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June 11th, 2009
before & after: holly’s built-ins + carolyn’s bookshelf

hollybefore
we’ve got some great before & afters coming up today (thanks for all the great submissions while i was out of town!) so i wanted to kick off the makeover-theme with two great projects from holly and carolyn, both of whom used decorative patterns to jazz up existing pieces of furniture.

during
holly-after
d*s reader holly dahl used a gorgeous wallpaper from sherwin williams (and some fresh paint) to change the built-in units in her family room from boring to chic. i’m totally nuts about that pattern, too…

bookshelfbefore
footstoolbefore2
carolyn combined two pieces of furniture to create a bookshelf with legs, then added a decorative faux bois finish for a fantastic new piece of storage furniture. the best part? she’s shared her entire diy steps for replicating her results. click here for the full project and more pictures.

[have a before & after you'd like to share on d*s? just shoot me an email right here with your images!]

bookshelfafter109

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27 comments
james said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:14 am

the built-ins look great… but i would have painted the fireplace to finish off the complete look.

Jeremy said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:14 am

that printed paper is amazing!

June 11th, 2009 - 10:21 am

Two really great before and afters!

Leigh said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:26 am

I would love to see that brick hearth painted white- I think it would really finish off the whole family room wall. Gorgeous print!

May said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:29 am

While I enjoyed the before version of the built-ins way more than the after, I have to say that whoever built them, made them WAY too big for that space. It is very overpowering in relation to the stove.
HOWEVER, I absolutely LOVED the second B&A! While I personally don’t like the wood grain, what forsight to think the two pieces combined would make a spectacular unit!

June 11th, 2009 - 10:34 am

MAJOR improvement on the built-ins! That honey-colored wood was awful. What a difference the paint makes!

Juliet said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:45 am

Wow. Holly’s built-ins look incredible! I love the aged brick of the fireplace in contrast to the fresh white paint and modern print. The texture and color of the bricks serve the shelves perfectly and I bet they maintain the age and character of other parts of the room that we don’t see in the photos. Beautiful job, Holly!

June 11th, 2009 - 10:51 am

So jealous of the creativity today! How gorgeous are those before and afters?!!!

Molly said:
June 11th, 2009 - 11:00 am

The source for the paper would be great! I love the pattern.

June 11th, 2009 - 11:07 am

omg, that wallpaper is simply divine!! and the unit looks fab in white!

Holly said:
June 11th, 2009 - 11:20 am

Hi Molly, the wallpaper was from Sherwin Williams. Thanks everyone :)

Serena said:
June 11th, 2009 - 11:42 am

Wow – that build-in job has me wanting a built-in unit just so I can revamp it! Fab.

June 11th, 2009 - 12:26 pm

I have this same wall paper tagged for future use in the same color way.
Himalayan wallpaper book: CN41400AS
beige and black. $28.69
http://www.designyourwall.com

And yes, I am with Leigh: I too would like to see the brick painted white or washed in a lime wash/white wash to make the entire wall look cohesive.
All the same, Good Job!

Erin said:
June 11th, 2009 - 12:31 pm

i not a huge fan of faux bois but i am loving the book shelf anyway. very creative!
and i have got to get my hands on that wallpaper!

Katie said:
June 11th, 2009 - 12:37 pm

I love the second B&A, I’m just wondering if the legs will be strong enough to hold a bookshelf full of books…any thoughts?

anna said:
June 11th, 2009 - 12:38 pm

love both of these. very inspiring. holly- don’t paint the fireplace. i absolutely adore the contrast… and it fits with the room! thanks!!!

lindsay said:
June 11th, 2009 - 12:53 pm

I totally need this!! Love how you reworked it!

Michelle said:
June 11th, 2009 - 1:14 pm

WOW. What a transformation of the built-ins. And I agree w/Juliet — I like the contrast of the colors and textures of the original brick and stove against the updated shelves.

Green Key said:
June 11th, 2009 - 1:17 pm

I’m not usually a big fan of papering & painting over wood furniture, but I think the revamp of the built-ins is really lovely. The paper and color choices really work in this application. Great job!

June 11th, 2009 - 5:41 pm

Love the transformation of the built-ins! I would also paint the brick on the fireplace, though.

June 11th, 2009 - 8:43 pm

Love the built-in ‘after’ like everyone, and also think that the brick needs to be painted… However, I would paint it BLACK instead white – it would be more of a punctuation mark and bring out the lines found in the wallpaper pattern.

Renae said:
June 11th, 2009 - 10:05 pm

I love the banner in Holly’s room as well!

June 11th, 2009 - 11:18 pm

Thanks for all the love everyone and thanks to Grace for posting it! And to Katie who wondered about the sturdiness of the legs, I used the same original metal brackets that were on the footstool- those suckers aren’t going anywhere!

susie said:
June 12th, 2009 - 10:33 am

Love both of these, but I really want to know where that beautiful little white fawn came from!

June 13th, 2009 - 3:29 pm

Susie- the fawn is terracotta that I found at a goodwill store and spray painted white! Glad you like it!

Christina Viering said:
June 14th, 2009 - 11:12 pm

The built-in is such a great update!

June 28th, 2009 - 11:12 pm

Cool, i love built-ins and bookcases with wallpaper on them.

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