I have this shelving unit.
I hate this shelving unit.
OK, hate might be a bit strong.
We have owned this shelving unit(and several others like them) our entire married life. Most of the time it has held our TV, photo albums, movies and various books. It is a sturdy unit, but somewhat industrial. What I hate is how it looks in my Living room.Over the past week or so I have been thinking about how to rearrange my living room. I want to really love this room. I am tired of it always being a mess, being crowded. I want it to look classy, I want it to be a nice place to sit and visit. So all the toys were moved downstairs(hopefully they will stay there...they tend to migrate). The TV is no longer going to live in this room(in fact, I kinda accidentally broke it today while moving things around). I would love to just move this unit right out of my living room, the problem is, I have too many books and photo albums and nifty thingys that I really need a shelving unit to put the all on. I don't think this is the look I am after.
I know what I want, but don't have the money to buy what I want. So I have to make this shelf work until I can get what I want. This is where I need your help. First; do I put the shelf on the light tan wall or the blue wall?
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| Tan wall |
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| Blue wall |
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| Blue wall looking head on |
Just ignore the mess on the floor...it will find it's home tomorrow.
Secondly; do you have any suggestions as to what I could do with it to help it look less industrial, and a little more classy? Is that even possible? Picture it with some photo albums and nice picture frames on it. As for the big bare tan wall, I have a variety of large picture to choose from, but that will depend on where the shelf ends up going...ideas and suggestions are welcome...I'm basically stumped.
I don't really have any help NOW for you...because I had those very same shelves that I hated as well. As soon as I could, I travelled to the IKEA dent and scratch dept and found these (http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/categories/departments/living_room/11683/) they are 12X12 square and fit a TONNE of things in them.
ReplyDeleteI got my whole unit for $50 and it fits 9 rubbermaids FULL of books and stuff into them. I am actually looking everytime I go to Edmonton or Calgary for another set.
Good luck. (and for what it is worth, I think the blue wall does the shelves the most justice)
I like it best in front of the blue wall.
ReplyDeleteI like how it looks on the blue wall but I sense that maybe you have a preference for locating it on the tan. I would put a cheap backing on the shelf and use my left over blue paint (or pick up a pint more) to paint the inside of the shelf blue. And if you paint the blue before you put it all together life will be so much easier. You can also use inexpensive cove (use 1/2" stuff - it only has to cover about half of the width of the boards to look like the stepped edges on medium priced shelves.
ReplyDeleteRealize also that you will lose some of the 'inside' effect as soon as you fill it.
I looked again at how wide the front boards are and the cove idea won't work. You would need to perhaps add sides to it too.
ReplyDeleteI like the wood shelf by the wood of the piano, it makes your room look tied together better and the couch 'free' and clean.
Ok, here are my ideas. I think it would look great painted. I think if you painted it a black or chocolate brown - whatever goes best in your room, it would look awesome. I also really like the idea of adding a back to it. You could go get some beadboard and paint that white and just nail it to the back. The contrasting colors and the texture of the board would look awesome. I think what makes it look so industrial is the bracing at the back. Paint it and cover that and I think you'll be much happier. The other idea I had which you may not like it to make curtains for it. I had something like that when we were first married and I just sewed a casing into a sheet (literally a sheet) and used a spring cord to go all the way around the sides and the front and just kind of covered it up. You may not like that idea but it worked for us then. I think you should paint it though. Maybe get some baskets to put on it as well to keep all of the little things organized. I think I like it best on the blue wall as well - I can picture your living room and I like it there, it keeps the couch space more open. Good luck!
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