Rain on a Tin Roof

Tag: bookshelf

DIY Modern Rustic Bookshelf
Need a little more storage space in your home? Why not build a bookcase? This rustic bookshelf also has a gorgeous modern feel. It’s a simple DIY project that can easily be customized to your home’s style.

I am not a builder, y’all.

I usually come up with amazing build projects and think they are going to be really easy and I can totally do it – then I have to call in Grunt Labor at some point for help.

But this modern rustic bookshelf is so easy to build, Bill and I did it all by ourselves.

Well, we did have Grunt Labor on standby.

After Bill had decided what he wanted in his room makeover, I found this bookshelf over at Waiting on Martha.

via

I thought it would work perfect for his room, so I tracked down where it was from…All+Modern…and it was $1000.

One Thousand Dollars.

I’m sorry, but I just don’t know if I could ever bring myself to pay $1K for a bookshelf.

On top of that, the bookshelf was quite a bit larger than what we needed or could even fit in the space. After looking at it though, I was totally like, we can build that. I sent an image of the shelf to Bill and asked if he liked it. His response was “That’s awesome.” So the next day, we went and bought our materials and came up with our own DIY bookshelf version for less than $50.

It is seriously an easy build ya’ll and I am so thrilled with how well it turned out.

Rustic Bookshelf DIY

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Materials Needed:
- Two – 2″ x 10″ x 10’s (That link is to the pressure treated version, which you don’t need – you just need the regular wood version. For some reason, that is not online, but I wanted you to know what I was talking about.)
- Two – 2″ x 2″ x 8’s
- 3″ Wood Screws
- Wood Stain (We used this shade.)
- Spray Paint (We used this green shade.)
Tools Needed:
- Either a circular saw or miter saw (We used our miter saw.)
- Drill & Drill Bits
- Nail Gun (We use this battery powered one.)
- Wood Glue
- Clamps
- Right Angle Drill (We found this helpful, but it is not necessary.)
Cut List:
- Five – 2″ x 10″ x 36″ (Cut the 2″ x 10″ x 10′ down into five 36″ long pieces.)
- Four – 2″ x 10″ x 9 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x 10″ x 10′ down into four 9 1/2″ long pieces.)
- Eight – 2″ x 2″ x 6 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x 2″ x 8′ down into eight 6 1/2″ long pieces.)
- Eight – 2″ x 2″ x 9 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x 2″ x 8′ down into eight 9 1/2″ long pieces.)
Steps

Step 1:

Make all the cuts noted above.

Step 2:

Set aside the 2″ x 10″ cuts. Gather the 2″ x 2″ cuts, wood glue, nail gun and clamps.

Create a square using two of the 2″ x 2″ x 6 1/2″ pieces and two of the 2″ x 2″ x 9 1/2″ pieces as shown below. Put wood glue on all the joints and clamp.

After clamping, nail the pieces together. Do not remove the clamps yet. We waited a few hours before removing the clamps to ensure the glue dried properly.

Repeat this three more times to create a total of four “open” squares. These will become your shelf supports.

After each square is completed and dried, paint or stain the squares the color of your choice.

Step 3:

Take one of the 2″ x 10″ x 36″ pieces and drill three pilot holes along the left end of the board.

After drilling the pilot holes, come back with a larger drill bit that is the size of the screws head and drill out just a little bit over the pilot hole – this is so you can countersink your screw and give the shelf a more finished look.

On the same board, come in 9″ on the other end of the board and drill two more holes the same way you did above, however you only need one on each side of the board as shown below.

Step 4:

Using the wood screws and drill, place one of the 2″ x 10″ x 9 1/2″ pieces on the end of the board where you drilled three pilot holes and secure it from the bottom of the longer 2″ x 10″ piece. Place one “open square” on top of the place where you drilled two pilot holes and secure this piece with wood screws from the bottom as well as shown in the image below.

It comes in really handy to have someone on standby to hold the pieces as you secure them.

Step 5:

Place one of the 2″ x 10″ x 36″ pieces on top of the pieces you just fastened together.

Repeat the same process with the pilot holes and fastening the pieces together with the screws, however this time, you will be doing this from the top.

The arrows in the image below indicate where your pilot holes and screws should go.

Step 6:

Place an open square and a solid square on the second shelf you just fastened together as shown below.

Once more, you are going to drill pilot holes, then fasten the pieces together with screws as you did before. This time you will be coming up from the bottom. This is where we found that a right angle drill came in handy.

It was easier to get the right angle drill into the tight spots, rather than the full size drill.

Step 7:

Place a 2″ x 10″ x 36″ piece on top of the open square and solid square you just fastened together.

Repeat the pilot hole and fastening process as you did with the other shelves.

