Thursday, February 18, 2010

What a simple coat of paint can do...

When my husband and I married almost 7 years ago, we somehow acquired this (ugly) little bookshelf...I think that it might have been his as a child, and as far as holding books go, it's great...but it does lack that aesthetic appeal...the faux wood paneling is not exactly pleasing to the (mainly {MY}) eye! So, yesterday I decided to spruce up my little shelf by simply painting back behind the shelves. I am in full-blown nesting mode...and my due date is still 4 months away!...but since I am probably not really supposed to be around paint fumes much I took the easier route of just painting this shelf enough to keep myself from going crazy. Maybe someday I'll paint the whole thing, for now though I am satisfied! I mixed up some of my craft paints...a variety of aqua, pale blue, navy, sea foam green and even a bit of brown to get the color I wanted.


This is the before...

...and here is my after! I rearranged my collection of vintage books and other vintage odds and ends to fit in better with the newly painted "back splash" on my bookcase. The curtain hides some of our board games, and just a few of the (too) many medical books that my husband has.


The top shelf holds some antique books from my husband's grandfather who was a preacher, and a plate that my sister gave me for a birthday years ago.


I really love the color that my paint mixture turned into! Very fresh looking! I turned a lot of the books around because all of the different colors of the spines were too much. I wanted a more neutral palette.


Some more vintage books and a handmade pottery dish that my sister, Gloria, made when she was little...inside the dish is a picture of sweet Gloria herself...back before she was all grown up! The pedestal I purchased off of Etsy from sweet Miss Mustard Seed!


My red berries in front of yet some more vintage books...the small red book on top is a Bible that is over 100 years old!


This shelf holds a collection of books and other mementos from my late great-grandfather...pictured in the small frame. He was a beloved physician and a wonderful man, and I have so many sweet things from his and my great-grandmother's home...one of my favorite possessions acquired from him is my antique wrought iron bed, which I showed you here.

So that's what a simple coat of paint can do...with a little tweaking here and there with the accessories! Hope you enjoyed!





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24 comments:

  1. That's awesome Gracie! It really makes it stand out now from the rest of your wood paneling in the room. Very chic. I also love your idea of turning the books around so there isn't a mod-podge of color. I hadn't thought of that before. I like it!

    Hugs to you,

    Gail

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  2. Fun looking at the things on the shelves. The blue background really shows the items off.

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  3. The paint really makes a wonderful difference! You can really see what's on the shelves. Who'd have thunk turning the books around would be such a neat idea--oh, YOU did! :) Very creative.

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  4. Great display for your vintage books!

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  5. Great idea to paint the back blue. That colour compliments your vintage books and other treasures. It is very pretty now. Well done.

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  6. Good Job! Your arrangements look so nice and what a good idea to turn the books around! Also like the curtain. We sure need our shelves to show off our VTT stuff!

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  7. It is amazing what a little bit of paint will do...great job! Happy VTT!

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  8. Color! I love how paint can take something from drab to dreamy.

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  9. Love the color! Good job. Thanks for stopping by my blog on my SITS day. And what a great day it was! I don't do giveaways often (they make me crazy) but I am doing one now for a really cool kids book. Pop by and enter to win. thanks bunches!

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  10. I really like this, a nice simple update, but it makes such a difference.

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  11. What a difference... it looks great! The pretty blue makes all of your great collection pieces stand out! :)

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  12. Love the pop of color!!!! Wish I was better at arranging things like the stuff you have in the piece! Looks great!

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  13. It's amazing how much it lightens and brightens the piece! Gotta love paint! And craft paint to boot.

    Ahh, nesting mode. I remember painting my kitchen cupboards and walls while I was 8 months pregnant!

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  14. A little bit of paint can make anything better and you sure proved that!

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  15. The paint really made the shelf look nice!

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  16. I love the backs painted on bookcases, Grace, and this looks great! Love your tweaking, too! : )

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  17. wow, it looks so much better! I LOVE that you used a cake stand in there. So elegant. And that shade of blue really makes everything pop.

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  18. The new color really makes your nice collection stand out.

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  19. What a difference that pop of color made! Did you use gloss paint or put any kind of sealer over it? I was wondering, because when I use it, it gets easily chipped or messed up. Miki

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  20. They say diamonds are a girl's best friend....but I secretly think it's really PAINT..... Beautiful re-do.

    Warm blessings,
    Spencer

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  21. I have one of those ugly bookshelves as well. You've inspired me... I will be doing something with mine soon..

    Thanks for joining Get Your Craft on Thurs. at Life As Lori

    Please join me next week for another great party!

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  22. It turned out great! I love Billy Whiskers!
    smiles, alice

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  23. Thank you so much for the thoughtful breastfeeding advice, you just left on my blog! I really appreciate hearing how other moms have coped!

    As for this darling bookcase - LOVE it! I especially love how you turned the books around in some cases so the pages showed rather than the binding! So clever!

    I'm your newest follower. So nice to meet you!

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  24. I love rearranging things. Such fun! All of the changes look great...especially the pedestal! :)

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