Wooden bookend

Combine a decorative piece of driftwood with stained pine shelves to create this elegant wooden bookend.

Ways with wood with Mark Rayner - Project 29

Difficulty level: Easy

You will need: three 200mm x 200mm x 16mm wooden corner shelf kits (ours came from mitre10 mega). Each kit contains a semi-circular pine shelf, two 16mm x 16mm pine wall supports and screws; a decorative piece of driftwood, sandpaper, screwdriver, drill with drill bits, latex glove, a clean lint-free cloth, paintbrush and PVA glue. Resene Aquaclear satin, Resene Waterborne Colorwood Testpot in Resene Meranti.

To get the look: Mark stained the wooden shelf with Resene Waterborne Colorwood tinted to Resene Dark Ebony and finished off with Resene Aquaclear satin.

Other ideas: For a paler effect choose a lighter shade of Resene Waterborne Colorwood such as Resene Egg White or Resene Rock Salt.

Step one
Unpack the shelf kits and smooth off any rough edges on the wall supports and shelves with sandpaper.

Step two
Attach two wall supports to one of the shelves, as shown, to form the bookend base, fixing with PVA glue and the screws provided. Drill pilot holes first to prevent the wood from splitting.

Step three
Attach one of the wall supports to a second shelf, as shown, to form one half of the bookend back, fixing with PVA glue and screws (drill pilot holes first).

Step four
Step four Attach the other half of the bookend back, as shown, fixing with PVA glue and screws (again, drill pilot holes first).

Step five
Attach the bookend back to the base, as shown, fi xing with PVA glue and screws (once again, drill pilot holes first).

Step six
Apply one coat of Resene Waterborne Colorwood Meranti to the bookend, applying in the direction of the grain, as shown.

Step seven
Leave the stain to soak into the wood for up to 15 minutes and wipe off any excess Resene Waterborne Colorwood with a clean, lint-free cloth. Leave the bookend to dry for 48 hours.

Step eight
Apply three coats of Resene Aquaclear satin to the bookend, allowing two hours for each coat to dry. Place the piece of driftwood onto the bookend, fixing with PVA glue. Leave glue to dry.