My Beginner Bookcase

OR THE TWO DAY PROJECT THAT TOOK TWO MONTHS

It's finally done! I started this project months ago with much excitement thinking it would only take a couple days. But then summer came with it's scorching heat and humidity and I wasn't willing to haul the table saw into the living room or sweat it out in the garage... so months passed.

If you decide to try this project yourself, you can reasonably expect to finish it in one day plus drying time for whatever finish you choose (stain, paint, etc.). This is a perfect project for beginners like me... it's very forgiving. There's wiggle room for mistakes.

Here's how it started. I saw this in the store and loved it.



But the fabric was awful and it was $50 (with four kids, that might as well be a $1 million). I also saw a cheaper version without the storage, but oh dear, it was hideous. Very ugly. So I thought, I bet I can make this. I ended up needing some help along the way (thanks Dad!). I couldn't get over my fear of the table saw to go it alone, so he jumped in to help make some cuts.

Pretty soon, I had this...



... and then I realized, wait a minute, this is for my children so it probably shouldn't be 6 feet tall. I had to disassemble, cut it down, and then I was on my way.



I used stain on this for one reason only - I'd never used it before. So, walnut finish stain from Minwax it was. And then I finished it with, you guessed it, polyurethane - satin finish this time (I'm still in love with the stuff).



Then I picked some fabric (still not my favorite fabric, but I live in a tiny little town that had VERY limited choices and I thought this was fun), sewed it together (yay for sewing!) and the final result...



I'm so glad it's done, but now I've got 10 more projects in mind. You know what they say... a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Wishing you that wonderful sense of accomplishment.