Schemes drawings of buffet chests of drawers bureau with secrets. New cabinet made from old wood. Types of secretary tables

The classic secretary is a chest of drawers with a top-down door, behind which there are many hidden drawers and compartments. At first, this furniture was considered ladies'. The open door served as a table for writing love letters, and pearls and diamonds shimmered in the locked recesses. However, the design turned out to be successful, and it was borrowed for more prosaic purposes: storing documents and writing materials. Let's try to assemble a simple secretary with our own hands, so that markers, disks and folders with papers finally find their permanent place.

Let's make a very simple secretary

Preparation for work

Our secretary will have the simplest device, but in terms of convenience and functionality it will not yield to the factory one. For its manufacture, the following materials will be required:

  • Ready-made desktop holders for folders made of plywood (sold in stationery stores) - 6 pcs.
  • MDF blank for the top cover - 890x330x16 mm.
  • MDF blank for the back cover - 890x325x16 mm.
  • Joiner's glue.
  • Screws.
  • sanding paper.
  • Double-sided tape.

From the tools we will need:

  1. Electric jigsaw with a blade for a curved cut.
  2. Drill.
  3. Screwdriver or screwdriver.

As you can see in the picture, our module is mounted on an ordinary dining table with a tabletop size of 100x80 cm. The superstructure for placing papers looks like a complex of interconnected horizontal and vertical supports, united by an MDF top and back covers.

In a small apartment, it would be nice to figure out how to make a secretary mobile. This condition is just built into our design. The trick is that our shelf module is removable, which means that if necessary, it can be quickly removed to any other place.

Marking and sawing MDF

First cut out the top cover. To do this, we lay the stand on the sheet with its side so that the back side of the future cover is aligned with the horizontal shelf flush. The front side of the cover should protrude 1.5 cm forward beyond the horizontal shelf. We mark the position of the first part of the shelf.

Marking the outline of the lid

We turn the stand over and mark the position of the second, mirror part of the shelf.

Cut out the top cover

We cut out the top cover with an electric jigsaw, installing a file for a curved cut into it. The pendulum stroke must be turned off during operation. The dimensions of the lid should be:

  • Length - 890 mm,
  • Width at the junction of horizontal supports - 320 mm,
  • Width at the ends - 170 mm.

We cut out the back wall in the form of a rectangle, according to the given dimensions - 890x325x16 mm.

Scheme of our secretary

We grind the finished covers and cover them with furniture varnish for 2-3 times or paste over with a self-adhesive film.

Convertible furniture has become popular recently due to the lack of space in small apartments for useful things.

But such pieces of furniture were invented quite a long time ago. This applies to such an interesting piece of furniture as a secretary. Despite the fact that earlier living space was measured not by individual rooms, but by floors, houses and entire palaces, this multifunctional cabinet gained its fame even then. Later, this furniture began to be replaced with heavy walls and began to be taken to summer cottages or simply disposed of. Now secretaries are again at the peak of popularity, however, the variety of models allows you to successfully fit them into almost any room. What has gained such popularity and how to use a modern secretary in the interior, we will describe below.

Secrets of the secretary

It is believed that the first secretary was created in 1730, but the prototype of this piece of furniture appeared in the XII-XIII centuries. Then it was exclusively ladies' furniture, where romantic young ladies wrote messages to their lovers, and women close to power decided the fate of individuals and entire states. Later, men also appreciated the charm of such an unusual wardrobe-table, and it was used by the highest strata of society, up to kings and emperors. The furniture of some of them still staggers the imagination, pleasing the eyes of connoisseurs in historical museums and galleries. Also, secretaries were often used by doctors, since it is convenient to store papers, medicines, and various medical devices in its numerous departments.

It is worth noting that the secretary has always been a combination of a wardrobe, a desk and a safe, and it has remained the same until now, only its appearance, thanks to the efforts of designers and furniture manufacturers, can now be completely different. Sometimes a written secretary is compared to a bureau. However, there is one main difference between them: a secretary is a kind of closet, i.e. storage places, and the bureau is a kind of table, i.e. workplace. Thus, the main function of these multifunctional interior items is different.

Use in the interior

Designers have always understood the charm of such interior items, although they could not always use them. And if a modern secretary in the interior occupies a separate place and is an independent piece of furniture, then more recently, in Soviet times, it was often built into furniture walls or sets. So, a separate section or module was assigned to bookshelves, several drawers and an invariable folding table top, which make up the secretary. We can say that it was a variant of the built-in secretary.

The advantage of modern models is that they can either be part of a furniture group belonging to the same collection or skillfully matched to each other in color and style, or differ from all other pieces of furniture, being the main object or accent in space.

The options for today's secretaries can be completely different: massive and miniature, stationary and mobile, ordinary rectangular and corner. Appearance - shape, fittings, color and other characteristics - can please people with completely different tastes.

It can be a classic solid wood writing desk, an exquisite hallway console cabinet, a chest of drawer-like multifunctional bedroom desk, a modern computer desk, etc. There are specialized or, better to say, "professional" secretaries, for example, accounting, filing or library models.

A variety of models allows you to present a modern secretary in the interior of any room. In the office, this is an indispensable writing secretary that combines a solid tabletop with a convenient storage for papers and trifles. In the living room, this is a storage area with the possibility of turning it into a work area. In the nursery, this is a convenient place for creativity, where all things are in order, but at the same time always at hand. Also, in all these rooms, you can install a computer desk-secretary, if there is no separate place for it.

This will appeal to many remote workers, because such interior items are designed not only for laptops, but also for desktop computers. In any case, if necessary, for example, during a reception, you can hide the workplace by raising the tabletop or closing the door if the secretary is a table in the closet.

You can use a modern secretary in the interior of the bedroom either to create a work area that is easy to hide during the holidays by lifting or sliding the tabletop, or to store bedding, women's magazines and other small things, as well as writing nightly plans for the next day or keeping a diary.

The kitchen can also include a convertible cabinet such as a secretary, but still, few people organize a working area here in order to work with papers or at a computer. For the kitchen, it is better to choose tableware or sideboards similar to secretaries with retractable or folding table tops.

A small office desk with high legs can be placed in the hallway or hall so that it is convenient to put the press on it, sign bills or leave some small things (keys, change for travel, shoehorn) so that they are not lost.

Models for different design styles

Antique secretaries look great in classic interior styles, especially retro style, and a modern secretary looks great in a minimalist design, hi-tech style or other modern trends. An old writing secretaire is usually massive, “pot-bellied” and solid: it is made of solid expensive wood and decorated with carvings. Such aristocratic furniture in dark colors is suitable for baroque, rococo, modern and other classic interiors. The use of antiques or the artificial aging of new furniture is also quite typical for these interior styles.

Refined furniture options with graceful shapes and original fittings are suitable for the Art Deco style. Usually secretaries for them are more like narrow console tables with small drawers on top. Such tables are usually made in black and white, which is one of the characteristic features of Art Deco.

A modern secretary computer desk is either a light, airy model, or combines a roomy bookcase with a pull-out or opening top.

Such secretaries with a minimum of decoration and simple fittings are suitable for minimalism, hi-tech, pop art styles, however, the materials and colors for each option should be different. So, the high-tech style is characterized by translucent matte facades, gray color, laconic shape, chrome parts and technological options for transforming the table. Pop art "loves" the combination of bright colors, slightly naive details, pictures or photographs on the facades. In principle, for some modern interior styles, you can independently decorate a computer secretary table, based on an inexpensive purchased model.

For ethnic styles, you can choose your own forms. So, a French, English or Scandinavian interior is easy to create using furniture from certain manufacturers. Country style provides for slightly naive writing cabinets with natural or artificial scuffs on the body. Small secretaries of laconic forms made of wood and with rough processing are suitable for eco-style.

