Well, I've done it! I've completed my first project :)! I must say that I'm pretty proud of myself, although I'm not 100% satisfied with the results. My goal here is to make furniture that doesn't look home-made, but these shelves that I made do look that way (at least up close). I do like the overall look though, and they work the way they are supposed to, so in that aspect... SUCCESS!
Here's what I did...
This project was floating shelves. The idea was to make these (picture comes from Better Home & Gardens magazine), but smaller. I needed some new shelves to hang on my living room wall to replace a couple that I made very quickly about 6 years ago using scrap wood from my dad's shed and shelf brackets. They worked just fine, but didn't really accomplish the fancier (and more expensive) look that I'm striving for :).
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Here's what I did...
This project was floating shelves. The idea was to make these (picture comes from Better Home & Gardens magazine), but smaller. I needed some new shelves to hang on my living room wall to replace a couple that I made very quickly about 6 years ago using scrap wood from my dad's shed and shelf brackets. They worked just fine, but didn't really accomplish the fancier (and more expensive) look that I'm striving for :).The project is considered a "beginner's" level so this was perfect for my first attempt. Basically, I had to make two pieces for each individual shelf... a frame for each which was the part actually screwed into the wall, and the shelf sleeve which slips over it.
I struggled a bit trying to hold the boards together at perfect 90 degree angles, as well as keep them perfectly flat on our work bench, while drilling and screwing them together. I finally broke down on my last night and bought a second clamp. Up until then I was only working with the single one that we already had.
I managed though, and it wasn't a total disaster... it just meant that I had to do quite a bit of sanding on my frames to get the sleeves to fit over them correctly in the end. Basically, the idea is to have them fit snuggly enough to stay in place, but you don't want the sleeves bowing out because the frames are uneven. Anyway, it took some time, but I finally got them right :).
The sleeves (or shelves) themselves were fairly easy to put together, but they too needed quite a bit of sanding because my boards were not perfectly cut (and perhaps not perfectly put together either, haha). Here is where I am the least satisfied. I'm striving for a store bought look which, to me, means perfectly smooth surfaces. My surfaces, however, are anything but perfectly smooth. In fact, some areas are still quite rough! Also, and you can even see this in the pictures, you can still tell where my boards meet up. I used wood filler, I countersank the screws (although I probably could've gotten them deeper), and I sanded the heck out of them! But they still look like they were made in my garage instead of bought off the shelf! Maybe I needed to use a different sandpaper for my final touch-up? But, to be honest, I'm not sure that even this would've done the trick. How in the world do furniture manufacturers get their wood so perfect??? Is there some kind of outer coating that they use over the paint? Some kind of laminate or something? Maybe that is a crazy thought, and Ray does not think that this is the case, but I just don't see how sanding alone achieves what they do. Then again, I'm no professional. My other thought was that maybe it is the type of wood I used. But then I realized that alot of the furniture we currently own is made out of the same type of stuff, yet it all looks perfect!
Regardless of the method, I obviously need some practice in this area and could probably benefit from doing a little more research :). But for now I'm trying not to be too nit-picky... especially since this is my first real project. I have to cut myself a little slack sometimes, right?
Anyway, the moral is... when you all come over to drool over my new shelves ;), just don't get too close, hahaha!
Here's what they look like:
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Stay tuned... my next project is a puzzle bookcase :)!!! Should be fun!
UPDATE:
In our trip to Home Depot last night (getting the wood for the bookcase), I realized my first major mistake with these shelves. I did, indeed, use the totally wrong wood! When I went to buy all the materials for this project, I asked a worker where the 1x2 pine boards were and he directed me straight to the 1x2 wood that, according to Ray, is used in construction!! Well, there is a major difference apparently! LOL. My gut was telling me that something was wrong when I first bought it, but in my defense I 1) trusted the guy to show me what I asked for and 2) was there alone with both Ainsley and Evelyn so I was kind of in a rush. Needless to say I will be listening to that gut instinct from now on :). Anyway, I looked around and found the actual 1x2 pine boards and I really think my shelves would look SO MUCH BETTER if I remade the sleeves using the better wood. Plus, I definitely made some other mistakes which I have learned from and would not make the second time around. Luckily, replacing the sleeves will not be an expensive, nor time consuming feat, so I am ok with having to remake them :). Now I just have to decide whether I want to remake the frames in pine as well. I think, and Ray agrees with me here, that the pine would provide a much sturdier support than the current ones. I'll think about it... for now I have to get started on my bookcase :).
UPDATE:
In our trip to Home Depot last night (getting the wood for the bookcase), I realized my first major mistake with these shelves. I did, indeed, use the totally wrong wood! When I went to buy all the materials for this project, I asked a worker where the 1x2 pine boards were and he directed me straight to the 1x2 wood that, according to Ray, is used in construction!! Well, there is a major difference apparently! LOL. My gut was telling me that something was wrong when I first bought it, but in my defense I 1) trusted the guy to show me what I asked for and 2) was there alone with both Ainsley and Evelyn so I was kind of in a rush. Needless to say I will be listening to that gut instinct from now on :). Anyway, I looked around and found the actual 1x2 pine boards and I really think my shelves would look SO MUCH BETTER if I remade the sleeves using the better wood. Plus, I definitely made some other mistakes which I have learned from and would not make the second time around. Luckily, replacing the sleeves will not be an expensive, nor time consuming feat, so I am ok with having to remake them :). Now I just have to decide whether I want to remake the frames in pine as well. I think, and Ray agrees with me here, that the pine would provide a much sturdier support than the current ones. I'll think about it... for now I have to get started on my bookcase :).
Comments (0)
Post a Comment