r/CozyPlaces • u/verticalsport • Jul 15 '24
COZY NOOK Upgraded my book nook with a built-in shelf
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Jul 15 '24
[deleted]
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u/Guilty-Vegetable-726 Jul 15 '24
Love it, but that level of cord management cannot be tolerated.
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Jul 15 '24
Opportunity existed during build to hide cabling or provide alternate outlets, shame it was overlooked
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u/kadkadkad Jul 15 '24
That would drive me absolutely nuts. Why aren't we living in a completely wireless world yet. Cables = rage.
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Already had a pretty cozy nook, but I've always wanted to put in an actual built in. And recently I did! I learned a ton doing it; unfortunately the main thing I learned was "I really need a table saw if I'm going to do that again."
Now I just need some more books to fill up the extra shelf space!
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u/Hi_Trans_Im_Dad Jul 15 '24
Don't think we don't see you're hiding that gap up top! Didn't get your moulding in? /s
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u/JewcieJ Jul 15 '24
You don't happen to have a guide you followed to build this? Would love to make something like it for my wife, but knowing me I'd miss a crucial step if I tried to wing it.
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u/LTYUPLBYH02 Jul 15 '24
Wild despite the bookshelf taking up physical space, it truly looks roomier & cozier. Well done.
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u/ufofarm Jul 15 '24
Nice looking nook. I get the baseboard and don't have any ideas, but my eye went straight to it.
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u/PurnieKitten Jul 15 '24
What am I missing? Why doesn't the baseboard go to the end of the "wall"? It really bothers me!😕 Otherwise, great job and I would like one also, please. 😊
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u/ufofarm Jul 15 '24
You can see in pic #8, part of the shelving unit goes out farther than the base of the cabinet. I would have found another solution.
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Yeah, I really liked having that little overhang at the bottom, and didn't realize it created this secondary issue until it was too late. I'm sure there are solutions, I'm just not a good enough woodworker to know what they are
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u/BananaCarbonara Jul 15 '24
I would recommend bringing the sides of the bookshelf all the way down to the floor. In your case the overhang is more important in the middle than the sides. If the front side went down all the way you could bring the base board all the way to the end hiding the seam. At this point you may just want to leave it as is or experiment adding spare wood and covering it with a longer base board. Either way, lovely space!
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Yeah, I couldn't figure out how to make it look better (at my skill level, anyway). I tried it at the full width and it also looked off. I think really I need to cut an end piece at a 45 degree miter so that it's trim all the way without the end grain showing, but...that's hard to do when all I've got is a handheld circular saw
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u/CORN___BREAD Jul 15 '24
A miter box with hand saw is like $16 on Amazon and would work perfectly to do the end miters to cover the end grain. I wouldn’t recommend it if you were doing a house full of trim because it’s a lot more work than an electric miter saw but for two cuts it’s not bad.
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u/Desperate-Ant-2341 Jul 15 '24
Where did you get your globe lamp??? WOW
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Thanks! It was a lucky antique store find--haha the vendor hadn't even had it out long enough to set the price yet when I said I'd like to buy it
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u/StitchTheRipper Jul 15 '24 edited Jul 15 '24
That’s how I got my globe lamp!
edit: got mine at an estate sale, not an antique shop.
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u/SinaSyndrome Jul 15 '24
I really hope the next antique store I go to has a globe lamp.
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u/StitchTheRipper Jul 15 '24
Ahh, I am fronting a little bit. I got it at an estate sale, but I swiped it up immediately. This was my find:
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u/ssandrine Jul 15 '24
Everyone is loving the globe lamp(it's great) but I am obsessed with that corner lamp!
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u/cleveland_leftovers Jul 15 '24
I can’t tell you how many times I flipped between the before and after. Truly stunning!
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u/Aselleus Jul 15 '24
Extra points for matching the wall color. Looks great!
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Thanks! Haha it was pretty easy to do since I also painted the wall a couple years ago, actually had enough leftover paint for this project sitting around.
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u/TheRedditAppSucccks Jul 15 '24
Love it looks so comfortable. I also have this chair though and actually don’t find it that comfy. I’m sure you do though.
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
I wish it could be better, tbh, but the upgrades I have found at stores are like, WAY more expensive. I find that having the footstool helps a ton, though! Could be worth a shot
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u/rjnd2828 Jul 15 '24
This was my first thought. Great reading space, obviously a lot of time and care went into the bookshelf. But I can't sit on a Poang from Ikea for very long without it being uncomfortable.
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u/Aselleus Jul 15 '24
I too had the same chair and found that it wasn't a great reading/comfy chair. I gave it away to a friend who loves it.
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u/TheRedditAppSucccks Jul 15 '24
I want to replace mine but my area is small and I’m not sure what to put in its place. Did you get another?
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u/Aselleus Jul 15 '24
Yes, but it's still not comfy enough since it's too small to really curl up in (It's a recliner from the 80s). ..but I don't use it as much as I'd like since I tend to throw my clothes on it lol. I really want a la-z-boy recliner, but they are massive. One day ha.
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
I was wandering around a furniture store and happened on a Stressless recliner, it was so comfy I thought it would be perfect! Until I looked at the price tag and had to go sit back down for a while. Maybe one day, like you say
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u/TheRedditAppSucccks Jul 15 '24
Me too they are the dream reading chair! Sigh so tricky to get a really comfy reading set up.
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u/Aselleus Jul 15 '24
Yess. I also like to have my legs elevated above my body (not for medical reasons I just like to sit weird), so a lot of recliner foot rests only go so high ... So basically I want a la-z-boy that's also a gravity chair.
