On Saturday I completed goal #2 on my list. I finished staining the bookshelf I built for our living room. I actually purchased the wood for this project back in March, but with all the work on the house we’ve been doing to prepare for our baby’s birth the project was pushed to the back burner.
The piece was built using plans found on Knock-Off Wood.
My goals for building this project were:
- build a functional, attractive piece of furniture for the kids’ toys
- increase my knowledge of building furniture so I will eventually be able to build a piece from scratch (without plans)
- build the piece of furniture for less than it would cost to buy
I can safely say my bookcase fulfills #1. At my son’s birthday party that night, everyone was complimenting me on how nice the bookshelf looks and were shocked that I built it.
Here is a similar bookshelf to the one I built, available for $300 at Pottery Barn. I spent less than $100 to build my version of the bookshelf.
Cost breakdown:
- lumber – $65 (approximately – I can’t find the receipt)
- stain – $10 (can was $15, but we used part of it to re-finish our kitchen table)
- miscellaneous supplies – $10 (sandpaper, screws, nails, etc.)
Time breakdown:
- about 2 hours to cut and assemble the wood
- about 30 minutes to sand
- about 2 hours to stain it
Finished product:
I absolutely love the way it turned out, and it fits perfectly into our style – simple and traditional.
