Turn an Old Book Case Into a Mail Center
by Little Mom on the Prairie in Workshop > Furniture
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Turn an Old Book Case Into a Mail Center
Space is at a premium, especially in my kitchen. Every time someone comes in, they dump all of their stuff onto the book case that sits in the corner...I decided to hit 2 birds with one stone, by giving them a place to store their gear AND make the tired, old book case look bright and new! The top shelf is divided (by magazine organizers) into 4 nooks. The 3 adults in the house will use the magazine holders for their mail. The nooks are for keys, wallets, sunglasses...whatever they carry on them then dump all over my kitchen. :)
The baskets were bought at the same office supply store as the magazine organizers. I'm using them to hold the freebies I get in the mail. This is a much better system than stuffing them into bags from the grocery store and sticking them in the pantry...now we can use them as we need them/get them!
I had a sheet of radiator grating left from another project, and I painted it the same yellow then put it in front of the glass on the bottom two shelves. The top shelf door broke years ago, but I like it open.
I've now exhausted my supply of yellow paint! Which is a reason to go buy more in a new color, right? Right?!?
Materials Used:
old book case
sandpaper
Krylon Sun Yellow paint
radiator grating (you can use a stencil instead)
magazine organizers
plastic organization baskets
1. First, I took all the junk off the book case and sanded it down, so the paint would stick to the wood. Then i wiped the dust off with a damp rag.
2. I spray painted the heck out of everything but the baskets!
3. I let everything dry overnight.
4. Then came reassembly! This only took a few minutes. The only thing that was new, was using small picture nails to secure the magazine organizers into place. The radiator grate just slipped in, between the glass and wood.
5. Time to put everything away : Cookbooks are on the bottom shelf, freebie baskets are in the middle, and the nooks on top are ready for everyone's junk!
*Note*
I am going to drill out a small hole at the back of two of the nooks, to allow for cell phone charging cords.
I am quite happy with it so far, now to make sure it gets used!
The baskets were bought at the same office supply store as the magazine organizers. I'm using them to hold the freebies I get in the mail. This is a much better system than stuffing them into bags from the grocery store and sticking them in the pantry...now we can use them as we need them/get them!
I had a sheet of radiator grating left from another project, and I painted it the same yellow then put it in front of the glass on the bottom two shelves. The top shelf door broke years ago, but I like it open.
I've now exhausted my supply of yellow paint! Which is a reason to go buy more in a new color, right? Right?!?
Materials Used:
old book case
sandpaper
Krylon Sun Yellow paint
radiator grating (you can use a stencil instead)
magazine organizers
plastic organization baskets
1. First, I took all the junk off the book case and sanded it down, so the paint would stick to the wood. Then i wiped the dust off with a damp rag.
2. I spray painted the heck out of everything but the baskets!
3. I let everything dry overnight.
4. Then came reassembly! This only took a few minutes. The only thing that was new, was using small picture nails to secure the magazine organizers into place. The radiator grate just slipped in, between the glass and wood.
5. Time to put everything away : Cookbooks are on the bottom shelf, freebie baskets are in the middle, and the nooks on top are ready for everyone's junk!
*Note*
I am going to drill out a small hole at the back of two of the nooks, to allow for cell phone charging cords.
I am quite happy with it so far, now to make sure it gets used!