We added small updates to our living room this year, and I realized it’s been a while since I have shared this room! When we were wrapping up our kitchen cabinet installation last fall, we asked the crew if they could continue the kitchen crown molding through the living room and bookshelves. Today we are sharing how to add crown molding to bookshelves in 5 steps!

Adding the crown molding to our built-in bookshelves was a finishing touch that added visual height to the room! I also love that it made the bookshelves look integrated as if they were always a part of the space!

1. Building the plywood backer
   There were about 10 inches from the top of the bookshelves to the ceiling, so our kitchen contractors Cabinet Makeovers built a plywood backer to make sure the face fronts and crown molding would be secure.

2. Attach face fronts
Adding pre-finished face fronts to the plywood backers helped bridge the 10 inch gap from top of the bookshelves to the ceiling.

3. Measure, cut, and install the crown molding
After installing the plywood pieces, the 5 in. crown molding was pre-measured and installed at the right angle. As you can see, one of the ends was cut at an angle that would butt up against the wall molding securely. You can just use a nail gun to secure the molding in place.

4. Fill holes and seams with wood filler
We used wood filler to fill in nail gun holes which cleaned up the ceiling where you could see the old crown molding lines. This really smooths everything out!

(The bookshelves when we moved in)

(Before painting the crown molding)

5. Prime and Paint!
Since we painted the bookshelves a year before we decided to add the crown molding, we used the same paint colors to bring it all together. The walls are painted in Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams in an eggshell finish, and the bookshelves are painted Shoji White by Sherwin-Williams in a satin finish, which is easier to clean and provides a little more sheen and contrast!

Soft-close cabinet door hinges
We also finally switched out the broken door hinges for soft-close hinges. The silent close is music to our ears.

Autumn decor

I pulled out the autumn decor the other day, as soon as the temps dropped just a tad. Autumn in the south is 60-degree mornings. 😉 I have one large tub where I store our decor for fall, because I don’t love hanging onto excessive amounts. We re-use the same wreath, branches, faux pumpkins, and candles every year.

We tend to go overboard for Christmas decor, but I stick to the cozy basics for the fall months! A few things I added to the line-up this year were this double candlestick holder, an autumn vase with red leaves, and glass pumpkins you can add votives under. These are items you can style in many different rooms.

I have had these LED candles for a few years, and I was really impressed by how long the batteries will last. It is so nice to be able to turn all of them on with a mini remote. The amber candles also work with the same remote, so in a few seconds the whole living room is glowing with soft candlelight. With little ones, LED candles are the shortcut way to happy ambiance. I still light a scented candle or two around the house though. 🙂

(Before we re-surfaced the floors, painted the bookshelves, and added the crown molding)

The updates don’t detract from the bookshelves but definitely make them look seamlessly part of the room.

The art is part of the new autumn art collection in our shop, Maris Home. The downloads come with a file sized for the Samsung Frame TV for easy uploads. 🙂 The Frame TV was a Black Friday purchase we made a few years ago that we have really loved. I wasn’t expecting the sound to be so good. We wired it through the wall behind it and into the cabinet to the left of the screen where the box can sit. The Bezel frame (ours is beige) makes it look like a true art piece!

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These are all of the items (or similar) used in the living room. I have used those gold lanterns for years now! You can add LED pillar candles as well. These autumn branches are what I used in a few places this year. It’s the time of year when there is always a diffuser or candle going in our house, and both the apple cider and sweater weather soy candles are a few favorites. 🙂

Cheers to the start of the new season!