Next, you will add on another open square and solid square, however you are alternating the location of each with each new shelf you add as you can see in the image above.

Continue fastening on shelves and squares until you have no more left. You can also alter the size of the shelf by adding more or less shelves.

Step 8:

After the shelf is assembled, stain or paint it the color of your choice. I did this after the shelf was assembled, however, I should have done it before – would have been much easier!

$50 DIY bookshelf vs. $1000 bookshelf. I’ll take the $50 any day of the week.

Have you ever made a DIY bookshelf before?

Want more easy DIY projects and decor ideas?

See the full Masculine Bedroom Makeover – this shelf is used in here!

How to Build Wall to Wall Shelves – built-in shelving that is easy, easy, easy to make and super functional.

Power Tools 101 Series – Learn how to use a drill, saw and more – perfect for beginning DIYers!

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January 17, 2019
The Circus’ Yellow Bookshelf Makeover
This project was sponsored by HomeRight, however all opinions are 100% mine.

About a year ago, a friend and I went out one Saturday morning thrifting. We got to the first stop, but it was wasn’t opened yet. However, outside was a bookshelf. A bookshelf that wasn’t anything to write home about – except for the doors and the hardware.

The bookshelf had a price tag of $40. I had no need for a bookshelf – but those doors…and that hardware.

We drove down to another thrift store until the other one opened. Upon returning to the thrift store with the bookshelf, there was a woman eyeing my the bookshelf. The store still hadn’t opened yet. The woman was eyeing the bookshelf quite intensely. As the store doors opened, I decided I couldn’t let this bookshelf go. So I did what anyone else would do in my situation. I did a quick side shuffle or two and ran through the doors as soon as the owner opened them and proclaimed I would be buying the bookshelf – probably a bit louder than necessary.

And then the bookshelf sat in my garage for the better part of a year and I kind of started to feel a little bad for stealing it away from the other lady when I hadn’t even figured out to do with it.

I got over that real quick though after I realized it would be perfect in the Circus’ new room.

This was such a simple makeover, but some serious BAM as well with that bold yellow.

Simple Bookshelf Makeover

This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.
- HomeRight FinishMax Paint Sprayer
- Primer (I used a regular latex primer and a liquid sprayer primer to degloss and clean the piece.)
- Paint Color of your choice (I used this yellow hue.)
- Tack Cloth
- Topcoat (I used this one.)
Step 1:

Before painting anything, I cleaned this bad boy up. I sprayed Ready, a liquid spray primer, on the piece to remove dust, dirt and dead bugs that the bookshelf had housed in the garage.

Step 2:

This bookshelf had some laminate in some places. To make sure my paint stuck to those spots well, I gave the entire bookshelf a coat of Kilz Primer before painting the piece yellow.

It’s important to strain the paint before putting it in your sprayer.

Even if it is brand new paint, I suggest straining it. I just picked up a cheap strainer at TJMaxx and use it as my paint strainer. After straining the paint, add water to thin it. The Finish Max comes with an instruction manual that tells you how to thin your paint. It also comes with a handy little tool to use so you know when it’s thinned enough.

I’m borrowing this image from a previous post as I neglected to take a picture of me using my handy little tool during this project.

After adding water to the paint and mixing, simply dip the viscosity cup into the paint and count how many seconds it takes the paint to run out of the cup. For latex paints, properly thinned paints should run out in 25-40 seconds. If you’re in that timeframe, you’re good. If you’re not, add more water.

After thinning your paint properly, spray the paint onto your piece standing about 5-10 inches away from the piece you are painting. (If you’ve never used a paint sprayer before, there’s a complete how-to here.) Clean out your paint sprayer afterwards.

Step 3:

After letting the primer dry, load your paint sprayer up with your choice of paint color. Once more, remember to strain and thin the paint. Step back and spray the paint onto your furniture.

I did two coats of yellow.

I laid out my actual shelves and doors on sawhorses and tables to paint them.

Step 4:

After your piece is dry, I suggest following up with a topcoat to help protect the finish. I used a semi-gloss polycrylic, which actually doesn’t have to be thinned, but should be strained before putting it into your paint sprayer. I did one coat of the topcoat.

Isn’t it adorable? Of course, I haven’t filled it with all her books yet, I just wanted a few on there for now to give you an idea of how it would look.

I do like the idea of mixing in the stuffed animals with the books – makes it a little more decorative.

I can’t believe I just referred to stuffed animals as decorative. I guess that’s what happens when your kid owns more of them than an actual zoo has animals.

I used Bar Keepers Friend to clean up the hardware.

What do you think of the yellow? Is it too bold for you?

You might also want to see…

How to Use a Paint Sprayer

Disclosure: This post was a collaboration with HomeRight, however all opinions and running ahead of people to buy something I want is 100% mine.

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March 17, 2016