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Poplar drawers unattactive

10K views 36 replies 12 participants last post by  jaminv 
#1 ·
I'm building some kitchen cabinets. Per multiple recommendations I've seen across the web, I decided to use poplar for the drawer sides, but I'm not really happy with how they look. Wondering if there's anything else anyone recommends.

It's also worth noting that I'd like to finish the drawers in some way. I'd like to protect the wood, have a nice smooth surface, and make the drawers look high end. Per many people's recommendation, I tried using shellac. Shellac takes to the birch plywood bottom really, really well. But it turns the poplar orange (even with clear shellac) and makes the green parts of the poplar really, really obvious.

Before the shellac, the poplar looks decent. The green can be made less obvious through good sanding, but it's still not the most attractive. It's hard to find poplar that isn't green; even harder to find enough for a large kitchen drawer.

Perhaps a polyurethane would work better? Or should I try bleaching the wood? Or should I just try another wood instead? (I definitely don't want to use oak)

Thanks for any pointers or ideas you can offer.
 
#2 ·
Personal preference for me is to use poplar for painted items. I usually use birch or soft maple for drawer sides and bottoms. I think poplar is too soft for the intended use and durability of drawers. After all, there are things that are going to be banging around on the inside of the drawers even though you use metal drawer slides on the outside/underside. The factory made cabinets in our new home have maple sides for the drawers and they were not the most expensive cabinets available.
 
#3 ·
I noticed that myself. I dinged the drawer I made just turning it to sand; I didn't think it should be that easy.

I'll take a look at Maple and see what I can find. Unfortunately, there are only big box hardware stores in my area, so it makes it hard to find a decent selection of wood.
 
#6 ·
I don't know where you live but there should be a lumber company close to you. I am not talking about any big box store or hardware store. They sell lumber by the board foot and by grade. They also sell Russian Birch plywood which is 60" X 60" and has no voids. Check into this because it will save you a lot of money. You will not believe how much cheaper the lumber is versus going to a big box store.
 
#5 ·
For kitchen cabinets poplar drawer boxes would be an upgrade. Most of us use baltic birch plywood. If you are unhappy with the appearance you might paint them or stain them. It wouldn't take a very dark stain to substantially change the appearance of poplar. I'm guessing you don't like the green color in the wood and stain would take care of that.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Drawer sides and backs can be made of any wood. It’s a matter of choice. Previous posters have given good choices but for a kitchen cabinet, the construction of the drawer is more important than the choice of woods. Kitchen drawers Get a lot of use and drawers for dishes or pots and pans will get a lot of weight and should be made strong.
The face of the drawers is what people look at, so you want this to look good. Most of us don’t really study the inside of the drawer so much.
Your choices include plywood, hardwood, softwood and MDF.
A good grade of Birch plywood makes a great drawer. If you don't like the look of the plys, consider a solid wood of your choice. Oak is usually reserved for furniture but you can use any wood. MDF is going to be used in lower end cabinets such as apartments. The metal kitchen cabinets and drawers of the ‘20’s and 30’s are now gone and Plastic drawers are now becoming more common.
Homes built around late 1800’s to early 1900’s might have kitchen drawers made from apple crates. This wood (usually Pine) was already dimensioned to about 1/2 “ thickness and ready to use for drawer sides.
 
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#12 ·
Drawer sides and backs can be made of any wood. It’s a matter of choice. Previous posters have given good choices but for a kitchen cabinet, the construction of the drawer is more important than the choice of woods. Kitchen drawers Get a lot of use and drawers for dishes or pots and pans will get a lot of weight and should be made strong.
The face of the drawers is what people look at, so you want this to look good. Most of us don’t really study the inside of the drawer so much.
Your choices include plywood, hardwood, softwood and MDF.
A good grade of Birch plywood makes a great drawer. If you don't like the look of the plys, consider a solid wood of your choice. Oak is usually reserved for furniture but you can use any wood. MDF is going to be used in lower end cabinets such as apartments. The metal kitchen cabinets and drawers of the ‘20’s and 30’s are now gone and Plastic drawers are now becoming more common.
Homes built around late 1800’s to early 1900’s might have kitchen drawers made from apple crates. This wood (usually Pine) was already dimensioned to about 1/2 “ thickness and ready to use for drawer sides.

Well written. The material on the inside of the drawer is mainly important for strength. The inside of the drawer is not something that most people visiting a house ever see.


George
 
#8 ·
Well, for construction I'm using box joints and 1/2 inch plywood dado'd into the bottom (instead of 1/4"). The one I made is quite strong.

Indeed, I do not need the drawers to stand out. But I also dont /want/ them to stand out, and the hue of the poplar is so strange that it does. Even though its a much studier, stronger drawer than average, the strange appearance might lead someone to assume the opposite, which I dont want.

Thanks everyone for the tips. I'll go looking around for a lumber yard. I actually live in a big city, so theres got to be one somewhere. But there are so many specialty flooring/cabinetry stores in the area, it can be hard to find what Im looking for.
 
#10 ·
I was actually considering using birch plywood for the drawer. I really like the look of a plywood box joint, especially when finished. But the big box birch plywood has veneer so thin, its virtually impossible not to tear it out, especially when cutting the box joints. I wouldnt have any problem using plywood other than that. Finding better plywood would almost certainly help that.
 
