A handmade jewellery box is one of those projects that punches well above its apparent difficulty level. The box itself is a simple hinged rectangular form — well within reach for any beginner who can make straight cuts and use a drill. The fabric lining is what makes it feel luxurious, and it’s easier than it looks. Build this once and you’ll have a gift that people assume cost three times what it did, and took ten times longer than it actually did. Here’s how to build a classic hinged jewellery box with a velvet-lined interior, ring slots, and a clean finish.
Materials and Cut List
This build uses 6mm craft plywood for the four walls and the lid panel, and 3mm plywood for the base. Both are available at hardware stores. The 6mm ply is rigid enough to hold its shape without being heavy, and the thin walls give the finished box a delicate look that suits the purpose. For the lining, you need velvet fabric or felt — craft stores and Spotlight carry both. Buy at least 50cm square of your chosen fabric.
| Part | Material | Width | Length | Qty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Front wall | 6mm craft ply | 70mm | 250mm | 1 |
| Back wall | 6mm craft ply | 70mm | 250mm | 1 |
| Side walls | 6mm craft ply | 70mm | 138mm | 2 |
| Base | 3mm craft ply | 138mm | 250mm | 1 |
| Lid panel | 6mm craft ply | 155mm | 262mm | 1 |
| Lid frame front/back | 6mm craft ply | 25mm | 262mm | 2 |
| Lid frame sides | 6mm craft ply | 25mm | 155mm | 2 |
Hardware needed: One 250mm piano hinge, 20x 15mm brad nails or 15mm pin nails, PVA wood glue, 2x small magnetic catches (optional, for lid), sandpaper (120 and 220 grit), velvet or felt fabric, cardboard or foam for ring slots, spray adhesive.
Tools Required
- Circular saw or table saw (a hand saw and a sharp marking knife also works for 6mm ply)
- Square
- Clamps (at least 4)
- Brad nailer or small hammer
- Drill with 2mm drill bit (for hinge pilot holes)
- Screwdriver
- Scissors and craft knife (for lining)
- Spray adhesive or PVA
Step 1: Cut the Parts
Mark out all your pieces on the plywood sheet using a sharp marking knife and a square — the knife line gives your saw blade a precise groove to follow and prevents tear-out on thin ply. If you’re using a circular saw, clamp a straight edge as a guide. Cut the front, back, and two side walls from the 6mm sheet. Note that the side walls’ length accounts for the thickness of the front and back walls: if your front and back are 250mm long and your ply is 6mm thick, the sides are cut to 138mm (150mm box depth minus 6mm front minus 6mm back). Adjust these dimensions to your target box size — the proportions above give a finished interior of approximately 238mm long x 138mm wide x 64mm deep, which suits a small jewellery collection.
Step 2: Cut the Mitre Jig for Square Corners
The biggest challenge in box making is getting all four corners perfectly square. A simple shooting board solves this. Take a piece of MDF and glue a straight fence along one edge at exactly 90 degrees. When you run each box wall through this fence with a hand plane or against a disc sander, you get a guaranteed-square edge. Alternatively, cut two identical L-shaped MDF cauls that clamp around each corner while the glue dries — this holds the corner at exactly 90 degrees without relying on your eye. For 6mm ply, butt joints (no mitre cuts) work well and are far simpler to execute accurately than 45-degree mitres.
Step 3: Glue and Nail the Box
Apply a thin, even bead of PVA glue to the mating edge of each joint. Assemble the four walls into a rectangle — front, back, and two sides. Use your corner cauls or check with a square. The glue alone is sufficient for this thin ply, but 2–3 brad nails per corner adds mechanical strength and lets you release the clamps faster. Wipe off any glue squeeze-out immediately with a damp cloth before it dries. Let the box sit for at least 30 minutes before handling.
Once the walls are assembled, glue and nail the 3mm base to the bottom of the box frame. The base sits inside the four walls, flush with the bottom edge. Four to six brad nails around the perimeter hold it securely. Check that the base hasn’t introduced any twist — set the box on a flat surface and make sure all four bottom edges are in full contact.
Step 4: Build and Fit the Lid
The lid is a shallow frame that sits over the top of the box body. The frame sides are 25mm tall, cut from 6mm ply, mitred or butt-jointed at the corners. The lid panel (6mm ply) glues into the top of the frame. The finished lid dimensions are 12mm longer and 12mm wider than the box body on each side — this overhang looks good and gives your fingers something to grip when lifting the lid.
Sand the lid frame smooth before attaching the hinge — it’s much easier to sand flat surfaces than assembled corners.
Step 5: Attach the Piano Hinge
A piano hinge (also called a continuous hinge) spans the full width of the back of the box and gives the lid a smooth, supported opening action. Mark the hinge position on both the box back edge and the lid back frame. Drill pilot holes with a 2mm bit to prevent splitting the thin ply — this is especially important near edges. Attach the hinge with the small screws provided. Test the lid opening angle — it should open to about 90 degrees and stay there. If it flops past 90 degrees, add a small chain or ribbon stop attached inside to each side wall of the box and lid.
Step 6: Sand and Finish the Exterior
Sand the entire exterior starting at 120-grit to remove any glue residue or rough spots, then finish at 220-grit. Pay attention to the lid edges where it meets the box body — these should be flush and smooth. Apply two coats of a water-based satin varnish, sanding lightly with 320-grit between coats. Alternatively, apply a light stain in a warm walnut or honey oak before the top coat. The interior should not be varnished — the fabric lining covers it entirely.
Step 7: Make and Install the Ring Slots
Ring slots are simply strips of dense foam or corrugated cardboard rolled into cylinders and wrapped in velvet or felt. Cut your foam or cardboard into strips approximately 30mm wide and 60mm long. Roll each strip tightly and wrap with fabric, gluing the fabric in place with spray adhesive. These cylinders sit in rows across the floor of the box interior. Make 6–8 ring slots and glue them side by side in two rows at one end of the box. The remaining floor space holds bracelets, earrings, or small items. Test with actual rings before gluing the slots in permanently — the fit should be snug but not so tight the ring doesn’t slide off easily.
Step 8: Line the Interior
Measure and cut individual fabric pieces for the floor (minus the ring slot area), each side wall interior, and the inside of the lid. Add 10mm to each dimension for fold-over at the edges. Apply spray adhesive to the plywood surface, let it tack for 20 seconds, then press the fabric piece in place. Start with the side walls, then the floor. Fold the edges over and press them firmly. For corners, cut a diagonal notch out of the fabric at each corner before folding — this prevents bunching. The inside of the lid gets a single fabric panel glued flat. Let the adhesive fully cure before placing any items inside the box.
Tips for a Professional Result
- Use a hot iron to press the velvet fabric before cutting — removing creases makes lining much cleaner.
- Spray adhesive works better than liquid PVA for fabric lining — it doesn’t soak through and show on the fabric face.
- If the lid doesn’t sit perfectly flush when closed, a light sand of the mating edges with 120-grit usually resolves it.
- For a premium look, add a thin strip of decorative ribbon around the interior top edge to cover the raw fabric fold.
- Optional: add two small magnetic catches at the front corners to keep the lid closed — press-fit them into small routed recesses for a flush finish.
Ready to Build More?
This jewellery box is a taste of what’s possible with small-scale box making. Once you’ve built one, you’ll want to try variations — a stackable two-tier version, a box with a mirror in the lid, or a longer trinket box for watches. Ted’s Woodworking has hundreds of box and storage project plans with full cut lists and instructions — perfect for making a set of matching boxes or scaling up to more complex builds. Every plan is beginner-friendly and fully detailed.
