DIY Rolling Book Crate with Hand Lettered Reverse Stencil

Okay you guys, this is a really long title… because I wasn’t too sure what to call it! But whatever it’s called, I’m in love with it. I love the function (no more scratched floors from my kids dragging around their book basket), I love the colour, and you know I love anything that incorporates hand lettering. The best part, is how simple it is to make.

Can we talk about this colour for a minute though? It’s not often that the colour on a paint chip comes out of the can and is the colour of your dreams. But I seem to be having the BEST of luck with all the Para Paint colours I’m ordering. They really dry almost identical to the chip and that makes my DIY heart really happy. And the colour, I promise is just as beautiful in real life as in the pictures (actually, I don’t even know if the photos capture how deep the colour is in real life). When I was painting this baby, one of my friends stopped by and she wrote down the colour before she left. It’s that good, just trust me. It’s called ‘Never a Dull Moment’ and it is anything but dull but it works so well with all my neutral home decor without screaming.

Ready to learn how to make it happen? And grab that free stencil?

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own DIY Rolling Book Crate:

• A crate, I got mine from Michaels
• Books template or other lettering you’d like to use
• Vinyl and transfer tape
• Cricut or patience and a craft knife
• Paint of your choice and brush
• Casters, screws and drill

Start by cutting out your stencil. You can download the ‘books’ one I lettered right HERE. This is for personal use only please. I cut mine out on my Cricut Explore which made it easy peasy. If you don’t have one, you can do what I’ve done in the past and just use a craft knife and a steady hand. Cut it out of standard vinyl or freezer transfer paper. The most affordable source I’ve found for vinyl and transfer paper is Expressions Vinyl online. Weed away all the parts that aren’t needed. Use transfer tape on the stencil and apply to your crate. Smooth down really well to prevent bleed.

Now it’s time for the fun! Get painting. I put two coats on the entire crate (photo shows first coat), this needs to be done in two parts so you’ll be painting 4 times, just wrap your brush in between to save time. The coverage of Para Paint Premium is really good- if you’re using a different paint you might need to do more coats. Let the paint dry completely before peeling back your stencil.

Then screw some casters on and you’re good to go! The casters I used had four screw holes. I lined two up where the end panel of the crate was. This allowed me to use a 3/4″ screw which secured it and then 3/8″ screws on the other side just for stability. The bottom pieces of the crate are pretty thin, so make sure you use the bigger screws on the end panels.

That’s it! I want to use this technique on EVERYTHING now! Isn’t it fun? I’m thinking it would be fun to do with stain as well.

LIKE IT? PIN IT!