Proper use of the features of the secretary, rational storage of books, papers, stationery and other things necessary for work, as well as the interesting appearance of this piece of furniture will certainly be appreciated by any owner of the home. By the way, the secrets of some old secretaries have not yet been unraveled, maybe your furniture will later become interesting to posterity?

Rice. 20. Secretary

Screen in everyday life

It seems that the screen in the middle of the room has finally gone out of fashion. However, screens can be used in our daily life. They allow something to fence or close.

Our first recommendation concerns a screen with which you can equip a comfortable workplace. Two workplaces in a narrow children's room, equipped side by side to the window, give two children the opportunity to study without being distracted. The partition can be made from the old material you have. If we are building a new partition, it is recommended to make a frame of slats (2 cm thick and 6–7 cm wide) that are overlapped at the ends. If a large-sized construction is planned, it is necessary to provide for a transverse rigid fastening, especially if we (as indicated in Fig. 21) also want to equip small shelves on the partitions.

Rice. 21. Screen

We carefully sheathe the frame on both sides of the HDF. We make small shelves from pieces of boards nailed together at right angles with a width of 12-15 cm. The shelves should be arranged in such a way that they are supported by transverse joints, which are fastened with screws screwed on the other side of the partition. Since the shelves are not opposite each other, you can hang a tear-off calendar on the screw heads on the other side or attach a note board.

At certain intervals, we screw in small hooks. On top of our design we attach lamps that provide the necessary lighting. In order for the partition to have a solid support, support bars are used as legs (as can be seen from the figure).

Another option for using the screen is shown in the figure below. The screen can be used by placing it in front of the crib to block out light and noise. It will also come in handy in the garden in order to fence off, for example, a swimming pool for a while. To do this, we build frames with a height of approximately 180 cm, which are upholstered on one side with any material with padding. Mats, straw mats, awnings, burlap (by the way, it can be painted in a very original way) or even cardboard that can be wallpapered can be used as upholstery. The frames form a screen with plug-in hinges.

To use the screen outdoors, at the bottom of each frame we attach two long pins that are stuck into the ground. With the help of pegs to secure the tent (as indicated in the right picture below), the screen is set so firmly that it will not be blown away by any wind.

Multipurpose lockers

As we noted earlier, when equipping apartments, one often has to deal with the fact that the furniture available for sale does not quite match the size of the premises. Often a section of the wall remains unoccupied, although it could be rationally filled with some piece of furniture. One of the solutions to this problem is a homemade locker with shelves. This locker is extremely useful. It can be used, for example, to decorate a youth room, a corner of a room or as a TV stand. Its appearance should, of course, be in harmony with all the rest of the furniture in the room.

As a material, it is advisable to use parts of a well-preserved old cabinet. If the locker is planned to be painted in advance, this greatly simplifies its manufacture, since nails and screws are used to connect the parts; however, their heads should always be sunk. The holes must be puttied with wood putty and, after setting, sand the surface with sandpaper. If we want to do without nails and screws, individual parts can be connected using wooden dowels.

The dimensions of the locker are determined by specific conditions. For our example, they are as follows: width - 90 cm, height - 75 cm and depth - 40 cm. The cabinet frame consists of two side walls, a floor (lower shelf), a cover, a back wall and a plinth. To connect the floor to the side walls, it is best to use a closed tenon connection. To do this, the floor must be between the walls, the cover must be on the side walls (see Fig. 22 at the bottom left). The back wall fits into the recess, which is located inside, on the side walls. As a material for this we use TDVP or plywood boards.

Whatever your city apartment is - prestigious or ordinary, large or small, comfortable or uncomfortable, it is extremely difficult to find a place in it for a home workshop. However, with a strong desire and sufficient carpentry skills, a do-it-yourself master can equip a quite comfortable workplace for himself, which can easily be transformed into a flat cabinet with an area of ​​​​only 0.36 m2 on the floor.

It is better to make such a cabinet from the ceiling to the floor and fix it between them using four screw jacks; at the same time, there is no need to drill concrete walls, drive dowels into them and fix the structure on the wall with screws. In addition, a tall cabinet with the same area it occupies has the most useful volume.

By design, the transforming workshop resembles an ordinary secretary with a reclining table top. In order to make it, you will need chipboard 16-20 mm thick (all dimensions in the drawings apply to chipboard 20 mm thick), some plywood and hardboard.

The production of a secretary-workshop begins with side panels (their width is about 300 mm, and the length should be 15 mm less than the distance from floor to ceiling), shelves and crossbars made of chipboard.

When processing blanks, the most important thing is to strictly maintain their dimensions and perpendicularity of the sides. Even small deviations from the drawing can cause irreparable distortions when assembling the secretary.

To connect parts, it is best to use a very durable and technological docking unit, consisting

only from an M6 bolt with a spherical head and a nut. At the same time, a hole for the nut is drilled in the shelf or cross member, the diameter of which is somewhat smaller than its turnkey size, which allows the nut to be pressed into it with some interference. In the sidewalls, crossbars and shelves, corresponding holes with a diameter of 6 mm are drilled for the docking bolts. In order for the connection of the details of the secretary to be accurate, it is necessary to strictly observe a certain sequence of operations.

1 - cross member; 2 - screws; 3 - loop; 4 - door-tabletop; 5 - dowels

1 - countertop; 2 - bushing (metal or plastic); 3 - pin-lock (steel); 4 - the door of the lower compartment of the secretary

1 - door of the upper compartment (chipboard 820, 880 × 600, 2 pcs); 2 - handle (6 pcs.); 3 - door-tabletop (chipboard 820.1200 × 900); 4 - overlay (plywood s6, 1150 × 850); 5 - back wall (hardboard s5, 2660×1190); 6 - upper cross member (chipboard 820, 1160×300); 7 - side panel (chipboard s20, 2685×300); 8 - side-reinforcement (wooden lath 35 × 25); 9 - shelves of the upper compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×250); 10.12 - middle crossbars (chipboard s20, 1160x x300); 11 - shelf of the middle compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×200); 13 - reinforcement of the cross member (wooden lath 35×25); 14 - shelves of the lower compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×250); 15 - lower cross member (chipboard s20, 1160×300): 16 - lower compartment door (chipboard s20, 860×600, 2 pcs.)

1 - swivel leg (birch or beech, bar 50 × 30); 2 - M6 bolt; 3 - the door of the lower compartment of the secretary; 4 - wing nut M6; 5 - washer; 6 - gasket (rubber s3)

1 - gasket (rubber s3); 2 - bolt M8 or M10; 3 - ceiling; 4 - nut; 5 - sidebar

1 - bolt M6; 2 - side panel; 3 - nut M6; 4 - shelf or crossbar

To begin with, one side panel is marked - on it, under the docking bolts, the axes of all holes are depicted. It is desirable that the distance between the holes be the same: in this case, it will be possible to use a simple jig, which will make it easy to align the axes of the corresponding holes on the sidewalls, shelves and crossbars.

The conductor itself is assembled from two rails in the form of a kind of T-square. A risk is applied along the axis of the holes, which, when the conductor is installed on the panel, is combined with the risk on the panel. The conductor is fixed on the parts with a pair of small nails.

It is also advisable to drill holes for the M6 ​​nut in the crossbars and shelves along the conductor. The latter is bent from a steel strip with a section of 20 × 2 mm, after which two holes are made in the resulting corner: in a smaller shelf - with a diameter of 6 mm (a guide screw is fixed in it), and in a larger one - with a diameter 0.5 mm smaller than the size “under wrench" for used nuts with M6 thread. As a rule, for such nuts, the “turnkey” size is 10 mm, respectively, the diameter of the hole for the nut is 9.5 mm.

