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.
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…
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!]
27 Comments
the built-ins look great… but i would have painted the fireplace to finish off the complete look.
that printed paper is amazing!
Two really great before and afters!
I would love to see that brick hearth painted white- I think it would really finish off the whole family room wall. Gorgeous print!
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!
MAJOR improvement on the built-ins! That honey-colored wood was awful. What a difference the paint makes!
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!
So jealous of the creativity today! How gorgeous are those before and afters?!!!
The source for the paper would be great! I love the pattern.
omg, that wallpaper is simply divine!! and the unit looks fab in white!
Hi Molly, the wallpaper was from Sherwin Williams. Thanks everyone :)
Wow – that build-in job has me wanting a built-in unit just so I can revamp it! Fab.
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!
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!
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?
love both of these. very inspiring. holly- don’t paint the fireplace. i absolutely adore the contrast… and it fits with the room! thanks!!!
I totally need this!! Love how you reworked it!
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.
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!
Love the transformation of the built-ins! I would also paint the brick on the fireplace, though.
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.
I love the banner in Holly’s room as well!
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!
Love both of these, but I really want to know where that beautiful little white fawn came from!
Susie- the fawn is terracotta that I found at a goodwill store and spray painted white! Glad you like it!
The built-in is such a great update!
Cool, i love built-ins and bookcases with wallpaper on them.
Leave a Comment