DIY Colorful Shelf

Do you have an old bookcase that you don’t really like anymore, yet you don’t want to part with it? I have had this cute little shelf unit sitting out in my garage for months and months. I didn’t want to part with it, but I knew it needed something (for me to love it enough) to put it in my house.

I love the cute little size of this shelf. I foresee turning it horizontally and using it above a desk or dresser. I knew it definitely needed some updating since the back was peeling off, so that is where I started. I transformed that old piece into a gorgeous new shelf that I just adore, and I want to share with you how I did it.

First off, I kicked off the back board and removed all the nails that were holding it in place.

Next, I cut some fill-it strip boards to replace the back of my shelf unit. I needed seven wood strips to fill my back. Depending on the size of your unit you might want to use wider/bigger boards, but you can use this same idea.

I found some of my favorite colors in my acrylic paint stash and roughly painted my fill-it strip boards. I didn’t worry about making it a nice even thick coat. I wanted it to be rough and a light coat, so stain would fill in the gaps latter.

You might be able to tell in the above picture that I even put two colors on some boards. The idea is just to add some color and life to the old piece!

Next, I sanded the shelf unit and roughly painted it with some white paint. I then stained everything with the same color stain.

I absolutely love the way color and stain work together to create a fun contrast. Beautiful! Finally, I arranged my fill-it strip boards in the order I wanted on the back of my shelf unit, and started hammering them in one at a time.

My shelf was then done! I love the way it turned out, and I can’t wait to style it up and use it!

Thank you so much for checking out my new shelf!  I hope you all are having a wonderful week!