By Jules Rhee, MEd | Latest update 5/2/2024
This is a quick blog post about the amazing transformation of an ugly duckling (in this case, an old, beat-up filing cabinet) into a beautiful swan!
Well, beautiful might be a stretch – but it’s at least an attractive swan!
Here’s the before picture:
I couldn’t look at this crooked, squeaky filing cabinet for one more minute.
Armed with a roll of contact paper, a hammer, and a screwdriver, I got busy. I’ll be the first to admit that I manhandled this old filing cabinet. I stuck the screwdriver between the label holder, tugged, and pulled until it popped out. It was somewhat bent up, but I hammered it flat again.
I’m sure there’s a more gentle, skillful way of beating that little label holder into submission, but I wasn’t sure how else to do it. It did take a bit of muscle. The handles unscrew from inside the drawers.
Covering the old filing cabinet drawer fronts with contact paper was pretty easy. The hardest part is smoothing out the bubbles and getting the contact paper edges straight.
This is how the filing cabinet currently looks. I need to spray-paint the label holders – maybe black. If you look closely, you’ll notice they’re rusty right now. That’s for another day when it’s not so hot in the classroom.
One final tip – if you have old stickers and can’t peel them off with your fingernails (blech!), grab some adhesive remover and a razor blade. You obviously don’t want these around when your students are present. Plus, the adhesive remover should only be used in well-ventilated areas.
Good luck with your projects!
About the Author
Written by Jules Rhee, MEd, and a 30-year teaching veteran; published 8/31/2016; latest update 5/2/2024
Jules is the creator of Caffeine Queen Teacher (CQT) – Visual Math Organizers + Graph Paper Support. She’s a veteran teacher with over 30 years of classroom experience (SPED, upper elementary, and middle school) and a Master’s in Education (MEd). Jules shares practical, classroom-tested ideas and creates step-by-step resources that help students stay organized, confident, and successful – especially with multiplication and long division.
Read more about Jules here: About Page | Browse resources here: TpT Store