4 DIY Built-ins You Can Do This Weekend
Built-ins are showstoppers in any room. Whether used to surround a fireplace, turn a window into a cozy reading nook, add extra storage to an otherwise underused wall, or create the home library of your dreams, built-ins bring the grandeur.
But that grandeur can come with a grand price if you order custom built-ins. Luckily, they’re not the only option. DIY built-ins don’t have to be expensive, require a full renovation, or take longer than a weekend to complete. Paint, moulding and prefabricated bookcases, wardrobes, and cabinetry are all you’ll need to create the classy, custom looking built-ins of your dreams.
The secret to DIY built-ins is paint and trim. To make your project look like custom work, paint the built-ins to match your room colour and use trim to finish the edges.
Image by Pixabay via Pexels.Dramatize your fireplace
Fireplaces are often the focal points of the room they’re in, but if you’re wondering how to make the most of the empty space on either side, built-ins are a great answer. If you don’t have a fireplace, but really want one, or want to remodel your current fireplace before building the DIY built-ins, you can create your own using some of these hacks.
To add depth in the room, and more curiosity for the eye, bring out the built-ins so they recess the fireplace. If that’s not your style, you can measure the depth of the mantel and find bookcases to match, so the whole feature is flush. Keep in mind anything that’s done around your fireplace should be done so with extreme care. Always be sure you’re aligned with any fire or building codes, and be aware of any electrical systems within the wall before you start drilling.
Bookcase built-ins are excellent if you want to display books and other decorative items but doing half cabinetry with short bookcases stacked on top allows you always-useful closed storage space.
Create a window seat
You might be able to transform a window in your house into a cozy oasis with a few kitchen cabinets. If you have a recessed window, you’ll be able to create a built-in window seat with some sturdy, ready-made kitchen cabinets and a few 2x4s or 2x6s as a base. Light demolition is necessary as you’ll need to remove the baseboards in the area to ensure the cabinets are flush with the wall.
Image by Home Decor Interiors via Pexels.Maximize your storage
Framing a window, desk, or TV with built-ins adds instant gravitas to the room—and gives you heaps of storage. As with the fireplace, open bookcase built-ins will allow you plenty of space to display sentimental or decorative items. If you have things to hide, or prefer to keep things out of sight, try using woven or wooden baskets. Prefab wardrobes can be a great option if you have larger or longer objects like coats and vacuum cleaners that you want to store.
If you have dead space, a nook, or a gap around an architectural feature, but not enough room for a full bookcase built-in, take advantage of floating shelves for a DIY built-in look without any reno and only a little bit of measuring.
A divine home library
If you’ve ever admired the wall-to-wall bookshelves of a beautiful home library on Pinterest, you’re not alone. Bookcase built-ins bring an opulence to the room that’s hard to beat but can be attained through a few matching cases.
As with the window seat, remove the baseboards first so the bookcases can sit flush to the wall on all three sides (that is, if you’re doing one entire unbroken wall). Make sure everything’s secured and isn’t at risk of toppling by drilling a few screws through the back of the case into the studs. This is a vital step for all tall built-ins, especially the half-cabinetry, half-bookcase ones.
To make sure it doesn’t look like you’ve just aligned several bookshelves along the wall, fill in all the little holes with caulk or putty, use trim to cover the joins between cases, and then get out your can of paint and paint the entirety of the shelves to match your wall colour.