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| Our first plans for expanded built-ins! |
It's been a while, but finally, we know where we're going.
As promised, here are the first (very rough) plans for how our built-in cabinets will look after the renovation.
The only question at this point - can we do this ourselves?
I'm thinking that the answer is "yes", with one exception - the media cabinets (or at a minimum, the cabinet doors) will have to be purchased.
The open-shelving portion of each new bookshelf will be a DIY project, as will the crown molding and baseboards.
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| "Before" photo for comparison - Current Living Room |
The TV will be mounted to the wall above the fireplace. For the time being, we'll also plan to mount our Bose cube speakers to the left and right, and directly below, the TV - although we could move to in-wall speakers if they look or sound better.
We have 66 inches to work with on either side of the existing structure. I'd like to use about 45-50 of those inches, and maintain symmetry.
The new bookshelves will mirror the existing structure - but will not be as high as the ceiling.
They will be substantially deeper than the existing structure, too - primarily at the cabinet level, which will need to accommodate AV equipment.
We could extend the left-side bookshelves all the way to the wall - but the windows to the right mean that the right-side will have to end at least a foot short of the exterior wall.
There will have to be some space between the bookshelves and the existing structure, because the existing mantle extends 5 inches in all directions. This "gap" area will house the L/R speakers, and will use crown molding and baseboard to connect the existing structure to the new stuff.
The electronics aspect of this project is almost as important as the physical structure. We're going to be running a ton of HDMI horizontally through the studs behind the drywall - fortunately, the open shelving will have a white beadboard backing, which will conceal any potential less-than-optimal drywall repairs.
This project starts immediately! (Or, as soon as I can locate some acceptable cabinets, and my father-in-law visits with his table saw.)
ETA - Summer 2013.
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ReplyDeleteTheater inside your house is a good idea. It can give you an area where you can spend some time with your family and bond with them. Great work on this built-in shelving.
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