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u/grilledcheesybreezy Jul 15 '24
Thats because this is the thin version of the chair. You could easily fall asleep in the Ikea Poang chair that I have
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u/khkokopelli Jul 15 '24
Love this so much! You’ve taken a dead space that most people would stick a plant in or something and turned into a magical, useful space!!!
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u/the_real_nicky Jul 15 '24 edited Jul 15 '24
How comfy are those IKEA chairs? Literally my favourite chair lol
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u/Micks_Mom Jul 15 '24
You are a genius. I have a spot exactly like this in my house and now I’m going to do this with it
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
Do it! It was such a fun project...mostly, if I was to do it again I would try really hard to borrow or rent a brad nailer instead of trying to use a hammer in small awkward spaces
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u/Some_Difficulty9312 Jul 15 '24
That was an awesome upgrade indeed. Love everything I see. Great job!
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u/SaXaCaV Jul 15 '24
That's a great lamp. This is a pretty inspiring post, I have a wall like this in my office.
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u/Broad_Vermicelli_993 Jul 15 '24
I thought it was a massive steak in the first picture. Looks great OP.
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u/Creative_Catch_8782 Jul 15 '24
Can u actually build this without having any major tools ? Because I don't have the space or the budget for it can so I still do it ?
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u/verticalsport Jul 15 '24
I mean, as some other commenters have caught on it's a bit slapdash once you start looking at the details, but totally! I did this with a handheld circular saw, a speed square, a power sander, one 36" bar clamp, and a hammer nails and glue. Having better tools would let it be neater, and would have taken a *lot* less time, but as long as you're somewhat thoughtful about how you do it it's totally possible
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u/WolverineBackground7 Jul 15 '24
Nice job, space looks great & the chair is super comfortable. Might want to set a timer when you sit down to read. I have the same chair & have fallen asleep quite often.
Check out thrift (goodwill, St Vincent DePaul, church ministries) stores for books. Lots of people donate brand new books
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u/VadimH Jul 15 '24
The skirting not going to the end or all the way around would drive me insane lol
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u/Any-Engine-7785 Jul 15 '24
Wow you had great vision to see that and execute. Well done. I’m jealous.
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u/Horror-Earth4073 Jul 15 '24
Make sure to check out your locally owned bookstore and local library (mine does yearly clean out book sales)!
Love your paint color and great DIY.
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u/neonghost0713 Jul 15 '24
I love it!! Personally (and this is just what -I- would do, because of how I am and how my individual family works, this is not a criticism of your work) I would have added more shelves behind and a bit recessed into the wall if that’s possible and an adjustable ceiling lamp. Chargers and a shelf with decently high lip for a coffee.
I love what you did and I’m gonna try to make something like this at my new place.
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u/dactyif Jul 15 '24
Looks really cozy, is there is a design choice for why the baseboard didn't go to the end of the bookshelf?
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u/mahranaka Jul 15 '24
I also always find myself instantly filling up new bookshelf's and essentially already needing a new one :D
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u/portalpro14 Jul 15 '24
Sorry but I first thought the legrest was made of meat. And yes I am hungry.
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u/solmyr Jul 15 '24
Because of this post I've been saying "book nook" constantly at home and I got in trouble with the wife :D
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u/krissyskayla1018 Jul 15 '24
This is absolutely gorgeous. I could sit and read here for days. If you are looking for a recliner you should check out your buy nothing and marketplace on Facebook. I always see people giving away chairs when they get a new furniture set. You did an awesome job!
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u/FlyInMyHair Jul 15 '24
I’m envious . My book shelf is falling apart, also filled with random kid’s toys & my cat took a dog sized shit on one of the middle shelves bc I changed the litter. So this is a dream for me.
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u/Mobitron Jul 15 '24
Gorgeous work. That paint color is perfect for a nook. I feel like I could comfortably spend hours right there.
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u/vtccasp3r Jul 15 '24
Now you sit in the shelf because it is so close and you dont even see the glowing globe from there.
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u/Ulysei Jul 15 '24
Where did you get your footstool?
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u/verticalsport Jul 17 '24
I actually made that too! just some scrap wood and foam, some legs from the hardware store, and some free fabric off the local buy nothing project page. Which apparently everyone thinks looks like meat XD It's a red and white pastoral scene print, though I see how that maybe doesn't come through in the photos
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u/StinkyRose89 Jul 15 '24
Thanks for including the "before" photo. What a creative project. It turned out beautifully!
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u/generalaesthetics Jul 15 '24
Could you have spackled the seam ??
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u/verticalsport Jul 17 '24
Probably lol, I still probably will go back and do that someday. Some of the nail holes need more filler and better sanding too, I was just tired of the room being such a disaster that I skipped some of the last steps for now
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u/Tammylmj Jul 16 '24
What shade of minwax is that? On pic #6 I could make out pecan. But not the first word.
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u/verticalsport Jul 17 '24
Gloss pecan! Which honestly I don't know that I'd use if I did it again, I think this would have been better with wipe on oil finish or similar, but I tried to be lazy about it. Oh well, it still turned out fairly okay (and will be mostly hidden with books anyway)
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u/Tammylmj Jul 24 '24
I think it’s just beautiful. But of course I see it as picture so it probably does look a little different in person. We have a home improvement store near me that has samples on display. So I think now that I know the name of the color, I will check it out. Thank you for your reply.
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u/BayRadbury34 Jul 16 '24
Looks great! Reading lamp is amazing too! What are the two top paintings if you don’t mind?
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u/verticalsport Jul 17 '24
Antique store finds, so I don't have a ton of info alas. The left one is a (I'm assuming reproduction) watercolor landscape, the right one is a print of I think Westminster Abbey in the style of like an 18th century woodcut.
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u/Necessary_Bag9538 Jul 16 '24
Looks amazing and I want to curl up with a book in a book nook Right Now!!🤩😍
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