There is blank wall about 64 inches long on the office wall with the double doors. You can't see it unless you are in the office, so an open bookcase that might get a bit messy will work well there. I am planning on putting cabinets along the long wall, and an open look will complement those.
I went through the Purebond plywood in my garage and determined that I could build a 60 inch wide by 47 inch tall bookcase. 5 inches of the 47 will be the base for the baseboard.
I decided to build two boxes for each set of shelves because it's easier to make single units square, and the double center would be covered by the face frame anyway.
I cut 4 strips of scrap wood the same length to use as shelf spacers. I could then make 3 shelves the same height and the bottom shelf would be a litle bigger. This looks good (kind of like anchoring the bottom) plus, I wouldn't have to bother trying to figure out the exact measurement or install shelves that were exactly equal in height. Sooo much easier!
Since the 3 of the 4 sides would be hidden, I decided to use screws on the sides to attach the shelves and cover the remaining side wth either beadboard or 1/4 plywood.
I screwed the two units together.
I primed and painted the bookcase before installing it. I used shims to make it level, and then attached it to the wall.
After I installed the baseboard, I screwed a 1 x 12 white pine board to the top. The top was finished using a1 x 12 poplar board with a 1 x 2 to cover both the pine and poplar. This makes the top a nice thick 1 1/2 inches. The mitered corner was perfect, so it looks like a solid finished piece.
Some caulk and a final coat of paint, and the built- in is complete. The final picture is coming soon!
I haven't decided yet how to finish the area above the bookcase yet. Right now, I am thinking of installing galvanized steel to track orders and framing it with either small shelf towers or 1 x 2s.
