A little over a month ago we started building built-in bookshelves for our living room.  We have a fairly large library of books and DVD’s and needed a place to store them all that was convenient and attractive.

We decided we would cover our empty living room wall with wall-to-wall shelving that we would build ourselves.  It certainly was no small task, but we’ve basically completed it.  It took us right at a month to build.  We also had to move the fan control switch to the other side of the wall so we didn’t cover it up, which required running new electrical wires.  We also added a second outlet along the shelf wall so we could plug stuff in.  There are just a few little details left to make it 100% complete, but it’s done as far as the functionality is concerned.

We’re planning on putting up crown molding along the top, and we’ll connect the two units across the doorway so they appear as one.  The carpet needs to be re-tacked and the baseboards need to be put back on, but that’s about it.  We also might run another outlet above so we can add some indirect lighting to the top of the bookshelves for a nice ambient effect.

It was a crap-load of work, but it was definitely worth it.  We got much needed shelves all while increasing the value of our house.

Below are some pictures of the process along with the complete product with all our books alphabetized on them.

Here are a couple of pics of the jack-o-lanterns Amy and I made for Halloween this year.  She made a wolf howling at the moon and I made Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons.   I think they came out pretty good this time.  But I’m not sure they are as awesome as our 2006 pumpkins.

Amy and I bought a house a few weeks ago, and we wanted to make some changes before we moved in.  The entire house had popcorn ceilings and we hate those, so we decided to remove them and then paint the ceilings and the rest of the house.  Since we had a couple of weeks before we had to be fully moved, it was good timing.  It took us about four days to scrape and sand the ceilings of the entire house, and then about a week to get all the walls and ceilings primed and painted.  Here are some of the pictures from the before, during, and after process.

For the first time in quite a while, it snowed here in Raleigh.  Its not something that happens too frequently, so when it does, it’s a big deal.  I went out this morning and took some pictures.  Here they are for your visual stimulation.