Bookshelf: The Crowning Touch

Happy Friday, all!

Remember my bookshelves in my dining room?  They are coming along nicely.  I bought them right around New Years - they're the standard Billy bookcases from IKEA.  Here they are:

I have several plans for them.  These include:

• buying doors for the bottom part of the shelves
• adding hardware to those doors to match hardware on desk
• painting the backs of the open shelves so the contents really pop
• accessorizing the shelves; and
• adding crown molding to the top of the shelves to make them a little more finished.

Today is all about the crown, baby.  I don't have a nail gun or miter saw, so this was going to be just me with my miter box, hand saw and some finishing nails.  I also used 1x2 pieces of wood and a piece of "outdoor" crown molding (this is sooooooo easy to cut, and I was going to paint it anyway so I chose plastic over wood).  

I had all of the tools on hand.  My dad bought me a miter box years ago and it is so easy to use.  I followed the instructions of Centsational Girl, as she has added crown molding to her shelves many times and it seemed silly to try to reinvent the wheel.  So thanks, Centsational Girl!  I had scrap pieces of 1x2s in my workshop, and I was able to use that for the top of the shelves for the crown to hang from.  Just like ribbon, never ever throw away scrap pieces of wood!  

So first thing I did was measure the shelves and cut my scrap wood - this gives a place for you to nail the crown molding into. I nailed them in place with short nails.  

Then I measured and cut my crown to fit the space and used my miter box to do so. I used small finishing nails and a skinny hammer (this probably has an actual name but I don't know it) to nail the crown in place -- I had to make a little detour to Home Depot mid-project because I only bought one piece of crown and I was a hair short on the front piece cuts ... argh.  Anyway, I finally got my cuts right and nailed them up.  I expected some gaps in the corners, which, of course, there were.  I just used paintable caulk to hide it. 

Then, I used one coat of my favorite Zinsser oil based primer on the crown and then two coats of Valspar's "Cream Delight," which I read is a close fit to the cream on Ikea furniture.  It's a pretty good match.  

And voila!  I love how this turned out and it was so easy.  The crown really makes the bookshelves look much more expensive, I think.  The only things I paid out of pocket were the molding and the paint.

Next up: a trip to IKEA to get those doors.  I'm still mulling over the color for the back of the shelves, but am getting closer.  Sometimes I need to remind myself that paint is ultimately an easy fix.  If I hate it, hello, just repaint.  Have a terrific weekend!

See you swoon,