A unique homemade custom bookcase for next to the mantelpiece, by Erik

Making a custom piece of furniture doesn't have to be very difficult, especially if you choose to order your cutting work online. In this project, Erik demonstrates how he made a beautiful and unique custom bookcase from MDF and birch plywood.

Omschrijving van Erik

My first DIY project: a custom-made bookcase in a niche of a chimney. Made up of blocks of 18mm MDF and blanks of 40mm birch plywood.

Hoe ik dit project gemaakt heb

I was inspired by another project on the website. As a first step, I made the square blocks from 18mm primed MDF. For the connections, I used biscuits and pocket screws, so there are no drill holes on the visible sides. The end grain was finished with edge sealer and 2 layers of primer. Then everything was finished with 2 layers of lacquer. For the shelves, I used 40mm birch plywood. I cut the sides that adjoin the chimney at an angle with a circular saw. That was quite tricky because the width at the back and front were not equal (old house); my Hultafors tape measure came in handy. I gave the front small roundings with the router. Then everything was treated with 2 layers of Osmo hardwax oil. For attaching the square blocks to the shelves, I used dowels and Titebond wood glue, so there are no screw holes visible. I'm quite proud of the end result for my first project.

Afmetingen van mijn DIY project

Approximately 235.0 cm high and 90.0 cm wide (top)