Fresh Look: my first roadside rescue {bookcase makeover}

First let me start by saying, I tip my hat to you ladies and gents that do these roadside rescues on a regular basis. I’ve seen your photos. I’ve read your tutorials. You grab the item at the side of the road. Bring it home. Sand it up, add some pretty chalk paint and show us your beautiful new piece of furniture.

Now I’m even more impressed with you diy rescuers because it’s a lot of work. There are creepy crawlies to deal with. Water damage. Ugly old stain that won’t go away. Storage issues and weather conditions to consider. I somehow muddled through all of those and finished my first roadside rescue.




It was just a small bookcase but I’m so pleased. Here it is all finished and being used for craft supply storage.


I found the bookcase down the street from my house. I made my son jump out of the car and grab it. It sat in our backyard for a few months because it was too hot to sand and paint. And then out of nowhere we had rain. I dried off the poor rescue the best that I could and repaired the wood damage. Then as long as I was at it I might as well start sanding it. At this point I was motivated to finish it and primed and painted it.


The wood on the inside of the bookcase wasn’t in good condition and I had always planned on covering it up with something. I used gift wrap that I had on hand and Mod Podged it to the back of the bookcase.


The shelves were actually in good condition but I wanted to line them with something so I used scrap pieces of battenburg lace linens.

I also found a couple of tension rods to use for ribbon, tape and other goodies.

Here’s the first rod with my Washi Tape. I could stare it all day. I just love the pretty colors and patterns. 

The bottom shelf will hold all my craft paints and paint brushes. I haven’t added anything to the tension rod on that shelf yet. The holidays are coming so it might be a good spot for ribbons and trims.

Baker’s Twine, Washi Tape and vintage buttons… is it strange that these things make me so happy?

So there you have it. Nothing fancy but I love the extra storage. Total cost for this project:

Bookcase = free
Paint = leftover from old house projects
2 Tension Rods = $3.00
Wrapping Paper = $1.00
Satisfaction = priceless

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