My biggest / first real paying project to date

[keith ouellette]

A number of weeks ago I asked some advice about the price I was giving to some friends for a built in book case / entertainment center. I finally finished and they are very very pleased. I was going by a picture of what they wanted with only a few changes. They didn't want anything very ornate with tons of moldings. Just something "functional and normal looking" in their words.

The cases are all birch plywood. the frames, doors and drawers are all poplar. It measures 13' by 8' and the shelves are 16" deep. I used rough poplar to make the doors and drawers and some s3s poplar for the face frames. The fluted molding is from lowes and is the only part that I did not fashion myself. It is actually 7 pieces. four on the bottom and three on top. The four bottom and middle top sections had the frames pre attached. The upper rail of the face frame on the bottom units is also covering the bottom shelf of the upper units (If you can follow that). The same is true for the stiles of the upper center section covering the edges of the adjoining sides. That way I was able to eliminated a lot of lines that would have been very noticeable with this white finish.

The finish is a flat ultra white floor paint. Thats the color they wanted so no "when are you gonna cover that primer?" comments. It looks great and if its durable enough for floors it must be durable enough for a book case (I think).

The pictures are nice but don't really do it justice. This simple book case made the living room rather dynamic in place of being very understated and boring.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

Keith - well done!! Looks very nice. I'm pretty sure that I did follow your explanation of what got covered with what. I think that approach is very important with a piece like that, so you can build it in sections without it *looking* like it was built in sections.

So - was it worth what you charged them for it, or do you think - given the amount of time you put into it - that you undercharged?

Since they like it, I'm sure they'd be a great reference for you...

[keith ouellette]

For me it was definitely worth it. I charged $2300. They gave me a $200 tip. If I was a pro running a cabinet shop I would go under with prices like that and wouldn't do it at that price for any one who wasn't a good friend or family member unless I was desperate. I did put some money in my pocket and it was a great experience. Plus it gave me a very good way to work on my skills and practice my hobby. Over all it was an A+++ experience. If I was busy actually earning a lot of money some place else I might think different.

Thanks for the kind words.

[dave toney]

Looks great Keith!
Nice clean lines, I'll bet you had fun drilling all of those shelf holes...

[glenn bradley]

Wow, will you come do mine!?! That looks fantastic.

[Shawn Christ]

Outstanding! Beautiful work Keith. I read your original thread and was wondering how things turned out. I'm glad it was a success. Don't forget to ask your friends to email you a "finished" picture once they have the TV, books, decorations, etc. on it. It's nice to have one with props for your resume...

[keith ouellette]

Looks great Keith!
Nice clean lines, I'll bet you had fun drilling all of those shelf holes...

My drill hand got pretty tired. I did them all at the same time. Next day my fingers hurt.

[keith ouellette]

Outstanding! Beautiful work Keith. I read your original thread and was wondering how things turned out. I'm glad it was a success. Don't forget to ask your friends to email you a "finished" picture once they have the TV, books, decorations, etc. on it. It's nice to have one with props for your resume...

thats a good idea. Thanks.

['Jacques Malan']

Now what must I do to become a family member or a close friend?

Very good.

[Bob Riefer]

Wow, good for you Keith, that looks great. And, I think it's very good business that you listened to the customer and created something that met their vision (regarding your comment about paint choice and their request for something "normal and functional etc.).

[keith ouellette]

Wow, good for you Keith, that looks great. And, I think it's very good business that you listened to the customer and created something that met their vision (regarding your comment about paint choice and their request for something "normal and functional etc.).

Thanks. The last thing I wanted to hear when I was done was "Thats not what I wanted" or "I thought it would be a little different". Both things I have heard in landscaping before. They knew exactly what they wanted and clipped magazine pictures that showed the type of style and I explained some pros and cons and we went from there. I tried a little to talk them out of the white color but in the end it worked out really well.

[Phil Thien]

The looks outstanding, fantastic job.

I like the finish. I used porch paint on my workbench base, but never thought of using it on a cabinet.

Is it non-blocking? That is, if you place an object on it, that object doesn't sorta stick when you lift it?

[keith ouellette]

The looks outstanding, fantastic job.

I like the finish. I used porch paint on my workbench base, but never thought of using it on a cabinet.

Is it non-blocking? That is, if you place an object on it, that object doesn't sorta stick when you lift it?

Thats the term I couldn't think of when I needed it. Thanks. I had been using "stays a little tacky". So far I can only answer I think so but I'm not 100% positive. I do know that after 48 hours of cure time the shelves did stick to each other a little but it doesn't completely harden for at least 72 hours. I used it because I thought it would be non blocking. That premise is mostly assumption on my part. I have always known flat to be less sticky than gloss and figured that the floor paint would be even more so because it needed to be harder than regluar latex. One thing I can say about it is that it sands more like fully cured oil base. It makes a nice fine powder. So I think its hard as opposed to gummy. I will try and remember to let you al know in a few weeks.

[Phil Thien]

Thats the term I couldn't think of when I needed it. Thanks. I had been using "stays a little tacky". So far I can only answer I think so but I'm not 100% positive. I do know that after 48 hours of cure time the shelves did stick to each other a little but it doesn't completely harden for at least 72 hours. I used it because I thought it would be non blocking. That premise is mostly assumption on my part. I have always known flat to be less sticky than gloss and figured that the floor paint would be even more so because it needed to be harder than regluar latex. One thing I can say about it is that it sands more like fully cured oil base. It makes a nice fine powder. So I think its hard as opposed to gummy. I will try and remember to let you al know in a few weeks.

I suspect you're right on the properties of the paint, but I'd sure love to hear your follow-up.

[Carl Babel]

My drill hand got pretty tired. I did them all at the same time. Next day my fingers hurt.

You know, they got this modern invention called an electric drill - much easier than trying to poke your fingers through the wood.

Seriously though, that is some beautiful work!