real living july 2009

I’ve been looking for a bookcase? shelf? whatever the current name of this thing is, for awhile now.  I like the sturdy look of theses shelves. cases?  I thought maybe I could find something similar at Ikea, since it reminds me of my expedit shelf but, nope, they discontinued whatever it was that they had that looked like this.  Anyone know of where I can get one similar, less than 40 inches wide and not a million dollars?

Let’s look at some recent bookcase projects for inspiration and to get my mind off of what I cannot find, shall we?

Life in Grace

Edie created this bookcase wall on a budget after reading about how Jenny from Little Green Notebook hacked $50 Ikea Billy bookcases into this::

Little Green Notebook

Stunning, no?

Here’s a during shot.  It’s a surprisingly easy process and if I had an expanse of wall, I’d be all over this.

Centsational Girl

Kate just finished a similar project, it’s life changing.

Centsational Girl During

Here’s her in process photo.  I love in process photos. They give me hope.

And who doesn’t love the shelves in the dining room at Young House Love?

Looking for more inspiration?  Check out I Suwannee’s Bookcase of the Day posts.

Have some bookcases/shelves you want to freshen up?  Take a cue from the current trends :

 

1. paint the bookcase white and the back an unexpected color pop

2. add details onto existing bookcases or line bookcases up for impact

3. keep it light and show off white ceramics

or

4. load it down with a huge collection of books

or

5. combine both 2 and 3

6. hang artwork on the bookshelf itself

and if anyone knows where I can find my dream shelf, let me know!