To Paint or Not to Paint: Bookcases

When The Mister and I married, we brought into our marriage quite a collection of books. In order to help wrangle some of those books, we purchased two 36 inch wide by 80 inch tall bookcases from a local wood furniture store. For nearly six years after we purchased the bookcases, we discussed staining or painting them, but in those six years, the bookcases remained untouched by stain or paint.


The Dining and Living room after we moved in. The unfinished bookcase is on the left. 

After nearly six months of living in our new house, we took advantage of an unfurnished living room, to turn the living room into a painting room and thus the painting of the bookcases began. With so many dark surfaces (floor and walls) and only one window in the living room, we wanted to have lighter colored furniture and thus decided to paint the bookcases white.

The unfinished bookcases

Two very thin coats of primer and three very thin coats of Behr Ultra Pure White  to match the trim were rolled on the shelves with a four inch foam roller. The exterior of the book case received two thin coats of primer, two coats of Behr Ultra Pure White and one coat of Martha Stewart Semi-Gloss in white for shine and wipeability.

One primed bookcase

Nearly six months later and the finish has held up nicely. There are a couple spots that have dark streaks due to frequent pulling of books on and off the shelf. I haven't tried rubbing it out with a towel or eraser yet.

The painted bookcases

Oh, and do you see the striped curtains hanging in the living room? My mother-in-law made them for our previous house's guest bedroom. They were the perfect addition to the living room.