Paris Inspired Bookshelf

I started this project a year ago and finished it about a month ago.  I thought I'd written a post about this, but then realized today I hadn't!  This is one of my favorite pieces I've done with a little girl in mind.  I've been holding on to it, thinking I might be able to put it somewhere in my house.  I guess the little girl in me doesn't want to give it away!

I bought this bookshelf on Craigslist, like I said a year ago, then it sat in my garage for a few weeks.  When I got to the bookshelf, I knew I wanted to paint it in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™ in Emperor's Silk.  The reason I wanted to use this color was I found some fabric I loved at Hobby Lobby and I wanted to try something new on this bookshelf.  

Here it is before I started...

It was a very basic, but sturdy and solid wood, bookshelf.  I wanted to give it some pizazz and a WOW factor.

I started by taking the back off the bookshelf.  

Then I attached batting and my adorable fabric to the back of the bookshelf.  I stapled it on and covered both the back and the front of the board.  I wanted to add the batting to give it a little bit of softness and depth when I reattached the backing.

Isn't this fabric adorable?  If I had a little girl, these would be the colors of her room!  

I started painting the bookshelf itself in the Emperor's Silk Chalk Paint™.

Well, that was as far as I got.  I did two coats of the Chalk Paint™ then I moved on to other projects.  I do that a lot....start a project and then don't finish it for awhile.  I guess it's the flighty creative aspect of my personality that makes me do these things :-)

Well, after we moved into the new house I decided it was time to get back to that bookshelf.  I wiped off all the dust and then gave it a coat of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™ in Pure White.  Then I distressed the paint so the red would show through.  I gave it 2 coats of wipe-on poly to give it the durability it would need for a child and I was done.  All I had to do was reattach the backing and I was done.

Here it is all finished!

I'm happy with how it turned out and think it really has that WOW factor!

I really like the finish and the red showing through.  I think I'm going to do this on something else very soon, but for me!

I've been holding on to this piece and now I'm selling it.  If you live in Connecticut, I'm selling this beauty for a steal $50.  I would love to keep this piece, but I don't have a little girl and I don't have any place to put this in my home.

It's a lot of fun to paint a piece that's different and out of the norm.  I'm so used to painting pieces for Hunter, that painting something girly was a lot of fun!  

Thank you for taking the time to read and have a wonderful weekend!  

Thank you!!!