Alma Update: Media + Storage
May 9, 2011
Hey everybody, hope you moms had a relaxing Mother’s Day! Last week, I spent a few hours constructing a media and storage center for our Alma Project. I struggled for weeks on how to accomplish this task, at first scouring thrift stores and Craigslist for bookcases with no luck. Why is it so hard to find two solid wood matching bookcases these days? I contemplated either going to IKEA or having them built, but the bid came in at $400 which I was not willing to spend.
My parents came to the rescue. They moved all their belongings last week and they happened to have two solid bookcases they didn’t need anymore since they’re downsizing, so they generously donated them to this project.
To create the new media center, I reused the existing TV stand and paired it with the donated bookshelves, one on each side. Then I purchased two new pressboard shelves for the top and between the bookcases. I primed the pieces, then assembled them all together and painted it all white to create one large wall unit. And we did it all for under $60 dollars.
Here is what the family room wall looked like a few weeks ago:
.
Here is the wall after we constructed a new media and storage center:
Fantastic right?
In the garage, I primed both the bookcases and the existing TV unit with my favorite primer, oil based Zinsser ‘Cover Stain’ while I chatted it up with the kids.
.
To the top and in between the bookshelves we attached pressboard shelves ($20) cut to our measured length, and secured the entire unit with ‘L’ brackets. I later painted the brackets to disguise them.
.
We trimmed the rough edges of the pressboard with wood molding, which cost me another $8. I primed and painted the entire unit with a new gallon of white paint ($25). I painted the back of the bookcases the same color as the wall to make them feel more open and airy. 
I also secured the entire unit to the studs in the wall so that any curious or climbing toddlers won’t be in danger of falling bookcases. It’s all very sturdy and solid which gives us great piece of mind, especially in earthquake territory.
Since we saved so much money on assembling the entire wall unit, I spent another $75 on baskets for storage at Michaels (they were 40% off).
.
A group from our church generously donated dozens of books to this project. Thank you Nina and Chris for rounding up such a wonderful library !
.
With baskets and books, the three families now have a place to house many of their belongings, and extra reading material for the younger children.
.
Haille is the oldest of the six kids living at our Alma House, here she is helping to install the butterfly motif above the entire unit. Haille is an amazing girl! She and I had a chance for a long talk while I primed the cabinets. She has excellent grades and wants to go into law enforcement, I am so proud of her!
.
The hub and I are so happy with the way this media center turned out.
We took this . . .
.
. . . and made this wall unit for under $60!
Next week, another family is donating a flat screen TV for the house to complete the unit. I was going to reattach the doors to the TV cabinet, but the moms in the house preferred the open shelving, so I left them off for now.
We’re so proud to have joined up with our local COTS (Committee on the Shelterless) to help improve the lives of these families with a new project we tackle each month. We thank each and every one of you who have generously donated to our Alma Project.
We’ve discovered a new problem with the foundation which may require up to $1,000 to fix, so any contributions to our project are welcomed!
More Alma House home improvements to come next month.
Thanks so much for all of your support!
xoxo,
.
Tags: alma project, bookcases, media center
Just a quick question as I was going over the pics again…did you paint the l brackets white to match?
I like the butterflies that you placed on the top and beside the clock. It’s simple white designs added accent to the white media center. Great job!
Hi Julie, yep! I painted right over them so the brackets blend in.
~ Kate
Hi Sarah, the back of those cabinets is a very thin board, I wouln’t say cardboard but very thin wood with seams in between. I did prime it and paint it and there is no buckling or bubbling of paint at all. Some of the final coat of the taupe paint needs touched up, but that primer really holds well to just about any surface.
~ Kate
Awesome as always my friend!! Love this idea — looks built in! We missed you tonight on the Skype! We have BIG plans that involve a beach. :)
I love, love, love your blog!
You did such a great job as usual! Can’t wait to see more! :)
Beautiful job Kate!
It looks awesome, Kate! You are really pulling out the stops for those families. Well done.
Kate…this looks so professional. You really did an awesome job! Look at all that great storage! Well done, my friend!
Ingenious and fabulous!
What you are doing is great. The improvements are fabulous!
Hi Kate, I love your blog and this new post is very inspirational, I live in Australia and I was wandering if there were similar projects here that I could join…. I am on a mission now to find out!!! I am a single Mum and work full time and have just started my own blog so I will have to find the time to squeeze something else in but I am inspired now. Thank you.
Kate, I love to blog and and glad to see what a giving couple you and your husband are. That was a great transformation! I wish I had your talent. The truth is that I’m afraid of hurting myself or others with saws and even exacto knives. lol This is such a great project to be involved with. I know someone that is temporarily homeless and instead of feeling sorry for herself she is at the local church, that helps the homeless to eat and help out. She is eating there to save money so they can fix their situation faster. She had been very depressed and just sleeping all day while living in a house. Now she is out helping others and praising God for good things. To me watching this transformation is such a miracle. God Bless you, her and all people that are helping others. Katharine
You did an amazing job Kate, it looks fantastic!
It looks fantastic, Kate! You are such an angel to the people living in the house. I love how it looks like a complete unit~
Looks amazing Kate!!!
xo,
cristin
a really fantastic job. major kudos to you for all that you are doing!
You are such an inspiration.
I love that you are doing the Alma House project! Where did you get the butterflies on the wall? Thank you!
This is so amazing! I can’t believe the transformation!
Kate, I’m the one who asked about painting the backing earlier. Thanks so much for your reply – I went for it with primer and paint, even though I think the backing of our shelves was more cardboard-y than yours, and succeeded! It took three coats of paint after the primer before I was convinced it was even, but it ended up great. No bubbling or buckling, as you said. Thanks again for the inspiration and your help!
me encancanta!!!!
Awesome! I am posting about this on DecorHacks.com next week.
What a great idea-hate spending money on things you can do yourself, and it looks great! You totally personalized the unit to match the space. So cute.