before and after.

This week’s before and after was made possible by Craigslist, my best friend’s family van and my father. Long before I had any intentions of flying away from my parent’s nest, I found a hutch for sale on the interwebs for only $50. It was worn down and far too large to be practical, but I could see the potential beneath that peeling veneer as a home for my future television.  Let me insert a major warning here: going to pick up a giant antique hutch with one girlfriend alone in her parent’s van is not safe. And lying to your parents about where you are going because you know that they would very be upset about purchasing a piece of furniture for an apartment that doesn’t exist yet isn’t smart. Did I say I was a role model? No I did not.

After a few weeks of hiding the buffet in my friend’s garage, I finally introduced the piece to my father, and boy did I completely underestimated his appreciation for a new project! He jumped right in with a router in hand (and our bond in DIY glory was forever solidified). We cut and routed a new piece of wood to use as a base since the cheap veneer top would not hold the weight of a flat screen. Once we had that in place, I sanded and painted the buffet and installed some decorative drawer pulls and handles. When I did manage to become a real grown up and rent my own space, my father whipped up a lovely matching shelf to keep my DVR and DVD player in one area. He’s so handy, isn’t he? Fathers, Craigslist and best friends… what wonderful assets to have in the twenty-something DIY arsenal!