How to Add a Concealed Silverware Drawer in Mozaik – Phill Anton Consulting

Q: Why use a formula for the scoop instead of typing fixed point locations?

A formula tied to the part's center (part length / 2 ± 3 * Tomm) keeps the scoop parametric. If you reuse the same tray on a different cabinet or job, the scoop re-centers and re-sizes automatically instead of breaking when the drawer width changes.

To add a concealed silverware drawer in Mozaik, build a custom rollout tray that fits behind your top drawer front, shrink the top drawer box's height to free up space above it, and drop the tray into that opening as a separator-and-tray pair. Everything is done inside Mozaik's drawer box editor and product editor, so there's no need to order a separate silverware insert from an outside vendor.

This guide follows Mozaik's official walkthrough. Watch the original on Mozaik's channel:

What you're building

A concealed silverware tray that hides behind the top drawer front of a base cabinet (in the example, the cabinet to the left of a sink base). The visible cabinet keeps three equal drawer fronts; the silverware tray rides above the top drawer box, behind that top front. The tray is divided into compartments for cutlery and includes a scooped front.

Step 1: Get the drawer box width

You need the real width of the drawer box before you build anything, so the tray matches the job.

Double-click the target cabinet to open it.
Open the cut list: right-side panel > View Cut List > drawer/tray box sizes.
Read off the drawer box width (in the video it came in at 18-7/8").

Plan your fronts at this stage too. In the example, the maker and customer agreed on three equal drawer fronts so there's room to tuck a rollout/concealed drawer behind the top front.

Step 2: Check which drawer box and guide you're using

Confirm the hardware your job is set to build with so the tray you create matches it.

Go to Settings tab > Drawer & Tray Box tab.
Note the drawer box, the rollout tray, and the drawer guide in use. In the example: a Mozaik undermount drawer box and a Mozaik undermount rollout tray, both on a Blum 563H undermount guide.

Step 3: Copy the rollout tray to make a silverware version

You'll build the silverware tray as a copy of your existing rollout tray so all your depths, clearances, and guide settings carry over.

Open Libraries tab (top) > Drawer Boxes to launch the drawer box editor.
Select the Mozaik undermount rollout tray (it already has the right setup).
Make a copy and give it a clear name, for example silverware 18in-RT (the "-RT" marks it as an 18" silverware rollout tray).

In the example, the tray uses a 3"-high build (standard-heights check turned off so the height stays at 3"), with depths already matched to the drawer guides and standard clearance.

Step 4: Lay out the compartments in the section editor

This is where you turn a plain tray into a divided silverware tray.

In the tray's editor, open the Section tab to launch the drawer section editor.
Set the sample box to match the job: width 18-7/8", depth 21", height 3".
Use your tray material template (the example uses a 1/2" Baltic birch template set up in the Materials tab). You can add dadoes to the dividers/partitions here, but in the example they were left at zero.

Now divide the inside:

Highlight the inside of the box and split it horizontally.
Select the first open area and set its depth to 5" (this tray also gets a scoop on the front).
Split again and set the back open area depth to 5".
The middle section starts around 9". To get an 11" silverware opening, set the front and back of that middle band to 4" each.
Highlight the middle silverware area, choose the multi-split tool, split vertically, and set it to 5 dividers, then confirm.

You now have an 18-7/8" wide, 21" deep, 3" tall silverware tray with divided compartments.

Step 5: Add the scooped front with a parametric formula

Writing the scoop as a formula keeps it correct on any size tray.

Left-click the tray front to open the part editor.
Select the top line so it turns red.
On the right under Points, choose Add, then add two points on that line.
For the first point, edit the X value via the formula bar (part X formula editor) and enter a formula that references the part's center and subtracts 3": part length / 2 - 3 * Tomm
For the second point, do the same but add 3": part length / 2 + 3 * Tomm

Tomm converts inches to millimeters (Mozaik requires all numeric formula values in millimeters). Multiplying by Tomm turns the 3 into 3 inches' worth of millimeters on each side of center. Writing it as a formula (shown in blue) keeps the scoop parametric, so it stays correct if you reuse this tray on another cabinet or job.

Highlight the line and set the bulge length to -1".

The result is a scoop that is 6" wide across (3" each side of center) and 1" deep, and it scales automatically as the drawer front changes size. Confirm to save.

Step 6: Lower the top drawer box to make room

The tray needs vertical clearance above the top drawer, so you shrink that drawer box's height.

Go to Products tab > double-click the product > open the 2D/3D product view.
Switch to the left view (a cut-through of the cabinet); wireframe mode helps you see inside.
Go to the Face tab and select the top drawer of the cabinet.
Open the Adjust tab to reach the face opening options.
Under drawer box adjustments, set the height to -4".
Use the measuring tool to check clearance above the drawer. In the example, about 4-1/4" was left, enough for a 3" tray.

Step 7: Add a separator, then place the tray

You build the opening with a separator first, then convert space above it into a tray slot.

Go to the Interior tab. Important: make your adjustments with the product viewer open, because the interior editor view and the actual product viewer can look different (the interior view shows a larger space underneath than the real product).
Select the top opening (highlighted red) and split it once horizontally. This adds an adjustable shelf (with shelf holes).
Change that shelf's type from adjustable to a separator (this clears the shelf holes).
Position the separator. In the example, the clearance from the top of the bottom stretcher to the top of the drawer box was 4-7/8"; the goal was the separator about 1" above the drawer box, so it was set to 5-7/8".
Select above the separator and split again, then change that new type to a tray. A rollout tray appears.
Fine-tune spacing. In the example the separator was nudged from 5-7/8" down to 5-3/4" to leave about an inch of distance and room for the undermount drawer guide.

Step 8: Swap in your silverware tray via overrides

The opening currently holds a generic rollout tray, so you override it with the custom silverware tray you built.

Select the tray in the product view.
Open Overrides > tray override and choose your silverware 18in tray, then confirm.

To preview cleanly, use the layers panel to turn off the tops and hide the doors. You'll see the divided, scooped silverware tray sitting above the top drawer, ready to cut.

Why build it in Mozaik instead of buying an insert

Because the tray is modeled as a real part with dividers and a parametric scoop, it lands in your cut list with everything else. You cut it on your own machine from your own material — no outside-vendor silverware tray to order — and the scoop adjusts itself if the drawer size changes.

Related guides

Get it done-for-you

You can set this up yourself using the steps above. If you'd rather skip the setup, PAC's Mozaik training and done-for-you services can help — phillanton.com.

Full disclosure: this guide is published by Phill Anton Consulting.

FAQ

Why use a formula for the scoop instead of typing fixed point locations?

A formula tied to the part's center (part length / 2 ± 3 * Tomm) keeps the scoop parametric. If you reuse the same tray on a different cabinet or job, the scoop re-centers and re-sizes automatically instead of breaking when the drawer width changes.

Why does the scoop formula multiply by Tomm?

Mozaik requires all numeric values in formulas to be in millimeters. Tomm converts your inch value to millimeters, so multiplying 3 by Tomm gives you a true 3" offset on each side of center.

How much do I lower the top drawer box, and how do I know it's enough?

In the example the top drawer box height was adjusted by -4", which left roughly 4-1/4" of clearance — enough for a 3" tray plus the undermount guide. Use Mozaik's measuring tool to confirm your own clearance before committing, since cabinet sizes and tray heights vary.