A few years ago I discovered this buffet and china cabinet in one of my favorite thrift stores.

I bought it to repurpose the china section only. I sold the bottom portion at a consignment store.

 

I’ve been using it for our family library. We have lots of books and the glass doors are great for keeping them dust free. It was on my “to do” painting list but that never happened. Although it was displaced to No. 2 Son’s room during a renovation that has yet to be completed, it’s original home was on the second floor hallway landing. Now that I incorporated our books into the main family areas, the size of this piece didn’t leave me too many other placement options. I thought. why not cut it into two sections and place it on either side of the media console in our basement family room.

 

Here’s what I did:

Step 1- Remove molding.

 

Step 2 – Make the cuts. Mr. DIY taped and cut off the side edges from the center section.

First the top,

and then the bottom

giving us three sections, but not for long.

 

I decided to cut off the side sections rather than splitting it down the middle because I wanted the doors of each cabinet to open from the center. If I had cut it down the center, both doors of each finished cabinet would open from to the left or right and it would have required the addition of side panels as well.

As for that curved cut out, originally to make room for the flourescent light fixture, I am not sure if I will fill it in or leave it as is. Sometimes I like the quirkiness of things like that. You know, a conversation starter so to speak. Maybe, maybe not. I will decide that later.

Step 3 – Adhere the two side sections together to match it’s twin, the original center section.

 

To do that, I had Mr. DIY add a thin piece of wood between the two sections to compensate for the wood loss during the cutting process.

Step 4 – Use a heat gun to remove the trim residuals left behind.

And there you have it, all glued up, sanded and waiting to be primed. It’s twin is ready as well.

 

 

Wow! that was a lot of work but there is so much more to go. Not entirely sure what color to paint them. Same color as the media console or another color? Not a fan of matchy, matchy, but I think that might be the way to go. What do you think?

I sure hope you will come back to see the rest of this transformation. To be continued…….

Linking to:
Beyond the Picket Fence:Under $100 Linky Party DIY by Design: Swing into Spring

Domestically Speaking:Power of Paint Party

Faded Charm:White Wednesday

Handy Man Crafty Woman:Wicked Awesome Wednesday

Primitive and Proper:Piece of Work Wednesday

Primp:Primp Your Stuff Wednesday Link Party

Restore Interiors: Restored It Wednesday

Savvy Southern Style:Wow Us Wednesday

House of Hepworths: Hookin Up with HOH

No Minimalist Here:Open House Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage: Transformation Thursday

Addicted to Decorating: Addicts (not so) Anonymous Party

At the Picket Fence: Inspiration Friday

Chic On A Shoestring: Flaunt It Friday

Common Ground: Vintage Inspiration Friday

Finding Fabulous: Frugalicious Friday

French Country Cottage: Feathered Nest Friday

Miss Mustard Seed:Furniture Feature Friday

My Repurposed Life: Catch as Catch Can Party

My Romantic Home:Show And Tell Friday

Redoux:Friday Feature Party

Simple Home Life:Simply Creations

Tatertots & Jello:Weekend Wrap Up Party

The Charm of Home:Home Sweet Home

The Shabby Nest: Frugal Friday

Funky Junk Interiors: Saturday Night Special

Beneath My Heart: Best DIY Project of the Month