The family room updates continue ... with the Billy bookcase hack that we've all seen on social media a thousand times. These bookcases are super cheap from Ikea, like $50 per case. And when we remodeled the kitchen, I planned to do a built-in right here, but, hello , I'm not a woodworker, so I moved these Billy bookcases in and would "eventually" get to build them in using the hack. Now is the time. I thought through this process thoroughly. I made a million plans and watched a bunch of videos. But, I know there is nothing better than just getting to it. It's like a giant puzzle. A few decisions I had to make quickly: removing the carpet vs. ON the carpet. I decided to remove. One, because it would help make things level. Two, the base wood was a little taller than I wanted. And last we found a FRIGGIN DEAD MOUSE under the shelf on the left, so the carpet was gross there. It had to go. (I will have nightmares about that thing for years! I ate dinner the night ...
I spend a lot of time in the family room, especially Sundays during the NFL season, and I have longed to make big updates to the space. But with the realities of my budget, most are well out of reach. So I've been on a quest to make inexpensive changes that have a big impact -- and I'm shocked to find there are a lot I can do. First up, here's a list of the big expensive projects that I'd love to do with their estimates. But they'll have to wait for a lottery win, and brain space to figure out the exact solution tbh, such as ... Replace the fireplace box with something that works or looks more modern. I used sandpaper to tone down the gold and try to keep it as tidy as possible, but it's still a little too obtrusive. And it's basically a spider colony. ($1,000 or more depending on what's possible, and what's broken) Replace the wall to wall carpet that's old and stained, but otherwise in OK shape. We'd love to do a wood floor similar to t...