Bookshelf redo

So, with my passion for history comes a passion for books, a lot of books.  Unfortunately with being the mother of a toddler I have had to hide away most of my books from little hands.  With the addition of the guest room into our lives I have a new place to put my books where Liam cannot get to them.  After a long search for what I wanted bookshelf I went on Pinterest and saw this project; the original project calls for wallpaper, but all the wallpaper that I looked at cost more than the shelves themselves. First I found this great contact paper in a print that I love at the dollar store of all places.  I loved it so much I bought about ten rolls, future projects here I come! Then I went online and purchased two new, smaller bookshelves for $36 after taxes and re-modeled (or re-mollyed) them. 

I attached it to the backing of the bookshelf.

 

The hardest part of this was getting the pattern centered.  I was a bit OCD at this point with having it match up.

I also made sure to overlap it around the back of the board for better coverage and to make sure that the contact paper would not come loose.

 After the contact paper was on the backing, it was time to build the shelves.  I bought two with the intention of flipping one on top of the other to make one large bookshelf.  When building the second shelf, I turned the top of that shelf upside down because it was going to be screwed into the top if the first shelf.

Once the shelves were built it was time to add the backing.

See the couch in the background?  Told you I loved the pattern.  But it also goes well with the bookshelves.  After I hammered the backing in I brought the first bookshelf into the guest room and put it into position.  I then brought the second shelf in and secured it into the first with basic screws.  I forgot to take pictures of this step, but it is fairly easy to do.  After the bookshelves were screwed together I brought in the removable shelves and the books.

As you can see, the contact paper on the backing adds the touch that it needs.  The bonus of flipping one of the bookshelves upside down creates a top shelf with a bit of molding to place items that may be a bit more fragile behind the molding without the fear of falling off with toddlers around trying to climb the shelf.

This is the semi finished bookshelf.  When I have a bit more time and energy after chasing Liam around, I am going to add some trim to the edges to give it a bit more flavor.  All in all this project cost me around $45 for a custom looking bookshelf with room that was much needed for books.  I may have to do another one since this bookshelf is full already. 

Happy crafting!
Molly