There are many colors of paint to choose from, to update or decorate a bookcase. Consider painting the inside back wall of the bookcase one color and the rest a contrasting color.
Consider a different look with paint, by using a crackle medium, applied in between 2 different colors of paint, to resemble cracked paint.
As with the case with paint colors, many colors are available for stain as well. Consider the room in which the bookcase is in, the surrounding colors and choose a stain color to match the décor.
Craft supply sections of retail stores, craft stores, or hardware stores often provide a wide variety of plastic paint stencils. Decorate your bookcase with a stenciled pattern.
Hide your books by installing inexpensive curtains. Purchase tension rods to place at the top of the book case, or in sections of the bookcase, and place decorative or homemade curtains on them. Use any fabric for curtains, including linen kitchen dish towels for shorter bookcases.
Use decoupage to apply decorative paper to your bookcase tops, edges, shelves or sides. Consider using scrap pieces of wall paper, or recycle other sources of paper.
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