The assembly of the secretary is, in fact, the connection of the side panels with the shelves and crossbars with M6 bolts. Nuts are preliminarily pressed into the latter and centered relative to holes with a diameter of 6 mm at the ends of the shelves and crossbars using a rod with a pointed end. After the assembly is completed, the “geometry” of the structure is carefully checked with a tape measure, for this the secretary is placed face down on the floor and its diagonals are measured. If their values ​​are equal, then a sheet of hardboard 5 mm thick is attached to the back of the cabinet (to the side panels, shelves and crossbars) with small screws and glue (casein, PVA or “liquid nails”).

The width of the secretary-workshop is quite large - 1.2 m, so the shelves made of chipboard may sag over time. To prevent this from happening, it makes sense to reinforce them with wooden slats with a section of 35 × 25 mm. These rails, moreover, will not allow tools and materials to fall off the shelves.

The next step is hanging the doors and countertops. The first are installed using standard furniture hinges, which ensure that the doors are fixed both in the open and in the closed position. Well, the tabletop is connected to the crossbar with reinforced hinges, since these hinge joints will have to experience increased loads. It is best to use three or four window hinges with a card size of 60 × 40 mm. You can, of course, fix them to the countertop and crossbar with ordinary screws, but it’s still better to purchase plastic dowels with a diameter of 5 mm, press them into the holes drilled in the parts and only then drive the screws into the dowels. The fact is that the screws do not hold well in the chipboard and fly out of their sockets at the slightest axial load.

As can be seen from the drawings, the doors of the lower compartment of the secretary-workshop are the supports of the tabletop when it is in a horizontal position. To ensure that the load from it and the heavy tool located on it is not perceived by flimsy furniture hinges, but is transferred to the floor, the doors are equipped with swivel legs made of wooden bars, which are fixed both in the working and in the retracted position with a bolt with a spherical head and a wing nut. And so that the open doors do not accidentally slam shut, metal fixing pins with a diameter of 6 mm are fixed on them, and holes are drilled in the table top, which are reinforced with metal or plastic bushings with an inner diameter of 6.5 mm.

It remains to equip the secretary with four screw jacks - and the work on its assembly will be completed. As can be seen from the figure, the jack is arranged in almost the same way as the docking unit connecting the cross-beam shelves with the side panels. The only difference is in the diameter of the bolt and nut - for jacks you will need fasteners with an M8 or M10 thread. When installing the secretary, sheet rubber 2-3 mm thick is placed under the bolt heads.

If the particle boards were not lined with plastic, then the easiest way is to finish them with a self-adhesive film, matching its texture to the surrounding furniture. The ends of the panels are preliminarily puttied, sanded and painted with a suitable color of enamel.

A sheet of 6 mm plywood is fixed on the tabletop: practice shows that the surface of the workbench in the workshop deteriorates quickly enough, but the plywood lining can always be replaced if necessary.

In the middle compartment of the secretary, a table lamp or fluorescent lamp and a multiple electrical outlet are installed.

I.EVSTRATOV

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New cabinet made from old wood

Furniture that retains the breath of the old times gives our apartments a special touch. In this section, we will focus mainly on the secretary, but not about the one that we all know as an integral part of the modern furniture wall, but about how our ancestors imagined this piece of furniture many years ago. A home craftsman with a certain carpentry experience is quite capable of making such a desk along with an extension.

The shape of the table, the area of ​​the tabletop and the extension are small. Therefore, the secretary will not take up much space in the room and can be placed somewhere near the wall, and maybe in front of the window.

In our construction, we will be dealing with curly pieces, small drawers, etc. To make them, we will need pieces of plywood board or thick plywood.

The secretary shown in Fig. 20 should only be considered as one of the options. Your own taste and the material you have will tell you a variety of variations of this model. First, we determine the main dimensions of our future design. The height of the table is 75–78 cm (height of the top edge), the height of the extension is at least 40 cm, the width of the table top is 120–140 cm, the depth is 60–80 cm. For curly sidewalls and corners, it is necessary to make templates in advance and transfer the shapes with a soft pencil to the material.

Rice. 20. Secretary

Now a few instructions for making a secretary. The table consists of two sidewalls, which at the same time are the supporting legs of the tabletop, the frame of drawers and a thick rail that strengthens the structure, located in the rear lower third of the table. We connect the frame and the tabletop to the sidewalls with the help of dowels in the same way as the crossbars, which act as special legs. We connect the rear support bar to the sidewalls using cuts and, after gluing, also with screws. In accordance with the given width of the drawers, we insert slats between the slats. To the extension, consisting of sidewalls, the top board and the back wall, we add a variety of drawers on both sides. Since our design uses different materials, it is recommended to paint the secretary, and preferably in two well-matched brown tones.

The figure below shows how, without a special tool, the given shapes for the secretary can be made from the available material. First, with a hacksaw, we make the indicated cuts before the start of the moulding. Then, with a chisel, we hollow out a part of the material (on both sides), and then we make oblique cuts. Trimmings and roundings with a rasp.

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Despite a rather rich history, the secretary has not yet become obsolete. True, now this furniture is practically not produced separately. But versions of chests of drawers with a secretary drawer are in considerable demand.

Chest of drawers - features

Now it is already difficult to determine by whom and where the chest of drawers was first invented. The Spanish affectionate name of varguena has survived to this day. Under this word, just hides a tall chest of drawers with a folding table and a niche with numerous drawers. But from the heyday of the center of Europe, models called bureaus are more preserved.

There are few differences between them, but they are still there:

  • At the bureau, the secretary section is covered with a semicircular lid. When opened, it hides inside and is called a cap. At the secretary, the lid behind which the written niche is hidden is straight and plays the role of a table. Although, nowadays this tradition is often violated;
  • The classic bureau has only a few drawers and very high legs. This is quite a miniature, elegant piece of furniture. The chest of drawers is heavier and fuller. The drawers go all the way to the bottom and the legs are very short;
  • A secretary in its purest form is generally more like a closet. The folding table is usually located in the center of the case.

One of the indisputable advantages of a chest of drawers with a secretary section is that it can successfully replace both a medium-sized wardrobe and a desk. The thing is ideal for small rooms in which you have to be smart with the arrangement of furniture. In modern apartments it can be successfully installed:

  • Children's. The right model is sure to please the child. Lessons will be done with pleasure, and therefore successfully;
  • Bedroom. You may not have to write on it, but such a chest of drawers will perfectly replace a dressing table and a wardrobe. In principle, you will have a fairly large personal "box";
  • Living room. In addition to useful functions in this room, the thing will look the most solid. Do not forget that, like all chests of drawers, its upper plane is a working surface;
  • Cabinet. An ideal place to set up a bureau or secretary. This is especially true of interior solutions in ancient styles. Such furniture does not fit well with modern trends such as modern or high-tech. Whatever one may say, but the chest of drawers of the bureau “breathes” on us with centuries-old traditions.

Types of secretary tables

Folding

One of the most used table design options is a folding table. Directly the sash covering the compartment acts as a table. It is supplied with side holders or lifts with several degrees of freedom.

They are also equipped with shock-absorbing springs with position locks and adjustment of the applied force. The sash itself is attached with hinged hinges to the chest of drawers. To reduce the load on the hinges under the bottom of the table, special supports must be set. They can be open hinged doors of the lower sections or special retractable legs. On the upper part they are equipped with special platforms - holders. They bear the brunt of the load. To close, simply lift up until it locks. The holder can be a magnetic latch or a locking mechanism with a retractable tongue. You can easily identify it externally by the presence of a keyhole. The latches are certainly simpler, but they weaken over time - the door can open arbitrarily. But the lock type is almost impossible to break. Unless you lose the key, and then it can be restored. In most cases, it is standard. The exception is rare or antique options.