#16 ·
The green of poplar will turn tan over time. If there are black streaks they will stay that way. Poplar is a bit soft and doesn't take finish as well as soft maple. A water borne finish will be very clear, adding no color. But it takes more skill to apply well, use a wash coat first. Baltic birch would probably chip out when you make a box joint. If you buy from local mills be sure to check the moisture level before using. 6 to7% range is what you are looking for. Check see if cabinet shops in your area will sell lumber to you. They buy cheaper than the big box stores sell. We buy enough lumber that it comes from distribution yards rather than lumber stores. Much better selection and pricing.
 
#29 ·
Guy there was SUPER helpful. Maple is pretty affordable ($18 for an 8ft 1x4 versus $13 for poplar). They'll mill it down to 1/2" for free if I'm willing to wait for it to go through their queue. So I'll test that out when they're done. I expect the results will be pretty good. The wood looked real nice.

Should I go with a maple plywood for the bottom, or will the birch I already have be fine? Its appears that it will take some extra legwork to find 1/2" maple plywood.
 
#19 ·
None of the lumber yards are open until Monday, and I got bored and did some experimenting.

Indeed, the big box plywood did not hold up to box joints at all. There was a ton of tear out and burning. Its possible that with liberal use of painters tape, patience, and gluing the torn out veneer back on, you could make a decent plywood box joint, but I doubt its worth the effort. Higher quality plywood may hold up a bit better, but the cuts seem a big tough on plywood in general.

I was able to make a decent dado/rabbet joint with minimal tear out, and any tear out could easily covered with an veneer applied to the tip edge. Its definitely an option.

I'll look into maple on Monday. I'd rather use hardwood if I can, but at least I can keep plywood in my back pocket.
 

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#20 ·
None of the lumber yards are open until Monday, and I got bored and did some experimenting.

Indeed, the big box plywood did not hold up to box joints at all. There was a ton of tear out and burning. Its possible that with liberal use of painters tape, patience, and gluing the torn out veneer back on, you could make a decent plywood box joint, but I doubt its worth the effort. Higher quality plywood may hold up a bit better, but the cuts seem a big tough on plywood in general.

It is possible to make a very nice dovetail on Baltic Birch, but you have to use a backer to prevent tearout and you need to use sharp blades and do a climbing cut to start things.
 

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#22 ·
I don’t know why you (or your wife) would consider plywood drawers to be more attractive than poplar. I built these poplar drawers a few years ago and I think they look a lot better then if they were made out of plywood.



If you go to a big box store and look at their drawers, they don’t look nearly as good as these.


In woodworking there is always more then one way to accomplish something.
 
#23 ·
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. When I got re-started in woodworking about 18 months ago, I bought some cheap softwood for practice. I also wanted some inexpensive hardwood for practice, and someone recommended poplar as a cheap hardwood, so I bought a few boards of it, too.

I like the multi-colored woods, like the canarywood that I have seen recently, but I don't like poplar. That green color is not appealing to me, but it might appeal to others. To me, it seems "sickly" or "moldy." I was pleased to read above that it fades into a nicer brown over time. So far, my boards have not faded to brown yet. It must take a long time.
 
#26 ·
I think your drawer will look just fine with a little finishing. I used a 1/8 inch round over bit on the open side to give a nice rounded profile to the top edge, and rounded the profile on the outside edge of bottom. Sanding then finishing. I use platinum blond shellac (with wax) on all my drawers to keep the inside as light as possible.

I guess I should also mention that I plane my drawer stock to about 5/8 inch thick. I think 3/4 inch thick drawers look bulky.

Drawers use lots of wood. Finish your drawer, then tell your wife that a clear maple drawer will cost more then twice as much. Maybe she will think poplar looks good enough.


In woodworking there is always more then one way to accomplish something.
 
#33 ·
I ended up using the 1/2" birch plywood, largely because I already had it. Even though it's a little more expensive than the 1/4" maple, I already have a half sheet of the maple, which will make quite a few drawer bottoms. Also, the birch I found has some really neat visual interest to it.

I did a test with the shellac, and the woods look great together. Even dry, although you can tell the difference between the colors and grain pattern, they still look great.

I think it was well worth spending a few bucks extra to get maple. Maple is a great looking wood.
 

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#35 ·
The drawer is finished. It. Looks. Incredible. I'm really happy with how it turned out.

The round over (thank you for that suggestion, btw) was one of those little details that made the difference between a good looking drawer and a great looking drawer. My wife noticed it immediately and really liked it. It also allowed me to complete obscure a small amount of chip out that had occurred.

Theres a slight color difference between the birch plywood and the maple, but I dont think that distracts at all.
 

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#36 ·
The common name for that wood up here is "drawer side."
It's random lengths of exactly 1/2" x 6" poplar, variable green.
Ideal for relief carving and holding detail for wood block printing.

I agree. In doors, the green wood is quite color fast.
Do you suppose a little UV from some fluorescent lights might bleach it off?

I've always admired anything built with solid woods.
Every day, I face my big kitchen of nicely painted but still 3/4" plywood.
 
#37 ·
I eventually decided not to use poplar. It was only partially because of the color. I havent tried using the sun to bleach it (theres plenty of that in Texas). Even assuming it works, the stock color is still pretty homely.

Ultimately, hardness was a factor as well. I found it hard to glue it all up and sand it down without dinging it.

Maple ended up being only nominally more expensive, a great deal more attractive, and about twice as hard. I was able to successfully build the drawer without a single ding.

I still have some poplar that I bought for the face frames and doors. Originally, we were going to paint, but my wife decided she wants to stain them black. I think poplar will probably work fine for that. I'm not sure if the hardness will be an issue. I guess I'll out. I dont think I'd want to use the wild maple grain under a black stain. It would be too distracting. I think I want a calmer grain for that, and poplar has that in spades.
 
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