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Thrifty Style Team February First Aid Cabinet


Like most families we've always had a particular location in the house where we keep a decent assortment of first aid supplies.

Prior to this project it was an old tool box that I up-cycled a few years ago into a portable first aid kit.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

Band aids, gauze, antibiotic.

Medical tape and wood craft sticks used for sprained fingers from sports, along with good gripping tweezers for shards of wood lodged under the skin that were sometimes longer than the tweezers.

For the February edition of Thrifty Style Team a two dollar cabinet I picked up at a garage sale several years ago was given a fresh coat of white paint inside and out, and transformed into an unmistakable first aid kit.



If we could take care of an injury at home without a doctors visit that's how we'd roll, and more times than I care to recall my husband would doctor a kids injury that I was sure needed the skilled hands of the emergency room.

Everyone survived the fact there was not a real doctor in the house, and I got used to the occasional horror of seeing him reach for the super glue to repair a human.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

Over many years of visiting our first aid kit I have learned that the #1 item to keep stocked around here is very simple..... multiple sizes of bandages.

One size does not fit all.

When you have a thin smooth paring knife cut on your finger you'll appreciate a different size band aid than if you took out a chunk of knee skidding down the driveway.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

And obviously the digits of an adult man are larger than that of a two year old, although that adult man has worn more than his fair share of Hulk or Disney princess bandages to work.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

The body of the cabinet is made of typical pressed wood with a white veneer, and the mirror had some scratches in the middle that would not rub out.
First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

I used Fusion Mineral Paint in Casement to refresh all the white, and it was almost a perfect match for the original white of the cabinet.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

For the graphics I used Fusion in Fort York Red and made a card stock template of words for a repeating stencil on the inside back of the cabinet.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

Fusion Paint is self leveling and doesn't need a top coat of any kind, however when I paint graphics on projects I like to wax over them to accent the color, so I put a coat of Homestead House furniture wax over all the red and black.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

I also made my own stencil using the Minnesota Poison Control symbol.  All the red and black paint was sanded a bit to distress the lettering before I put the wax on.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

Etching cream was considered for the mirror, but in the end I decided the easy route would be to use the frosted spray paint I had on hand.  Frosting the mirror hid the scratches in the glass.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

The size of this thrifty cabinet is 15 inches wide and 26 inches tall, with two inside shelves and a wood door frame that originally had no knob.  It's roughly the size of a small vintage medicine cabinet.

The door stays shut with a strong magnet catch, so I added a white porcelain pull from a bag of odds and ends to make opening it much easier.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

I took advantage of the flat surface inside the door to include a few printed tip sheets. 

The printables came from Misty at Simple Family Preparedness where she posts lots of safety tips.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

A vintage hair clip was used to hang several pages of instructions, like in case of choking, performing CPR, what to do for burns and poison, etc..  I hope no one ever needs to refer to any of them.

The clip has a nice grip which is great because I used card stock which of course is heavier than regular printer paper.
First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

Our toolbox first aid kit has a better variety of items and when I get some time I will organize them both.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

For now the bandage supply was replenished for the inevitable wound I hope doesn't happen, but when it does the cabinet is ready to come to the aid of the injured, complete with reading glasses so I can see in case of a splinter emergency.

First Aid Cabinet, Bliss-Ranch.com

I haven't found a perfect place to hang it yet, so I may gift it to my friend Kathy Jo  (if she likes it) but for now it's tucked away in a bathroom.

February's Thrifty Style wouldn't be complete without the rest of the team, and the team is growing!  That means more projects for you to check out.







Quick link:
Visit the other Thrifty Style Team finds from Bliss Ranch....
Giant Mixer Beater
Maple Syrup Tote

17 comments :

  1. I love this! So much better than a boring regular medicine cabinet (raises hand...owner of a boring regular medicine cabinet). I'm going to be painting my bathroom cabinets soon and I may just go this route with the one of them. Thanks for the inspiration. xo

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  2. I love how you personalize this Bliss!! And i can relate to the 'doc in the house'!! I remember many incidents when I probably needed stitches but living out in the country, my dad took care of it 😂

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  3. Oh, I needed this with two boys in the house. Now, they are both almost all gone out of the house, but I am still a DIY'er so there's that. I love every ounce of this.

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  4. I just love this! It makes first aid easy to find if and when it's needed and it looks great too!

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  5. I almost want to get injured just so I could come and be bandaged up by something from that darling cabinet!! And I'm not above a themed bandaid. ;-) Well done!

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  6. This turned out adorable...much cuter than my old shoebox crammed with bandages and creams! Such a fun piece.

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  7. Very nicely done--as usual! I miss the character band aids! I have a 2 boring bandaids on my pinky right now, I nicked it on the blade of the food processor after I washed it.

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  8. Just as creative as can be! All of the details are done to perfection. And to think it was a simple $2 wooden box. You have the knack for creating something out of practically nothing, my friend. Thanks for inspiring me, once again.

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  9. Bliss this turned out really cute. My mother went through those moments with my dad and fixing us. When we got poison ivy he used to make a mixture of chlorine and water and rub it on us. My mother would shriek. It worked though. He never put it near our faces.

    Cindy

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  10. This is so great, Bliss! I love how it came together and all the info you put in it, too! Our stuff is always in different places...

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  11. Nice... but the Kathryn comment in your response thing is the bomb, to be honest.
    I like the medicine chest because it’s lots more interesting than the usual.

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  12. I had to stop over. You know what I have been wanting to try Mineral Paint. I looked where to by it today. A store 2 minutes from my house sells it and I mean literally 2 minutes. It has been here for two years. I'm loosing my mind

    Cindy

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  13. What a great idea. I love this! We need one in the basement next to the hubs' tool box. He's always hurting himself.

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  14. you always come up with the most creative ...and useful stuff. i love this, so if Kathy Jo dosn't want it send it here.

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  15. This is too darn clever. If I was a kid, I'd want a boo-boo, just so my mom would open the cabinet up and I could look in :P

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