Amazing Dresser to Shelf Conversion DIY Upcycle Project
by
MiniSteading
6 Materials
$60
3 Hours
Advanced
We are Doug and Ashley! We do everything ourselves and always seem to be working on something new. We are currently getting our house ready to sell because our goal is to move to a larger property in the country!
We recently found a dresser on the side of the street when I was driving. It is pretty beat up and simple but I was looking for a bookshelf for the living room for photo albums and since I love the color and style of the dresser I wanted to see what I could do with it.
I unloaded it and it definitely needs to be cleaned.
I also grabbed the broken down drawers to hopefully use as well.
I measured it out and it fit to size for a shelf conversions. It's about 19 inches deep and while I only need 12 inches. My couches are small and I don't want to it to tower over them so the first step is to cut it down to about 32 inches high.
I will pull the top part off carefully and cut some of the middle slats out so there can be room in the bookcase for storage.
The next step was removing the inner slats which I did with a saw. I pulled the pieces out and moved on to cut the actual dresser down to size.
Using a straight edge, I marked the exact line I was going to saw off.
I carefully moved the circular saw across the line and brought that piece outside.
Then, I put in the frame for the bookcase shelves in the hollow area of what used to be the dresser.
I sawed a backing for the bookcase and used a staple gun to secure it to the back of my new bookcase!
The former dresser needed a new color and finish, so I applied it liberally. Lastly, it sat and dried in my garage and finally was ready to be added to our living room!
Here it is next to our couches. It's the perfect size and brings so much to the room. The photo albums are neatly placed on the bottom shelf of the bookcase and we look forward to enjoying the photos!
It is quite amazing what can be done with an old dresser found on the side of the street. Love how this came out! Watch the video below to see the process in full detail and come check out our other projects on YouTube.
Follow us to see what we'll be working on next!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRKjjDhP3w2lnx3csu3G3aw
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Comments
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2 of 26 comments
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Great video & beautiful book shelf. It looks great in the space.
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Great job! The top part that you removed could be a bench!?!
Frequently asked questions
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What is the name of the product that was used for the top of the dresser prior to shellacking. You mentioned the word stain a few times in the discussion.
Nice makeover. Did you do anything with the base of the dresser? I immediately thought dog bed (or cat) for a small dog. If you can't use it, I'm sure a local shelter would love it!