Building An Enchanting Book Nook

Welcome to the 724th Metamorphosis Monday! Hope you had a fabulous weekend! I got a bit of disappointing news on Friday–the drywall company that was supposed to start the drywall process in the unfinished side of the basement this week is putting me off for a couple of weeks. At the last minute, he had a huge job come in, a customer who is having him smooth out all the ceilings throughout her whole home. Here where I live, a lot of older homes have these stippled ceilings with a flower-like pattern. You can see what I mean in this photo taken in my entry below. I’ve never been crazy about this style of ceiling, would much prefer a smooth ceiling myself.

Entry Foyer, Grandfather Clock, Shell Niche

 

I can’t blame my drywall guy for not turning down a big job. I guess the customer needed it done right away. He wanted to reschedule for the 27th but that date isn’t good for me, so now we’re planning for early January.

It has been raining almost constantly here for the past week or so. I’m so over rain now and would love a few days of sunshine, but the forecast shows more headed our way later in the week. With all this rain, it’s been the perfect time to start on my little booknook that arrived yesterday.

 

You may remember in my recent gift suggestion post , I mentioned that I had ordered one of these adorable book nook kits.

 

I’ve always admired these enchanting little book nooks and love how they look tucked in between books on a shelf. ♥ This is the one I purchased and you’ll find it (along with several other designs) here: Book Nook for Bookshelf.

 

When my kit arrived, this was what I found inside: instructions, little book covers to be cut out, the electrical wiring for the lighting, and the wood pieces that make up the little nook.

Bookshelf Booknook Kit

 

I got off to a rocky start–a crazy series of missteps. It took me a while to figure out which piece was my starting wall.

 

Then I proceeded to glue these two tiny shelves on the wall, upside down–and I did it with super glue so there was no changing it! You would think I would have noticed after the first shelf, but nope! I did it with both shelves! Arghhh!

 

I guess I was tired since it was pretty late when I got started. Fortunately, I had stain markers on hand so I just stained the top surface of the shelves and now they look fine.

 

Just when I thought I was really getting the hang of it, I reached for a little bag that held the tiniest screws you’ve ever seen in your life–screws that are needed to attach a tiny hinge on a little door on one of the walls. I had forgotten that I hadn’t snapped the bag back closed, so the 4 minuscule screws went flying. It took me 15 minutes with a flashlight to find them all. I’m amazed I found them that quickly since they are about the size of a crumb. lol After that, things started to go a lot more smoothly.

 

Before I ever got started, I found several videos on YouTube showing step-by-step how to build this specific book nook. If you purchase this book nook and you’ve never done one before (like me) you’ll find the videos here: Eternal Bookstore Videos. The top two videos at that link are the ones I watched and bookmarked for future reference.

I want to share a couple of tips I found helpful in the videos and in the reviews for these kits online. As you punch out the little wood pieces, there will be a couple of rough spots where they were originally attached. The kit comes with a little file to smooth out those rough spots. Afterward, I used my stain markers to touch up the lighter spots where they had been attached. (You can see one of those lighter spots on this tiny piece below that was designed to prop up the tiny book on the shelf.) If you don’t have stain markers, I very much recommend them. They are awesome for touching up scratches on furniture. You’ll find some here: Wood Stain Markers for Touchups and here: Wood Marker for Touchups.

Booknook Kit Tip

 

Another tip: I found it helpful to write in pencil the number of the piece on the back of each piece as I punch them out. If you’ve punched out several pieces, that helps to make sure you’re using the correct piece when you start assembling them. So here’s my progress so far. Despite my initial hiccups, I had so much fun with this kit! For glue, I mostly used Aleene’s Tacky Glue which looks white when it first comes out, but dries clear. It’s available here: Aleene’s Tacky Glue. For a few spots, like the shelves, I used a tiny bit of super glue but I think the tacky glue would have worked just fine if you don’t mind waiting a few minutes for it to set up. I was impatient and wanted to go ahead and place the picture on the shelf (as seen below) so that’s why I used super glue for the two little shelves.

 

Progress on my Booknook Kit

 

Another glue I saw recommended in a video is Uhu Glue. I purchased some last night and it should arrive in about a week, but I may be done by then. I still thought it would be good to have it on hand because I think I’ll be making more of these cute nooks in the future. You’ll find Uhu Glue here: Uhu Glue.

