DIY Black Backed Bookcase Using Contact Paper

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Good morning, friends! I hope you had a fantastic weekend. I went to the optometrist to finally get a new prescription for contact lenses. I was miserable and protecting my last pair of contacts like a pair of rare diamonds or something. I can see much more clearly now, and my headaches have subsided.

I spent an hour on Friday knocking this project out after I wrote about it last week, but I did restrain myself from adding the freehand gold dots. Perhaps it’d appear too busy with that plus all my decor, so for now it’s simply black.

The secret weapon in this makeover is not paint.

It’s some contact paper-esque product I bought for about $10. I didn’t want to use paint because I do eventually want to find the most perfect wallpaper for this bookcase. This is a temporary solution, but I do love the outcome.

My shelves are about 24″ wide, so rather than run the liner vertically and ending up with a huge seam, I ran it horizontally and used the shelves to hide the individual seams. The end result makes it look as if it’s all one piece. Clever, huh?

Here’s the before.

DIY Black Backed/Lined Bookcase

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 1 Hour

Supplies:

• Roll of Black Shelf Liner Paper
• Scissors
• Tape Measure
• Gift Card
• Straight Edge
• X-Acto Knife

Step 1: If your shelves are removable, remove them. This is a great time to dust your shelves and your cabinet. Keep your shelf supports in place because you’ll need them to get accurate measurements for step 2.

Step 2: Measure the width of your bookcase area. Mine was 23 3/8 inches wide. Now, as you can see I have my shelves at different heights. I measured from the top of that specific shelf’s area to where the shelf supports are. My top one was 14″ followed by 16″, 18″ and 17″ inches. I made the measurements on the back of my liner and cut my pieces out. I ended up with 8 pieces total.

I cut my first piece to 14″ by 23 3/8″ and put it into place. I stuck some decor up there to see how it all looked. As you can see, you can’t see the bottom edge because it’s covered by the shelf. Yay.

Also, the back of my bookcase is actually wood paneling, which of course has grooves, and this product just goes right over them making it look like a flat wall.

Step 3: Once you start adhering your rectangles, I suggest starting with peeling the upper left hand corner, getting that into place, then slowly peel off the rest of the backing and use your hand to put it into place. If you completely go crooked, just peel it off and try again. 

HOWEVER, if you get it too wrinkly, just discard the piece and cut a new one. The roll has plenty, so don’t fret over mishaps. You’ll likely end up with air bubbles, so use a gift card to smooth out the air bubble to the nearest edge.

Step 4: If you have excess on the edges, use a very sharp x-acto knife and a straight edge to cut away excess.

Step 5: Put the shelves back on, decorate and enjoy!

The black background makes the decor really pop and stand out. Increasing contrast is a great way to create interest when it comes to decor, and there’s no better way to do that than using black and white. If you love the prints featured below, you can find them here and here.

Even these totally non-glamorous books look fab on here.

I’m going to love decorating for the various seasons this year because I feel like I have a whole new bookcase. All for about an hour and $10- you can’t top that!

Do you all like this makeover? I still have a lot of magic cover paper left, so I’ll need to think up a few ideas to use it up. I actually have an idea already, so let’s hope I have some free time this week in the evenings to whip it up. 

My next post is scheduled to go live on Wednesday morning and it’ll be filled with tips for effortless end table styling. Have a great week, friends!

Linking up over at A Stroll Thru Life!