DIY Part 3

When we moved in to the house there was this super handy little nook in the master bedroom.  The treadmill fit great, although was not terribly attractive looking.  But it was convenient and worked for us for many years.  Once the garage project got completed and the treadmill found a happy new home out there, the nook pretty much became a wasteland of laundry baskets and dog paraphernalia.

Classy huh?

So, we decided to do something not only useful, but less "college apartment" like with the area.  I've been wanting to get some bookshelves for the house for awhile, but didn't really know where to put them.  This space seemed like a good option.  We didn't really want wall to wall bookshelves though so we also incorporated a bench with storage space.

We found some reasonably priced unfinished furniture and then spend most of a weekend conditioning, staining, and sealing.  Do you have any idea how much surface area there is on a set of shelves?  A lot.  And after all that work they don't actually look that wonderful up close.  But the books cover most of the imperfections.

Anyway, here is the end result...

We used the trim across the top to make it look more like a one piece unit.  There is a shelf there too, we just don't have anything to put on it yet.  I think it's a big improvement!

And here is the detail we on the trim, just to make the pattern stand out and to add a little color.