Craigslist Ivory Bookshelf Makeover

by Shanna Gilbert

If you've ever read my blog before, we have discussed how my hubby thinks I'm a hoarder.
I, on the other hand, think I am a "collector of items I might someday need".
Case in point: the bookshelves I just made over.

craigslist ivory bookshelf makeover, painted furniture, shelving ideas, storage ideas

After convincing Topher that we "needed" them (since he was not in any hurry to get to work on some floor to ceiling built ins), he caved.

We drove to the house to pick them up ... and let's just say it was a fixer upper home - Topher called it was a meth house. You say tomAtoes / I say tomatos.

After the couple answered the door (luckily not sporting any weapons ... or teeth), we entered, and Topher didn't seem at all happy that there was not one bookshelf but THREE bookshelves.

surprise, honey....

My bad.

So after Topher and his new friend played a little furniture Tetris with two of the million-pound cases, our SUV simply wasn't big enough for the third shelf.

This made Topher super happy.

He may have said something like ... "forget it, we got out alive, we are leaving that third one behind".

We got the two dropped off at home (which was no small feat). Back to the hood we went, but this time it was now dark.

I have to admit, even I was a little weary of the situation now.

Luckily we got in and out and no one was shot.

First thing I did was clean the filth and grime (and whatever else) off of these bad boys. Then I filled in some holes with some wood putty and reattached some trim.

I then used my well-loved Homeright Finish Max Pro and sprayed on two coats of Plaster Paint's Sweet Cream.

About a year ago I saw these vintage bookcases on Craigslist that had tons of potential but needed a lot of work.

I removed the back panel of all three cabinets and painted on two coats of a 50/50 mixture of Plaster Paint's Ocean Breeze and Seaside.

I reattached the backs to the shelves, and then gave the entire piece a coat of Paste Wax.

I also spray painted the original handles in Design Master's Antique Gold.

To see the finished bookcase click on the link down below!

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2 of 157 comments

Gladys on Dec 06, 2015
I applaud your vision and the rescue of these bookcases.

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Ann Nickolson on Aug 11, 2022

Gorgeous bookcases and I loved the story.

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