Customizing Your Home, One Built-In At A Time

It's been suggested that my blogging has been too slow...so here's my attempt to get you all caught up. Only one more post stands between now and the final reveal!

Once the ceiling and walls were painted, it was time to start framing out the built ins before we could install the wainscoting. (picture to the left is the way the room looked when we bought the house in 2008)

BASIC CONSTRUCTION:

We decided as part of the project to install book cases on either side of the fireplace.  For us this space was a bit awkward and not really usable so having two shelves for books, extra lighting and my vinyl collection made perfect sense.

Because there is a floor vent about 20 inches from the wall we knew that the shelves could be no deeper than 17 inches...which after building we realized was more than deep enough since standard book cases usually run 12 inches deep max.

To get started Paul took a million measurements and crafted the shelves outside before "custom" fitting them in place.  Using the table saw he was able to make precision cuts that he had only dreamed of before.  

That being said, no matter how much you measure or how perfect your cut is, nothing ever fits. This meant that he had to get creative and use a router and laminate top cutter to trim off the tiny bit of excess that was keeping the unit from fitting snugly in place. 

Why? Because the last thing anyone wants to do is disassemble the entire unit over a 1/4 of an inch. All in all a little patience and finesse yielded a perfect fit.

Once in place, we used 2 inch wood coarse screws to secure the shelving unit to the back wall.

DESIGN:

Based on a simple cabinet style construction, we decided to add hand-routed detail for a more decorative flare. To create the detail on the front of the shelves Paul glued two 1 x 2's together and used a Roman style Ogee router bit to mimic the door and window frames that run throughout the house.  Next he added a 1.5 inch piece of pre-milled trim to give it a bit more substance.

We also opted to change up the tops for a more craftsman feel, which helped them blend in with the mantel that Paul made previously from salvaged roof timbers from the old garage we took down last year. 

Using stain-grade Aspen we picked a stain and poly blend with a matte finish.  It took a couple rounds of sanding with steel wool to pick up the fine particles but after a couple passes with the foam brush--the tops were a most welcome addition.

All that was left was to install the adjustable shelf pieces and add a little paint (we picked a soft Du Jour white in a semi-gloss instead of your typical bright white in glossy). 

Voila!  Custom built-in book shelves.

Cheers,

Laura

Conquering the Popcorn

And no I don't mean the delicious kind.  It seems that over the last 60 years various tenants decided to "update" 1148 with popcorn ceilings.  Fortunately, most of the rooms have already been scraped or fixed by floating drywall over the mess. But since the family room and dining room have expansive ceilings nothings been done.

Wanting to do it right, Paul and I called in for a quote on having the ceilings scrapped.  To our amazement due to complications with 60 year old plaster, etc. etc. they wanted $5,000 to scrape the family and dining rooms. (insert hysterical laughter here)

Clearly, that was not the answer.

Behold the commercial paint sprayer.  I rented her at Home Depot and for the next 8 hours we were the best of friends.  At least, until I had to clean her.

I must admit I was intimidated.  I know my way around tools but spraying something that could break every window in the house over my head, just didn't sound like my cup of tea. But Paul had to work, so off I went.

Here are a few suggestions if you ever find yourself faced with a commercial paint sprayer.

1. Don't listen to the clerk at the paint desk.  Go with your gut and get as much paint as you think you'll need.  They tried to tell me 1 can would cover the ceiling, I opted for two and midday way had to run to back--covered in paint--to get a third.
2. Get a FLAT paint.  No body wants a shiny ceiling.
3. Cover every inch of your body thoroughly or it will get painted.
4. Cover every inch of you house or it will get painted.
5. Cover furniture with at least two layers--no body wants a polka dotted couch.
6. If you over spray onto the walls (say you haven't painted them yet) this is not a bonus of extra primer.  Roll them out quickly--or you'll end up with bumpy spots all over the new drywall your husband just spent days installing. (sanding helps but rolling immediately would have been so much easier)
7. Light coats are the best.  Popcorn likes to drip, so keep a brush on hand to help discourage this.
   
8. Remove all ceiling fixtures ahead of time.  Trust me, its hard to control where you're "not" getting paint. :)

Other than that, it's really not as hard as it sounds.  Don't forget mineral spirits (or water) to help thin the paint and go at a pace you're comfortable at.

Cheers,

Laura