We started this project last January, but got pretty swept up in a busy year and essentially forgot about it. When the weather started to chill out and the autumn beer popped back up in the stores, I quickly remembered one of my favorite little hobbies.
I don't think I could have built this bookshelf on my own, though I have no doubt an experienced carpenter could whip this up in no time. The angle cuts were actually made by using a protractor, making them not the straightest, and I definitely worried at several points that this project was going to end up a mess.
Thankfully, there was no need to worry, because I love it! I am very happy with this build, even it did technically take 11 months…
For the plans head over to Ana White's awesome site. Fair warning though: after building your own furniture you're going to start being horribly disappointed with the quality of things you pick up at the store!
A few thoughts:
- Paint pre-assembly, it's much easier that way! Just don't paint the actual shelf sides until assembled –it's a tight squeeze when sliding them in, a layer of paint certainly wouldn't help.
- I didn't like the look of the very rounded corners that are included in the plans, so instead of jigsawing the shelf edges as recommended, I simply sanded them down a bit.
- Pocket hole jigs are pretty sweet.
