built ins Archives - A Dabbled Dwelling

We recently moved to a new house with paneling and built in shelving in the living room. I was so excited for the potential of those built in shelves, but I wasn’t thrilled with the look of the original shelves. The shelves were oddly placed and prone to looking cluttered. I wanted a cleaner, more cohesive look.

The Easiest Built In Shelves Ever

I had some red oak boards that were going to be perfect for this project. The wood is so warm and the color is just beautiful. My plan was to use a 1×6 for the shelf and a 1×4 to trim out the front. First things first, I cut my wood to size with my miter saw using straight edges.

Next I took the wood I cut into the house and set it on the 1x2s that I had screwed into the wall studs at my desired height. I used my nail gun to attach the boards to the supports, and then again to attach the 1x4s to the front of the shelf. The 1×4 on the front acts as a trim and gives the shelf a more finished look.

Woman puts board on shelf supports on wall

Built In Shelf Success

I absolutely love how these built in shelves turned out. They have a classic look and really finish off that wall of the living room. I styled them with my favorite decor and the room looks so much more complete and whole. Adding shelves is a super easy and fast fix for any room! Click here to see me build these shelves as part of my fireplace makeover.

Oh hi! It’s been minute! Truthfully I was a bit burnt out on blogging after the Jeffrey Court Renovation Challenge (THAT I WON!) However, the projects have not stopped and today I’ve got a good one for you- DIY Master Closet Built ins!

Our master closet has been a disaster for the last year and I had been putting off any and all organization in preparation for this project.

builder grade empty master closet photo to show what it looked like before this DIY project — Closet Before

The Built in Build

The plan for this space was to create something a little more custom looking while keeping it affordable. I knew I wanted some his and hers built-ins and my husband requested a bench. Typically we use drawer storage and only hang up “nice” clothing but there was one problem… I’m too scared to build drawers. I knew drawers would take me an eternity, cost more in materials than it was worth, and it would be very likely that I wouldn’t get them perfectly square. So IKEA to the rescue! Even though 2 MALM drawers took me 4 hours to build it was still a huge time saver as opposed to building from scratch. I removed the baseboards for the drawer units to sit flush against the wall and screwed the back of them into the wall studs.

Next, I went to work cutting some 1/2 inch plywood to build the “towers” that would go on top of my Ikea cheat. In hindsight I think 3/4 inch plywood would have been a better choice. I cut a back panel and 2 side panels for each tower. To assemble I screwed the back panel into the wall studs. Then screwed the side panels into the edge of the back panel as well as into the top of the drawers with pocket holes.

After trim and finishing work like caulk and hole filling, it was time for paint!

Ikea 3 drawer dresser in the closet with long handles taped out — Ikea Malm drawer

Woman cuts plywood sheets with a jigsaw in messy garage work shop — Cutting my plywood

woman drills plywood panels into each other to create a tower for hanging clothing on top of the Ikea dressers — Assembling the tower

A dabbled dwelling DIYer poses with master closet built-ins in their raw wood form — before trim and finishing work

master closet built ins after finishing work, trim, and a small floating bench in between — Small bench added in between the towers

Going Moody With Paint

I really wanted to try something new in this space and a closet seems like a safe place to do so. I decided to use the dark blue/gray paint color called “Ocean Swell” by Behr from our Master Bedroom accent wall to tie the 2 primary spaces together. Then I covered only the floors as I prepped to paint the entire space from the ceiling down with my faithful Wagner paint sprayer.

Because I was going for a monochrome look, I literally painted everything inside the closet. At one point I even sprayed the door knob and realized I couldn’t get out! I was definitely nervous going outside my comfort zone to a moodier vibe with this dark paint.

woman poses and laughs in a white paint suit with hood — Excited about the goofy paint suit

master closet built ins getting sprayed a dark color with a paint sprayer

closet door, trim, and door knob with wet paint — Painted EVERYTHING- even the doorknob!

master closet and built ins after paint and new gold chandelier — Finished paint job and new light fixture

The Finished Master Closet Built Ins

The style risk certainly paid off with this masculine finished look. Including a DIY upholstered bench cushion, inexpensive wood appliqués on the mirror, gold hardware, and wood accents.

Finished closet straight on with wicker baskets, wood hangers, gold mirror, and leather bench cushion

right side view of finished closet with wood accordion style hat rack

left side view of finished closet built ins

Master closet filled with clothes after DIY project completion

The Budget Breakdown

As always I aim to be transparent about DIY projects. The goal was to keep this as affordable as possible. If budget wasn’t as much of a factor, I would have opted for more built ins. These are super close estimates as I need to do a better job at keeping my receipts… So what do you think this one cost me?

Ikea Malm Dressers (2): $200
2 Sheets of 1/2 Inch Plywood: $100
2 Gallons of Behr Cabinet and Trim Enamel Paint: $100
Facial Trim: $20
Drawer Hardware: $20
Mirror & Appliques: $27
Misc. supplies (screws, caulk, wood filler, ect.): $20

Estimated Total: $487

*Note: I didn’t include the accessories (LINKED BELOW) that aren’t permanent to the space such as the baskets, hat rack, and hangers. I also already had the light fixture as a spare.