Progress on my Booknook Kit

 

Here are the remaining pieces I’ll be working with next. It’s like doing a 3-D puzzle and I’m really enjoying the process–when I’m not dropping stuff and gluing it on upside down. Ha!

Bookshelf Booknook Kit, Bookshelf Decoration

 

I’ll share this adorable book nook once it’s done. I already have a couple of spots in mind for where I’m going to place it once it’s finished. Have you ever put together a little book nook? If so, where did you place yours once it was completed? Have a particular book nook brand that you really love? Would love to hear about your experience with making these!

Looking forward to all the great Before and Afters linked for this week’s Met Monday!

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Comments

  1. Wow Susan this is an amazing piece. Of course I’ve seen shadowboxes, but nothing like this for a bookshelf. Love those gorgeous walls. It feels a bit like you’d need to be a rocket scientist to put it together though. Have a wonderful “week before Christmas”!!

    • It’s a little intimidating when you first unbox it but I always feel like that whenever I tackle something I’ve never done before…then later I realize it’s not that hard at all. Mostly this book nook is just time-consuming, partially because I tend to be a perfectionist. I’m sure most folks wouldn’t take the time to sand off the rough places and restain those spots. But I want it to look its best when it’s finished. I saw somewhere, maybe in a review, that it takes around 5 hours to make. There’s no way I could do it in that length of time. It took me over an hour today to just cut out all the book covers and I still haven’t finished. It will probably take 3 hours just to make all the books. Per the instructions, there are around 75 books. I’m just going to take my time, it’s okay if it takes until Christmas. 🙂
      Same to you…Merry Christmas, Debra!
      XXX

  2. Tina W Reynolds says

    Our area has also had rain and thick clouds for 8 days. Unrelenting! And I am also waiting for a delayed project. My project is the complete resurfacing of our old cast iron bathtub. Our house was built in 1886. You read that correctly. The bathrooms were installed in 1927. The bathtub is simply too heavy to be removed and carried down the stairway and disposed of, plus new tubs are terribly expensive if you want a big heavy tub. So, we are going on the adventure of having it resurfaced. My job is now scheduled for December 29th! I will barely have the china put away from Christmas dinner! LOL! The process used on the tub will be smelly, although they have a ventilation process, and, we won’t be able to use the tub for 24-48 hours. Ah, the joys of homeownership! After it is finished, we can work on the painting in that room, and we are installing a new sink/cabinet. The old pedestal sink is beyond help. As the kids would say, I am “so over” the pedestal. Cleaning around it is tough since it is situated in a corner. I have to get down on the floor and reach around. *ugh*. I know we will rejoice when we have the under-sink storage, too, having never had that in our entire married life. Yes, even our first little house had a pedestal sink! Your projects have inspired me and given me motivation!

    • Tina, your home sounds wonderful to me…I love old homes! Let me know how the resurfacing goes, that sounds amazing! Your tub is probably way better made than any you could buy today.
      I’m with you on pedestal sinks, I love the storage under a sink with a cabinet too much to give that up. When I renovate my bathrooms, I’ll def be going with another cabinet style sink.

  3. That book nook is the cutest thing! I’d never heard of these before you mentioned them the other day, and they look like so much fun, and would make you smile every time you saw them on your shelf! Thanks for the tips – and for hosting the party, as always. Sorry about your renovations being pushed out, but I hope your holidays are fun so far!

    • Thanks, Barbara! Well, at least I don’t have to worry about all that going on right here at Christmas.
      I’m having fun with this litle nook. It’s def going to take some time to complete!
      Hope you are having a wonderful holiday month!
      XXX

  4. Beautiful piece, Susan … wouldn’t it be great to have the real thing? …. a wonderful, cozy place to read with a pot of tea. But your house is already so warm and inviting with lots of cozy spots! Have a safe and blessed Christmas, Susan!

    • Thanks so much, Marlene! I love the idea of a cozy library. Actually, if I had a large enough dining room, my dream would be to have a fireplace and bookcases allll the way around, except maybe leaving enough room for a sideboard…and of course windows. Then I could dine and have cozy dinner parties with friends in front of the fire surrounded by beautiful books. I love dining rooms that do double duty as a library. There just needs to be enough room for a couple of cozy reading chairs in front of the fire. 🙂

  5. Hi Susan, this is not about your post. I sent you an email because I know you use The Laundress detergent and there has been a recall on some of it due to the risk of contamination from bacteria. The details are in my email I sent today. I know you get a lot of emails so I wanted to get a message to you where you might see it today.