Ignoring the use of lower supports for an open table will cause the hinges to break quickly. Especially if you often use a secretory lid. The same trouble may result in the fall of the lid with a weak magnetic latch.

Features of this type can be called:

  • Easy to use. Unfolding the table will take no more than a couple of minutes;
  • Convenience. Writing behind him is no worse than at a full-fledged desk;
  • Space saving. Unlike a conventional table, such a cover can be lifted, freeing up space for free passage;
  • High-quality storage of writing instruments. A large number of internal shelves and drawers makes storing all the necessary little things as comfortable as possible.

Retractable

Pull-out table types are more related to bureau-type chests of drawers. In this case, the lid and table are different objects. After lifting the lid, it will be possible to slide out the table top. It can be a small tabletop, fixed movably in grooves or using a roller system. Although, there are also very complex options for sliding tables. Some models provide for the extension not only forward, but also sideways. For this, special folding brackets with shock absorber springs are used. In this case, the table can be combined with a special folding frame, which plays the role of a lower support. Their use is also highly desirable for this type.

In the most interesting versions, the hinged lid is combined with a pull-out table. In principle, this approach can be called simply an attempt to be original. In modern life, one type of table is enough.

Storage systems and opening mechanisms

The chest of drawers does not have to be used for its intended purpose. If you need this furniture not for writing, then it is not necessary to load stationery there. Place cosmetics and jewelry in drawers. You will quickly appreciate the convenience and understand why in the 18th century young ladies could not imagine their life without a secretary. If you store underwear and clothes in the lower drawers, then medium-sized accessories such as belts and ties will feel great in small compartments of the secretary niche. In the nursery, such an element of furniture will allow you to carefully store small parts of designers, puzzles or fragile toys.

The following types can be used as a facade opening system:

  • Retractable. This is how all the boxes are made. In their modern form, they are equipped with side guides and rollers. Small boxes are made a little smaller than a niche for them. Therefore, they are perfectly put forward without additional devices. The only significant difference is that the rollers do not allow the drawer to be pulled out to the end without harm to the system. He will certainly remain in the niche. Whereas their absence allows this to be done. The disadvantage of the roller system can be called sensitivity to distortions;
  • Swing. Part of the front side can be covered with sashes. They are hinged to the body. Open outwards and sideways. They don't like jerks. In chests of drawers secretaries can play the role of the lower support for the table. In this situation, it is important that their lower part touches the floor. Otherwise, you will need special holders. They look like a clothespin with an emphasis and are put on the edge of the sash;
  • Folding. This is how the table is set up. Opens down until the position lock clicks. It can be equipped with a height regulator that allows you to fix the cover in several positions. Do not pull the sash down after clicking in the lowest possible position. Furniture hinges are located along the bottom of the sash, fastening it to the chest of drawers.

frame

When choosing a chest of drawers, it is worth considering that it has a rather considerable height. On average, this parameter ranges from 1 to 1.4 meters. At the same time, the width is about 90 cm, and the depth is 50 cm. You can also find narrower models. But, it's not very convenient.

The most common materials for the manufacture of frame elements are:

  • Natural solid wood;
  • Chipboards of types fiberboard, chipboard or OSB.

Countertops

A separate design element is the top tabletop of the chest of drawers. It is usually made from the same type of material as the body. It can be decorated separately, but the rather high height of chests of drawers with a secretary section makes this a pointless exercise. More attention is paid to strength and reliability.

As decor elements can be used:

  • Antique varnishing. To do this, use craquelure. When dried, this varnish cracks, forming a whole network of small cracks. Often powdered bronze or gilding is rubbed into them. This technique is called the "golden web";
  • Hand painting. For countertops, it is better to use furniture enamels and varnishes. Apply in multiple layers. The color intensity and color transition are adjusted by shading with a rag. Each layer will require drying;
  • Wood mosaic. Pieces of wood with different shades fit into any ornament and are attached with extra strong glue. Then the entire surface is polished and covered with a shiny varnish. Instead of wood, rattan can be used, but it is more capricious in its care.

Types of bases

The most common types of base design are:

  • Direct installation on the floor. This is due to the considerable dimensions of this type of furniture. Provides maximum stability;
  • Standing on a pedestal. A small platform appears at the bottom, protruding beyond the chest of drawers;
  • Legs. Most often they are short. The exception is the bureau with the preservation of manufacturing traditions. In this case, the floor must be perfectly flat;
  • Basement system. Legs are replaceable or combined with extended sidewalls. They are the main focus. Part of the load is evenly distributed in the front part along a narrow bar - the plinth.

Styling of secretary chests of drawers

The rich traditions and history of the secretaire are most harmoniously combined with styles in the spirit of antiquity:

  • Provence. Rounded corners and undulating facade. The drawers are made slightly convex, and the body is straight. The decor is modest, medium-sized;
  • Bull. The main features include the use of lower support crosses and an increase in the number of legs (6 or 8) of the most bizarre shapes. A lot of gilding inlay;
  • Chinoiserie. This is a successful attempt to combine European baroque with classical Asian styles. Ethnic motifs and sophistication of forms. The main emphasis is on exoticism;
  • Colonial. Heavy massive models with expensive but modest finishes. Preference is given to high-quality, rare materials, rather than an abundance of decor;
  • Palace styles (rococo, baroque). They are native to this piece of furniture. They provide bizarre convex shapes, curved wide-set legs. Very richly decorated with carving, painting, gilding;


  • In our time, the chest of drawers has not lost its relevance. It is still a piece of furniture with a high level of comfort and functionality. If you are tormented by the lack of space, then feel free to purchase such a chest of drawers. It will provide you with high-quality storage of things and will successfully play the role of a desk.

    If you have any questions or suggestions, you can contact us by e-mail: [email protected] website
    P.S. We do not sell furniture, we only help you get acquainted with what happens and navigate in the choice.

Each time dictates its own styles, including furniture design. However, in addition to beauty, many interior items should also have additional functionality: drawers, drawers and shelves. And in some cases - hiding places, small safes disguised as ordinary bedside tables, chests of drawers or other pieces of furniture, as well as built into bookcases and wardrobes.

Secretaire with curved legs, decorated with carvings

Their presence always had its own meaning: here it was possible to hide something that was not necessarily visible to the rest. And, starting from the 18th century, in any rich house one could find a secretary, and in the Russian version - a desk, where the owner kept especially valuable documents: bills, money, jewelry.

Inside the antique furniture that has survived to this day, various hiding places and secret boxes are very often found.

Furniture with secrets - table and cabinet with additional drawers

In past centuries, in the homes of wealthy persons, a table or a cabinet with secret drawers was an obligatory accessory for a study, which was used to store especially important documents, money, jewelry, which made it possible to protect them from thieves. Later, in France, a special table-wardrobe was invented, called a secretary, because it was really possible to store various secret documents and small valuables in it.

The drawers were often supplied with secret locks and secret locking mechanisms.

The popularity of secretaires and other furniture "frills", equipped with various secret spaces, was not accidental. Their design has its advantages that ordinary tables and cabinets do not have, and features that are unique to such products.

They are no less relevant today: they store securities, expensive jewelry, important correspondence and documentation in stylized safes and hiding places. Among the clear advantages of such furniture can be noted:

  • storage of valuables without access to them by outsiders;
  • their arrangement in different furniture elements;
  • the possibility of making secret vaults with your own hands.

