Living Room Transformation Built in Bookcase Fireplace Surround

By Laura in COLLEYVILLE, TX.

Winning Category

My sister had just bought a new house and really need help with her living room with lacked personality. One lonely fireplace with tile around it. With no professional background in wood working (I did not even own a table saw for this project), added a fireplace surround complete with stacked stone and a very large built in Media Bookcase. This bookcase was over 100" tall after it was complete. I built in three separate sections which enable me to spray most of it with Snow white milk paint prior to installing. The fireplace an trim was hand painted, but with milk paint you don’t have to prime the wood. This made it much easier that if I had used any other product. I top coated both the fireplace surround and built in with HPTC. There was a lot of trial and error and it was a very long project taking me about 4 months. Keep in mind my sister lived over 40 minutes away, most of the building was at my house and I could only work on it in my spare time. Had I used any other paint for this project it simply would have taken me at least a few more weeks. WHY.? Because latex would need to cure for 14 days before top coating and oil based paint takes forever to dry (and you wont get a pure white). Milk paint can be top coated almost immediately...and again NO primer needed on raw wood! By far the biggest project I have ever taken, but the final product was simply amazing for someone who had never really built anything. 

Products Used

  • Snow White Milk Paint
  • High Performance Top Coat

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