor storage cabinet DIY we want to bring to your attention is one that allows you to store your tools or any other things you might want to in a furniture item that looks like a closet. The instructions for this DIY can be found on The Family Handyman website. There, you get a step-by-step tutorial with pictures included.

tools stored in an outdoor closet

We have to mention that this DIY project is a bit more complex. So we would recommend you only do it if you have some experience building furniture or if you know you’re usually crafty. What we enjoy most about it is the fact that you can add storage space to it. For instance, notice how in the picture above, the person who made the closet added boxes on one door that completely disappear from view when the closet is closed.

Summing It All Up

We hope today’s guide will prove to be the only resource you need when shopping for an outdoor storage cabinet, or when attempting to build your own. Such cabinets are great for storing tools and other gardening-related items, but they also hold things that you have no more room for in your house. No matter the size of your garden or backyard, if you look hard enough, you’re always going to be able to find a cabinet that suits your needs.

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