My Very First (Completed) DIY

So, I am fabulous at beginning a DIY project and letting my husband or parents be the "yourself" part (at least when it comes to big projects).  I am typically the one with all the ideas and the start up... but not so much finish to it. Until now!

As you may know by now, we live in a very cozy little 1 bedroom apartment.  Space is like gold, so using it efficiently is essential.  I tried to throw things we no longer needed away, but somehow piles of papers started to accumulate.  With classes, bills, and all sorts of other stuff, it was no wonder our little file box was not fitting the bill.

I was not at all happy about the idea of having our cute little home dominated by an uglier-than-brown file cabinet. I started looking for alternatives. It was then I came across this idea on Pinterest.  My parents had offered us an old file cabinet, so the wheels started turning...

While it looks better than the icky brown file cabinet, it still wasn't something I particularly cared for, so I started my usual brainstorming and found this image.

So, I compromised. For the price of the first and as close as I could get to the look of the second, this is what happened:

(excuse the poorly made bed)

Just sayin... for a relative shot in the dark idea, I'm pretty proud of how it turned out

As far as step by step goes:

I measured the dimensions of the cabinet, made a quick trip to Lowe's, to pick up some bead board and trim . The salesman that helped me suggested using those little corner pieces because I didn't have a special saw to mitre (?) the corners with.  I used (A LOT of) Elmer's carpenter glue to attach the beadboard and let it sit with clamps on over night.  Then added the trim in the morning and it was ready to caulk that evening.

I used white Rustoleum spray paint so it would stick to the metal and wood and not scratch with every little thing I set on it.  Overall, I am super happy with how it all turned out, I may try to add a rub to it down the road to make it look less white white, but for now it does its job and our space still feels like a home.

We decided to use it to replace my bedside table so our living room wouldn't look too furniture filled. It works perfectly, and no more paper piles :)

Anyway, this guy is about as subtle as a gun when its time for his walk, so please enjoy the post, and have a happy Tuesday! :)