  6. The book nooks are so cute. I make dollhouse miniatures and even if I make my own design believe me I know about upside down an d spewing minuscule part all over the floor. In the early ‘1960’s we built our first house and those bumpy ceilings were becoming all the rage. The plasterer tried to talk me into them but I disliked them from the start. I especially did not want them in a Cape Cod house. Guess what, 14 years later we had to move and our new house, only two years old, had ceiling exactly like you have in your entry. I still don’t like them. If you are coming to Ohio I hope you get here between the storms. Take care.

    • Wow, that’s wonderful Mary Lou! I can imagine making it from scratch. I was just watching a YouTuber make a book nook and she made everything completely from scratch, including cutting all the wood. She did use stickers for the covers of the books she made, but she made over 700 books! I can’t imagine making that many!
      I would love to have all my ceiling made smooth. The drywaller has some special way of doing it that he says doesn’t create as much dust as you would expect. I may get him to do that in one room just to see how it turns out. Yikes. I def won’t drive up if there’s a storm brewing, even though my SUV is 4-wheel drive. I don’t like driving in bad weather. Thanks for the warning, I’ll check the weather first before I head that way.

  7. How cute and fun! I had never heard of them and must have missed that post. Now I”m intrigued….but I might be intimidated by all the pieces. Something to think about….I have lots of books…..and decorate with them.

  8. This is so cool Susan! I’ve never heard of them until you talked about them. The book nooks are adorable and will be so cute in a library or on a book shelf. It looks like fun to put together as well. Good idea about the touch up markers. Can’t wait to see this all done! Hugs, Brenda

  9. Thanks so much for hosting this delightful party each and every week!! I really appreciate the time and effort that goes into it along with visiting all the links and choosing Features!!! Thank You!! Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
    Hugs,
    Deb

  10. It’s called “stippling” on your ceiling. Not hard to remove, but it makes an awful mess. I absolutely run and hide from projects like you’re working on. If I must, I enlist my husband! You have great patience. Good luck.

    • Yup, that right. You had me wondering if I had called it the wrong thing, but I did call it a stippled ceiling. 🙂 The ideal thing would be to have it removed before ever moving in. Once you’re living in a home, makes it a lot tougher due to the mess.

  11. Bobbi Duncan says

    Susan, I love your book nook! I’ve enjoyed creating scenes w/ miniatures since I was a teenager. I’ve made several Christmas ones, an old general store, two toy shops, and a very detailed Victorian dollhouse. This year I’m hoping to find someone who can build the type of Santa house & workshop I’d like so I can decorate it w/ items I’ve been collecting for some time. I may have to build it myself, but steaming wood to create sloped multi-roofing isn’t something I think I’d do very well. I can’t wait to see your finished project that is just too cute. Hugs and a very “Merry Christmas” incase we don’t speak before the holidays.

  12. Hi Susan, what a fun project….good for hunkering down in rainy weather with! We are expecting a mix of just about everything up North here…sleet, wind, rain, snow…good thing I stocked up on food! No need to go out there, hoping it will be a pretty white wonderland when all is done. Your little shelves reminded me of my own shelf….currently (and permanently) hanging upside down in our half bath. It is an antique, with a beautiful patina, and handmade by someone with an eye for whimsical supports…enuf whimsy that I didn’t know which way was up! I decided to say I hung it that way deliberately. 🙂

  13. Cleo Rubens Headley says

    Oh my gosh, what a project you are doing…..you find the most unususal things to make !! I know it will be wonderful when done and you’ll probably need some prozac……
    Merry Christmas Susan…….

    Cleo

  14. Cheryl Frizzell says

    Thanks for sharing your Booknook tips and progress! I would be careful and meticulous like you to ensure a beautiful end result. Keep up the great work; hope you’re watching a good movie while working on all those itty bitty books!

  15. Well, I never! Aren’t those just the coolest things ever?? Love it. Can’t wait to see the finished project.

    Sorry about drywall guy – some things happen for a reason. Maybe he will be way less stressed out in late Jan. and will do an ever better job. Christmastime is crazy and people get over booked – and they get tired and irritable. Maybe you got lucky, right?

    It’s rained here for a few days and I just wish it were snow! This is a very warm Christmas for us – so I am dreaming of a white Christmas for sure. Who knows, could happen, right?

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