Among the factors characteristic of furniture with a secret, the design features of such products stand out, which make it possible to prepare places for storing a particular type of value. As a rule, if caches are specially equipped, they are supplied with secret locks, and today - with an electronic security system.

Today, the furniture market offers products not only for personal use, but also for businesses and organizations. In addition, it can be made to order according to individual drawings.

To open this table, you need to place a special magnet in the right place, there are no more handles and levers

Caches in ordinary furniture

Caches are often arranged under furniture - in the empty space between the legs

Antique furniture is a storehouse of secrets and mysteries. Old master cabinetmakers turned furniture design elements into real works of art. The current craftsmen make modern furniture in the old style, helping to create a special interior and complement it with hidden elements.

Secrets in antique furniture

The purchase of special tables, cabinets and bedside tables with hiding places is a rather expensive pleasure. But this does not mean that especially important documents and jewelry will remain on the shelf in the closet.

Stash option in the house on the bookshelf

Finished furniture with hidden niches

Wall mirrors and specially designed paintings can also be a great hiding place.

Today, various types of ordinary furniture are produced, equipped with secret spaces. Caches can be located in any part of it, and both the owners themselves can equip them with their own hands, and by ordering their production from craftsmen, secret places can be located:



Secret drawer or safe disguised as an outlet

Caches with your own hands or to order

Stash in the table, custom made

It is not always necessary to buy expensive exclusive furniture equipped with hidden places. You can use the budget option by ordering the desired element of the furniture interior to specialists according to your own drawings. Or you can try to create and equip it with your own hands for a home master.

These can be equipped hiding places under or inside countertops, in the doors of cabinets and bedside tables, as well as shelves and drawers on which locks can be inserted.

Of interest are small turnkey niches equipped in the depths of the drawers of the desk with a secret.

An interesting option for a hiding place in a chest of drawers

Hollow legs and furniture racks

A simple hiding place in furniture - in the hollow legs of a chair

The hiding place, equipped in these pieces of furniture, is considered a classic. It is quite simple to make it: you need to drill a hole of the selected size inside the furniture element. It is assumed that only one person will know about such a "secret" - the one who made it.

It is clear that the place for storing valuables equipped here does not imply a large number of them, which must be remembered to be disguised in a convenient way.

Advice. Holes must be made very carefully and not overdo it with their diameter, so as not to weaken the structure and not lead to its breakage.

Stash inside chair seat

Secrets in boxes

The double bottom drawer is a true classic that still works to this day.

Traditionally, hiding places are arranged in the drawers of a desk or chest of drawers, where you can make a "second bottom". For its equipment, they take the same material from which the furniture itself is made, of the same size, fix it:

  • Velcro;
  • magnetic strips in a plastic frame;
  • in other convenient ways.

The idea of ​​a small cache - a box inside a box

You can put flat objects there:

  • the documents;
  • cash;
  • Photo;
  • securities.

Hidden "treasures" must also be fixed on the "second day".

Drawers with secrets for in ordinary lockers

Secrets in closets

Secret boxes, safely hidden in the most ordinary-looking bookshelves

Cabinets provide a wide field of activity for equipping hiding places from thieves. Their large internal and external space allows you to hide a large number of items of various configurations.

Caches built into a regular closet

Stash location What can be hidden How to fix
Under the bottom of the cabinet, in the far corner Jewelry, small valuables fold into a box of a suitable size and place on the floor;

pack in a bag and attach with Velcro to the bottom of the cabinet

Behind the back wall Documents, securities.

Jewelry, art canvases

Secure in bags and attach with tape or glue
Behind the inner surface of the mirror Only flat objects Use tape
At the bottom of the cabinet - the formation of the second bottom Any items corresponding to the height of the second bottom Fold in a niche, cover with a second bottom
In the far corner inside a closet, disguised as a shoebox Items that fit the box Put a box with a lid that can be locked with a key in a shoe box, fixed with screws to the cabinet floor, put a pair of shoes that no one uses on top, cover with a shoe box lid

Retractable panel in the closet, hidden from prying eyes

Attention! Before hiding a thing, it is necessary to decide who can know about the existence of the cache and have access to it, so that, if it is discovered by the household, not to get into a stupid position.

Video: how to make - The easiest cache

Many mistakenly believe that multifunctional furniture appeared only recently, when it was time to furnish not luxury apartments, but small apartments. Meanwhile, history takes us several centuries into the past to tell about the emergence of one of the most interesting and functional types of furniture - the secretary. Indeed, the secretaire is as popular today as it was in the 18th century, when it first appeared. Today, together with the Dream House website, we will plunge into the world of retro furnishings and learn a little more about this furniture.

A little about the history of the creation of the secretary

As mentioned earlier, the secretary appeared in the 18th century, but some sources date its appearance to the 12th-13th centuries. It was behind the secretary that the ladies of that era wrote thousands of letters; in their numerous drawers they kept both love messages and state secrets. Thus, the secretary closet easily replaced both the desk, the safe, and the closet.

Modern models have been slightly modified, but, as before, they are a cabinet with drawers and a folding shelf that acts as a work surface. A large number of drawers allows you to keep all your writing instruments at hand, but at the same time, in perfect order. And secret locks and reliable locking systems protect important papers from prying eyes.

Modern secretary - desk

Initially considered as ladies' furniture, the secretary quickly fell in love with the male half of humanity, becoming the workplace of emperors and kings. For example, Napoleon Bonaparte took a folding travel secretary with him on trips - when folded, he took up little space, but the desk was always there, even on the battlefield. And then doctors liked this functional furniture, allowing them to keep doctor's instruments and medicines in order.

Currently, writing desks decorate modern interiors, combining a work area and a spacious closet. The aristocratic look of furniture with a retro touch fits perfectly into both classic and modern interior styles. The main thing is to choose the right shape, color and finish of the secretary.

Secretaire in the interior: application possibilities

Now secretaries are most often made "antique": from dark wood, with carved decor. Such furniture is perfect for, as well as for the style, and rococo, but categorically does not fit into modern styles. When choosing furniture for such an interior, you need to change your approach and look for more concise forms with no conspicuous finishes. Such modern secretaries are also present in the furniture market in a small amount. And if earlier they were made exclusively from solid wood, now this furniture can be made from MDF, laminated chipboard, veneered. And only a few can afford a secretary made of solid wood.

Secretaire - antique furniture

Antique secretaires, as a rule, are large, they are made of expensive woods, have a rich dark color (brown, burgundy) and are decorated with carvings. For classic interiors, such aristocratic furniture, which exudes solidity and chic, fits perfectly.

Art Deco style secretaries have elegant shapes and are most often made in black or white. And country-style writing cabinets, as a rule, are of a simple form, without decoration, sometimes with scuffs on the body.

In modern interiors, a secretary is sometimes part of a furniture set and is one of the “wall” sections. It is, as it were, built-in, which does not take up much space and, at the same time, is part of the headset.

Where can I put a secretary

This versatile type of furniture is mainly placed in the living room. Representing a compact workplace, it easily places a laptop on its surface, and there is still room for all kinds of folders and books. After work, all these accessories are removed, and the lid is closed, turning the secretary into a regular cabinet or.

But no matter how convenient and roomy the secretary is, it is not designed for long-term work behind it. You can’t put a stationary computer on it, and it’s not very convenient for your legs to constantly rest against drawers. However, as an alternative to a mini home office, it fits perfectly.

The secretary can be placed not only in living rooms, but also in the library, office and even in the bedroom. The main thing is to find a place for a compact workplace, wherever it does not interfere and does not take up extra square meters. Under this description, the corner secretary-chest of drawers is ideal, which allows you to store various things in a large number of drawers, and when the lid is open, it acts as a desk.

