Part 2: Building in Ikea Billy Bookcases with Molding

With a total of 3 work days on the bookcases and that was after I spent a little time putting them together, we finished up this project earlier this week and it’s definitely one that makes me really happy to see completed.  I’ve envisioned bookcases in this corner since I moved in and thought that this project would totally enhance my downstairs den and it really does.  That room is very large and the seating area for the TV only takes up about half the room, so it makes sense to make another seating area in this corner of the room.  I loved the idea of a library feel with bookcases, plush chairs and a rug and table.  So, this is the beginning of that transformation in the corner and I couldn’t be happier with how it’s turning out.

Tada!  Here’s the finished bookcase and I’ll share how we added all the molding, one step at a time.  This was a very fast styling job, using all my yardsale stashes that are in my storage room.  It will be changing I’m sure, but it sure is cute with even these things added.  I had to do a quick photoshoot for my Lowes post this month, so as soon as I finished painting, I started styling and shooting the photos.  I love it!

Of course, I’ll share all the progress as I go along and make some fun changes in this space with furniture and accessories too.  I hope to get better pics of the bookcases later, but this was the best I could do right now.  This room has low lighting.

Last I left you in Part 1, we had the bookcases put together (see this Ikea Billy post for how I put them together)and then we nailed them all together and attached them to the wall so they would be nice and secure.  All that was left was adding the molding.  We went to Lowes, who I work with as a brand ambassador and bought stock molding to get this project finished.  I spent just over $400 on the bookcases and doors and $66 on the wood trim to trim it all out, so this project was done for under $500.  Not bad!

After we used a 1×4 in between the bookcases, nailing them together and creating a 2 and 1/4” front for stock molding, I then painted that strip in the middle which will be in between all the doors that go on.  I primed first, then painted.

For those asking about the background color on the back of the bookcases, it is Liquid Jade by Valspar. I shared all the how-to’s in the post linked above, putting the Billy bookcases together.

We used 2×4’s to add to the sides of the bookcases to create a nice firm base to nail on our trim molding.

We had to rip them down just a bit to fit on either side of the bookcases.

Like this!

Now you can see how they went in.  We tapped them into place and using my small brad nailer I nailed in nails from inside the bookcase, into the 2×4.  The nails are really small and I touched them up with a little caulk and it hardly shows.

Next we worked on creating an angled ledge to nail the crown molding to.  This was Dad’s idea, he wanted something solid to nail to so he ran a 2×4 at a 45º angle on his miter saw and we put these in place with the brad nailer too.

Like this, all the way across.  Now we will have something solid to nail the crown molding on.

There is an electrical outlet behind this middle cabinet, so we measured and I cut out a small square with a utility knife (not very neatly I might add).  This middle cabinet is only 12” deep and the large ones on either side are 15” deep, so we brought this one to the front so it would be flush but it sits off the wall 3”.  Cutting the hole will allow me to get an extension cord plugged in that I’m going to bring to the top of the bookcases to install some puck lights later.  This cut out will be hidden behind the door.

Someone mentioned that they thought these 15″ wide cabinets also come in the 15″ depth, but I didn’t see them at my Ikea.

So, we nailed up the baseboard molding across the bottom.  It’s funny, but most every project we do together, my dad and I disagree on something and this time it was the baseboard across the bottom of the bookcases.  When I told him I wanted to use the same baseboard as on the walls in here, he argued with me, wanting to use a plain 1×4 board across there.  I said NO WAY!  We are using the same baseboard and it will all line up. I even showed him other bloggers who have done this project and how it all turned out so good.  It took some bickering back and forth, but I finally won my case and that’s what we did!

We added a long piece of baseboard across the bottom, mitering it on either size, so that it met with the existing baseboard that was already there.  We did have to remove the old baseboards, cut them down to fit back in and miter them again.  Then, it all worked out great!  They went in like a charm and after caulking and painting, it all looks fantastic.  So glad I won that argument!

There was a small gap behind the baseboard molding and the crown molding, so my dad cut out small strips of wood and nailed those into place too, behind them both.  It’s not absolutely necessary, he is just old school and likes things to be solidly nailed, so it filled in the gaps, then I used caulk to blend it all together.  Those are the kinds of things you have to be aware of in projects like this.

Here’s the crown molding in place.  We put that piece in first, then the bottom baseboard molding. Then we did the 2 front trim pieces and lastly, the side molding.

Here’s the large baseboard molding that we used on the sides.  We bought a wide piece and ripped it down to fit each side to be sure it ended up where we wanted it to be.  As with all projects like this, the more you caulk all the seams the better things look, so I did that too.

I used a 2 1/2” piece of reeded wood molding for the middle bars and it sat perfectly in place covering up our seams.  With the doors at the bottom, I couldn’t run the molding all the way down, so we stopped it at the doors and it really looks good.

Dad measured a piece of wood in the table saw so that we knew the exact width to cut the baseboard piece that we were using on the sides.

Baseboard molding caulked and painted. I didn’t stop and take pics of nailing up each of the molding pieces, but you can see them finished below.

And side pieces all in and caulked and painted, butted up to the crown molding.

Reeded molding in place on the top of the bookcases.

And this shot shows how it stops at the top of the doors.  I caulked and painted that whole strip below the molding down to the floor to make it all look seamless.  Using Kate’s guide, I bought a quart of Dove White paint from Valspar to match these Billy bookcases.  It’s not a perfect match, but it works just fine.  You could take a door or shelf with you to the store and ask them to color match that, but I just used what I saw recommended already and I’m very happy with the match.

Doors open with shelves inside.  Some of you will probably ask if I’m adding knobs.  I think I’ve decided to leave it plain since these doors come with clickers that push open when the doors close (you know, those clicker things) and I like the clean classic look of the doors with no knobs, so I’m pretty sure I’m going to keep them plain.  It sure will be nice to have all this storage!

And the bookcases are all finished!  I couldn’t be happier with how this has turned out.  Just like I envisioned it!

I’m so happy that I followed the lead of so many other bloggers and tried this project myself.  It was an easy one for me and my dad to accomplish and we got it all figured out and done in just a few hours.  I will be working on this corner more in the future, getting it all set up as a reading nook and I think it’s going to turn out so cute!

Again, here are all the posts on this project:

My Inspiration post of all the bloggers who have done this project.

Putting the Ikea Billy bookcases together.

Part 1 of Installing the Billy bookcases.

I used Dove White by Valspar as the colormatch white paint for the Billy bookcases. It’s not a perfect match, but good enough!

I hope you enjoyed seeing this all come together. I sure did and my dad is pretty darn proud of it too.  This is my Lowes project this month and all of the molding trim was purchased at my local Lowes.

Check out Lowes Creative Ideas Magazine app, visit Lowes on Facebook, and Lowes on Pinterest.

You can see Lowes on Instagram as well. Instagram is fun for every day real life happenings.

Disclosure: As a Lowes Creative blogger, I am sent gift cards to spend on projects and to blog about them. This post is sponsored by Lowes, but all ideas and projects are my own.

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