A compact workplace is necessary not only for adults, but also for children. Sometimes a secretary cabinet for a student is placed in a nursery, in which case it replaces a desk and places portable computer equipment and other study supplies. Perhaps the best option would be to use a large desk for work and study, and a secretary for a laptop or computer, but each parent chooses furniture based on the size of the children's room, so advisers are superfluous here.

Secretary and bureau - two brothers

Often, along with a secretary, they also look for a bureau. Both types of furniture are a compact workplace, only the secretary is more of a cabinet with a sliding or hinged lid, and the bureau is a kind of table with an add-on. The latter stands steadily on four legs and has small dimensions that fit perfectly into almost any interior. Meanwhile, the presence of a work surface and shelves for papers allows you to use it for short work, for example, while sitting at it you can pay bills or write a shopping list for the store.

Both the secretary and the bureau are a kind of multifunctional furniture, but the former performs more functions, while the latter is more compact. Surely there is no need to have both of these pieces of furniture in the apartment at once, so it’s up to you to choose what is more necessary or what is better.

The classic secretary is a chest of drawers with a top-down door, behind which there are many hidden drawers and compartments. At first, this furniture was considered ladies'. The open door served as a table for writing love letters, and pearls and diamonds shimmered in the locked recesses. However, the design turned out to be successful, and it was borrowed for more prosaic purposes: storing documents and writing materials. Let's try to assemble a simple secretary with our own hands, so that markers, disks and folders with papers finally find their permanent place.

Let's make a very simple secretary

Preparation for work

Our secretary will have the simplest device, but in terms of convenience and functionality it will not yield to the factory one. For its manufacture, the following materials will be required:

  • Ready-made desktop holders for folders made of plywood (sold in stationery stores) - 6 pcs.
  • MDF blank for the top cover - 890x330x16 mm.
  • MDF blank for the back cover - 890x325x16 mm.
  • Joiner's glue.
  • Screws.
  • sanding paper.
  • Double-sided tape.

From the tools we will need:

  1. Electric jigsaw with a blade for a curved cut.
  2. Drill.
  3. Screwdriver or screwdriver.

As you can see in the picture, our module is mounted on an ordinary dining table with a tabletop size of 100x80 cm. The superstructure for placing papers looks like a complex of interconnected horizontal and vertical supports, united by an MDF top and back covers.

In a small apartment, it would be nice to figure out how to make a secretary mobile. This condition is just built into our design. The trick is that our shelf module is removable, which means that if necessary, it can be quickly removed to any other place.

Marking and sawing MDF

First cut out the top cover. To do this, we lay the stand on the sheet with its side so that the back side of the future cover is aligned with the horizontal shelf flush. The front side of the cover should protrude 1.5 cm forward beyond the horizontal shelf. We mark the position of the first part of the shelf.

Marking the outline of the lid

We turn the stand over and mark the position of the second, mirror part of the shelf.

Cut out the top cover

We cut out the top cover with an electric jigsaw, installing a file for a curved cut into it. The pendulum stroke must be turned off during operation. The dimensions of the lid should be:

  • Length - 890 mm,
  • Width at the junction of horizontal supports - 320 mm,
  • Width at the ends - 170 mm.

We cut out the back wall in the form of a rectangle, according to the given dimensions - 890x325x16 mm.

Scheme of our secretary

We grind the finished covers and cover them with furniture varnish for 2-3 times or paste over with a self-adhesive film.

In the age of high technology, people quickly forgot that only two decades ago, letters were written by hand and sent by mail. Today, progress has gone so far that there is no longer a need for paper correspondence, but still, in offices and bedrooms, many people need functional and beautiful furniture for working, for example, at a laptop.

This article is written to remind you of such pieces of furniture as a bureau and a secretary, as well as to tell you about the origins of their occurrence and the features that distinguish one item from another.

The design of the bureau was created at the turn of the 17th and 17th centuries, in France, and was nothing more than a large casket on high legs with a hinged sloping lid over the tabletop, which was supplemented by compartments or drawers for writing instruments. Such an object was often installed in the bedrooms, and served as a desk and jewelry box. The bureau took up little space and it was comfortable to sit behind it, these qualities prompted furniture makers to develop the very idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthis item, as a result, a certain cabinetmaker J. Aubin, courtier of Louis XV, the design of the table was finalized and decorated with a cylindrical lifting lid, for which it received the name " bureau of the king”, and today is a symbol of its era, one of the main attributes of the interior in a classic style.

A secretary is considered a related subject for the bureau - a tall bookcase equipped with a pull-out shelf or a folding board for writing. Even at the very beginning of its existence, the secretary was an element of the furnishing of the interiors of purely luxurious, aristocratic

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Secretary in a modern interior

Nowadays, interior design is no longer bound by any technological framework, fashion trends and other restrictions. Everyone is free to dispose of their personal living space at their own discretion and according to personal preferences. For some, planning is important, taking into account the location of all technical innovations, while others need the spirit of tradition, a unique atmosphere and aesthetics in each item.


Such an object can be furniture with history, a kind of cult item that will transform the decor of a bedroom, living room or office. The secretary is again becoming popular furniture today, because it is not only very effective, but is able to perform the function of a chest of drawers, a desk and a bookcase at the same time, which is especially important in the space of a small room.

First of all, a secretary closet will be appropriate in a classic elegant interior with the same solid furniture, expensive fabrics and natural materials.


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It is also good to use this item in a neoclassical interior of a living room, a French-style bedroom (light wood or painted furniture), an art deco study.

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Note that the choice of a room for the location of the secretary in the house is not fundamental, it can be installed in the dining room, hallway and even the children's room in order to conveniently store everything you need in one place.

Types and features of bureau designs

As it was said, the bureau is an unusual object, very characteristic and catchy. It is simply impossible not to notice it in the environment, thanks to its unusual appearance, which, by the way, can vary somewhat, and contain features of other pieces of furniture that are familiar to us.

Bureau desk

It can be presented in the form of a familiar, but compact table, with a convenient design of compartments for accessories, built on top of the table top, which, in turn, can be retractable or folding.

A more modern minimalist model looks like an ordinary writing desk, but with a hidden drawer system and an elevating top.

Desk desk is undoubtedly a great acquisition for modern practical interiors, and is especially useful in small children's rooms, cozy bedrooms or built-in home offices.


classic bureau

A traditional bureau will also not take up extra space, but will look much more characteristic than a table.

This item should be equipped with a hinged lid, slanted or cylindrical, hiding two or three tiers of mini-compartments for stationery and personal items.

Models of traditional bureaus today are made from practical, high-quality MDF material, and the straight lines of the silhouette make it possible to use such furniture in modern styles: contemporary, boho and even loft.


Bureau, made according to the classical model, always made of solid wood, with figured legs, decorative fittings, often with artistic painting or carving on the facade. Such a thing should be used when decorating interiors in vintage, retro, classic, and also boho styles, if the owner of the house likes such an item.

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Chest of drawers

The combination of the design of several objects in one testifies to the endless desire of human thought for functionality and comfort in everything. The hybrid of the furniture industry was no exception - a chest of drawers where you can store personal items and, if necessary, use a folding table top for work.


2

The design of a chest of drawers can be completely diverse, from classic to ultra-modern, which allows you to use the item in any style of interior, in any area of ​​the room that is convenient for you.

However, the most unusual chest of drawer models (lacquered curly, or in the style of constructivism with clear forms) will organically fit into equally bright interior styles: pop art, boho-classic, empire and art deco.

bureau-console

The most amazing version of the bureau, in our opinion, combined with the console. It can be used even where the area is very modest: in a bright but narrow corridor; small bedroom, kitchen-living room, compact hallway.

The design of the bureau console is light and compact, often having only two support legs and wall mounts. The narrow long tabletop is sometimes complemented by a pull-out shelf and lined up rows of compartments for accessories.

Vintage style, shabby chic, classic - this is the environment in which such an item looks appropriate for an environment with a touch of time.

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Whatever your city apartment is - prestigious or ordinary, large or small, comfortable or uncomfortable, it is extremely difficult to find a place in it for a home workshop. However, with a strong desire and sufficient carpentry skills, a do-it-yourself master can equip a quite comfortable workplace for himself, which can easily be transformed into a flat cabinet with an area of ​​​​only 0.36 m2 on the floor.

It is better to make such a cabinet from the ceiling to the floor and fix it between them using four screw jacks; at the same time, there is no need to drill concrete walls, drive dowels into them and fix the structure on the wall with screws. In addition, a tall cabinet with the same area it occupies has the most useful volume.

By design, the transforming workshop resembles an ordinary secretary with a reclining table top. In order to make it, you will need chipboard 16-20 mm thick (all dimensions in the drawings apply to chipboard 20 mm thick), some plywood and hardboard.

The production of a secretary-workshop begins with side panels (their width is about 300 mm, and the length should be 15 mm less than the distance from floor to ceiling), shelves and crossbars made of chipboard.

When processing blanks, the most important thing is to strictly maintain their dimensions and perpendicularity of the sides. Even small deviations from the drawing can cause irreparable distortions when assembling the secretary.

To connect parts, it is best to use a very durable and technological docking unit, consisting

only from an M6 bolt with a spherical head and a nut. At the same time, a hole for the nut is drilled in the shelf or cross member, the diameter of which is somewhat smaller than its turnkey size, which allows the nut to be pressed into it with some interference. In the sidewalls, crossbars and shelves, corresponding holes with a diameter of 6 mm are drilled for the docking bolts. In order for the connection of the details of the secretary to be accurate, it is necessary to strictly observe a certain sequence of operations.

1 - cross member; 2 - screws; 3 - loop; 4 - door-tabletop; 5 - dowels

1 - countertop; 2 - bushing (metal or plastic); 3 - pin-lock (steel); 4 - the door of the lower compartment of the secretary

1 - door of the upper compartment (chipboard 820, 880 × 600, 2 pcs); 2 - handle (6 pcs.); 3 - door-tabletop (chipboard 820.1200 × 900); 4 - overlay (plywood s6, 1150 × 850); 5 - back wall (hardboard s5, 2660×1190); 6 - upper cross member (chipboard 820, 1160×300); 7 - side panel (chipboard s20, 2685×300); 8 - side-reinforcement (wooden lath 35 × 25); 9 - shelves of the upper compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×250); 10.12 - middle crossbars (chipboard s20, 1160x x300); 11 - shelf of the middle compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×200); 13 - reinforcement of the cross member (wooden lath 35×25); 14 - shelves of the lower compartment of the secretary (chipboard s20, 1160×250); 15 - lower cross member (chipboard s20, 1160×300): 16 - lower compartment door (chipboard s20, 860×600, 2 pcs.)

1 - swivel leg (birch or beech, bar 50 × 30); 2 - M6 bolt; 3 - the door of the lower compartment of the secretary; 4 - wing nut M6; 5 - washer; 6 - gasket (rubber s3)

1 - gasket (rubber s3); 2 - bolt M8 or M10; 3 - ceiling; 4 - nut; 5 - sidebar

1 - bolt M6; 2 - side panel; 3 - nut M6; 4 - shelf or crossbar

To begin with, one side panel is marked - on it, under the docking bolts, the axes of all holes are depicted. It is desirable that the distance between the holes be the same: in this case, it will be possible to use a simple jig, which will make it easy to align the axes of the corresponding holes on the sidewalls, shelves and crossbars.

The conductor itself is assembled from two rails in the form of a kind of T-square. A risk is applied along the axis of the holes, which, when the conductor is installed on the panel, is combined with the risk on the panel. The conductor is fixed on the parts with a pair of small nails.

It is also advisable to drill holes for the M6 ​​nut in the crossbars and shelves along the conductor. The latter is bent from a steel strip with a section of 20 × 2 mm, after which two holes are made in the resulting corner: in a smaller shelf - with a diameter of 6 mm (a guide screw is fixed in it), and in a larger one - with a diameter 0.5 mm smaller than the size “under wrench" for used nuts with M6 thread. As a rule, for such nuts, the “turnkey” size is 10 mm, respectively, the diameter of the hole for the nut is 9.5 mm.

The assembly of the secretary is, in fact, the connection of the side panels with the shelves and crossbars with M6 bolts. Nuts are preliminarily pressed into the latter and centered relative to holes with a diameter of 6 mm at the ends of the shelves and crossbars using a rod with a pointed end. After the assembly is completed, the “geometry” of the structure is carefully checked with a tape measure, for this the secretary is placed face down on the floor and its diagonals are measured. If their values ​​are equal, then a sheet of hardboard 5 mm thick is attached to the back of the cabinet (to the side panels, shelves and crossbars) with small screws and glue (casein, PVA or “liquid nails”).

The width of the secretary-workshop is quite large - 1.2 m, so the shelves made of chipboard may sag over time. To prevent this from happening, it makes sense to reinforce them with wooden slats with a section of 35 × 25 mm. These rails, moreover, will not allow tools and materials to fall off the shelves.

The next step is hanging the doors and countertops. The first are installed using standard furniture hinges, which ensure that the doors are fixed both in the open and in the closed position. Well, the tabletop is connected to the crossbar with reinforced hinges, since these hinge joints will have to experience increased loads. It is best to use three or four window hinges with a card size of 60 × 40 mm. You can, of course, fix them to the countertop and crossbar with ordinary screws, but it’s still better to purchase plastic dowels with a diameter of 5 mm, press them into the holes drilled in the parts and only then drive the screws into the dowels. The fact is that the screws do not hold well in the chipboard and fly out of their sockets at the slightest axial load.

As can be seen from the drawings, the doors of the lower compartment of the secretary-workshop are the supports of the tabletop when it is in a horizontal position. To ensure that the load from it and the heavy tool located on it is not perceived by flimsy furniture hinges, but is transferred to the floor, the doors are equipped with swivel legs made of wooden bars, which are fixed both in the working and in the retracted position with a bolt with a spherical head and a wing nut. And so that the open doors do not accidentally slam shut, metal fixing pins with a diameter of 6 mm are fixed on them, and holes are drilled in the table top, which are reinforced with metal or plastic bushings with an inner diameter of 6.5 mm.

It remains to equip the secretary with four screw jacks - and the work on its assembly will be completed. As can be seen from the figure, the jack is arranged in almost the same way as the docking unit connecting the cross-beam shelves with the side panels. The only difference is in the diameter of the bolt and nut - for jacks you will need fasteners with an M8 or M10 thread. When installing the secretary, sheet rubber 2-3 mm thick is placed under the bolt heads.

If the particle boards were not lined with plastic, then the easiest way is to finish them with a self-adhesive film, matching its texture to the surrounding furniture. The ends of the panels are preliminarily puttied, sanded and painted with a suitable color of enamel.

A sheet of 6 mm plywood is fixed on the tabletop: practice shows that the surface of the workbench in the workshop deteriorates quickly enough, but the plywood lining can always be replaced if necessary.

In the middle compartment of the secretary, a table lamp or fluorescent lamp and a multiple electrical outlet are installed.

I.EVSTRATOV

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Secretaries, cabinets and other wooden furniture are most often presented in the color of wood (walnut, cherry, beech, wenge...). But that's not always the case. When the furniture in the process of finishing acquires a color that hides the pattern of the tree, then many people have a question: “Why hide the tree under the paint?” Probably a fair question. The same question, by the way, can often be heard from craftsmen.

What is really the point?

Look at this photo report on the construction of a secretaire and cabinets made of wood. These items were planned for the living space of one of the suburban houses of the Moscow region. Try to feel the content of the project and most likely you will find some interesting points for yourself, and maybe the answer to the question posed.

Work in the workshops began, as usual, with the preparation of blanks. First, we prepared blanks for the cabinet. Sawed plywood and maple boards. At the stage of preparation of blanks, it is extremely important to maintain the correct geometry and dimensions of future parts. At all corners of the workpieces, an angle of 90 degrees must be maintained, and the error in linear dimensions must be no more than one third of a millimeter. And only with this approach, the product will eventually be assembled.

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Every woman dreams of having her own dressing room. Here you can hang all the clothes, arrange shoes and place other things. In private houses, even at the stage of project development, an appropriate room of the required area is provided. Those who live in a modern apartment can also boast of having such a room. If it is missing, it is easy to correct the situation. For those who have photos, drawings and diagrams, a do-it-yourself dressing room will appear in the near future. We offer to get acquainted with popular solutions and their possible implementation.

Every woman dreams of a spacious dressing room.

Rules for organizing storage of things: the main provisions that help to equip the space

The order of placement of things in the dressing room largely determines the convenience of using the room and the service life of all installed elements. That is why the literacy of the organization of the internal space of the dressing room should be given special attention. To do this, a scheme and a drawing are developed in advance, on which zones are allocated for storing certain things or objects.

The system to be mounted should be divided into functional sections, highlighting:

  • Lower compartment for shoes, small accessories (umbrellas, bags) and trousers. The height of this area should not exceed 70-80 cm. For shoes, special inclined sliding shelves should be provided. Their height will depend on the destination. For summer shoes, the height should be about 30 cm, for winter shoes - 40-45 cm;
  • Middle compartment for things that are used most often. In this zone, pantographs, rods, as well as retractable shelves are provided, on which small toilet items can be placed. The height of the middle zone depends on the length of things. The average dimensions are in the range of 1.4-1.7 m. To accommodate jackets and shirts, it is enough to provide a compartment 1 m high. For knitted items, it is worth providing boxes and baskets that can be placed on shelves;

L-shaped wardrobes

L-shaped layout has specifics. When installing wardrobes according to this scheme, you can refuse to install any partitions, since the racks are actually part of the room in which they will be located. Given that the cost of building partitions often makes up 50% of the total cost, opting for this type, you can significantly reduce your costs.

You should pay attention to such a layout if you need a dressing room of 2 sq. M. A photo of finished projects shows that open shelving is most often chosen in order to rationally manage the available space.





U-shaped

The majority refuses to install a dressing room in the shape of the letter “P” in a typical apartment, believing that such a scheme can only be implemented in large areas. However, with the right approach, the development of a drawing and a diagram, you can competently manage even a relatively small space by forming a storage area in the corner of one of the rooms.

Perhaps such a solution will add extravagance to the created interior, but it will fully meet the requirements of ergonomics. The headset itself is made monolithic. To ensure sufficient functionality, it is worth providing closed drawers, hangers, special sections.

If for the arrangement of the dressing room it was decided to allocate the whole room, and not just part of it, you should pay attention to the rectangular room. The elongated shape will simplify the process of developing a diagram and drawing, as well as the subsequent installation of a structure with your own hands.

Dressing rooms in the bedroom

When starting to develop drawings and determining the location of the dressing room, most often they pay attention to. Such a place for storing clothes can be safely called the most successful. That is why the photo of ready-made solutions most often shows the dressing room in the bedroom.

How rational such a solution is for a particular room can be determined at the stage of developing drawings after calculating the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe sleeping area. If the dimensions of the room allow you to install a bed of the desired size, and there is still space left, you can safely take up the installation work with your own hands.

What scheme of organization of the internal space will be preferred is decided at the stage of drawing development. The best option is U-shaped, which allows you to fill the shelves as much as possible and allocate enough space for movement. However, L-shaped or parallel is often found.

The design of the corner dressing room in the bedroom deserves special attention. A photo of ready-made solutions shows that for its implementation it is enough to install a partition at the head of the bed and separate a small corner. However, this solution is only suitable for rooms with a large area.

Related article:

The device of the dressing room from the pantry in Khrushchev

If we compare the pantry and the dressing room, then the main difference will be in the storage organization system. The latter provides for mezzanines, shelves, hangers, drawers and other components designed for convenient storage of things for various purposes. Thanks to a well-thought-out layout, all things are accessible and visible. The accommodation option depends on the budget and the area of ​​​​the room.

To make a small dressing room from the pantry comfortable and functional, you should first familiarize yourself with the possible planning solutions that are relevant for a small room. Using the latest technology, it is easy to become the owner of an optimal storage system that can harmoniously fit into the available space. Focusing on the photo of ready-made solutions, it will be possible to initially develop a scheme for the future dressing room, and then a detailed drawing. After that, it will be much easier to assemble and mount the structure with your own hands.

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the photo of the dressing room with your own hands from the pantry, which have already been implemented:




Proper dressing room lighting

Must be good. However, direct sunlight can cause discoloration of the fabric. It is worth abandoning natural sources in favor of artificial ones. Don't limit yourself to just one ceiling lamp. Its luminous flux will not be enough.

The best solution is the installation of a false ceiling with or the installation of a large number of small lamps located around the perimeter of the installed structure. In the photo of the dressing rooms, you can see fluorescent lamps mounted on partitions, allowing you to ensure the proper level of illumination.

Requirement for ventilation of the dressing room

To prevent the appearance of a musty smell, good air exchange is organized in places where things are stored. For this, not only natural, but also forced ventilation is provided. The first provides air movement due to physical processes, suggesting that the cold air that has entered from below rises. For its implementation, an inlet opening should be provided in the lower part, and an exhaust opening in the upper part. If the ventilation duct runs close to the installed system, it is worth providing a branch to the exhaust opening.

The disadvantage of natural is the low rate of air exchange. Installation helps to correct the situation, involving the installation of fans in the supply or exhaust opening. However, most often preference is given to forced exhaust with a natural intake of fresh air.

In order for enough fresh air to enter the room, the size of the inlet openings is determined based on the speed of movement of air masses and the dimensions of the room. In accordance with regulatory documents, a single air exchange should be provided.

Doors for dressing room

Starting the installation with your own hands, it is worth deciding on the type of doors to be installed. Their dimensions can be calculated from the drawing. The choice can be made in favor, such as "coupe", swing, hinged. Sometimes you can do without them. Photos of dressing rooms will tell you how to implement this option.



When choosing doors for a dressing room, you should focus on the overall stylistic design of the room. The structure to be mounted must fit harmoniously into the space. The width of the doors and their design is chosen individually.

Wardrobe storage systems

The storage system should be chosen carefully. Not only the arrangement of things in the storage process depends on this, but also the ease of use of the design. Photos, drawings and do-it-yourself wardrobe diagrams indicate that there are a large number of ready-made storage systems that you should get acquainted with when starting to develop documentation.

Clothing storage systems

For orderly storage of clothes, you can use not only drawers or shelves, but also special systems. The choice can be made in favor of skirts or trousers: special rails with cross bars on which you can store the named wardrobe item.

An alternative to a skirt can be a hanger with several crossbars located one above the other. It may not be very convenient to use it, but it costs much less.

Men who prefer business style will be interested in the design, designed to store ties.

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