LOVE the idea. But I'd try rice paper on the glass instead of curtains for the "mysterious" element :)

I would lining good looking wallpaper inside, no curtains.

We actually did something similar to this. I can't actually take credit since it was my husband's idea, but it looks fantastic. When he first called and said he'd found a china cabinet to put our TV in I was understandably skeptical, but like I said, it looks great. Plus, most of the things you find for large flat screens are awful. Being a dish cabinet, the shelves are already pretty sturdy, but you could reinforce them if you felt like you needed to. Ours came with a paned glass front and we thought about buying sheets of tin or copper from Van Dykes Restorers to replace the glass and then do a punched design. This hasn't happened yet though. :) Hope that helps! Go for it!

I also think it is a great idea -- if well-implemented. Since the cabinet itself has quite a bit of ornate detail to it, I think it will look too busy competing with "pretty fabric". Instead, consider frosting the glass (etching fluid) or replacing the glass with mirrors, or a mottled colored glass.

I think that's a great idea! It's a beautiful china cabinet.

My laptop/media station...

I purchased an antique secretaries desk off Craigslist for $50 bucks! Painted the inside top black, the inside desk flip down portion Kubrick white, the outside high-gloss safety-worker orange and replaced the glass with mirror.

Admittedly, i did struggle with painting a such a great piece . . . but viva self-expression!

Flat screens can put out a lot of heat, and so you might want to leave it open after watching a movie, for example.

Absolutely - I have done the same thing.
I have an antique Chinese armoire in my living room (it was a great fit in my previous house, slightly less so in the current one but I love it dearly) and it houses my old clunky TV (I am planning to progress to a flat screen when this one dies - 5 years or so?) :-)
I immediately thought, before reading other posters' replies, that I would put some nice fabric behind the glass - or even something like a sheer. Personally, I don't like TV's "exposed" because I don't think they are that pretty and they usually stand out like a sore thumb. (My significant other [man] disagrees but I don't think that will surprise anybody. :-)

@jojouc I've used etching fluid and unless you can submerge the whole piece, it doesn't always etch evently. I like the idea of frosting the glass but maybe it would be easier to use some of that window cling stuff.

A part of my cringes at the idea of drilling a hole in what looks like a very good condition antique but it's yours and if you think that's the best use for it, go for it. I'll just sit over here and be glad you aren't painting it black.

Yep, do it!

But instead of painting the glass or using fabric, I'd use window film. You can get a simple etched glass variety at Home Depot for pennies on the dollar compared to the fancy patterned varieties at Design Public, for example. I like the etched glass best because it looks like the real deal on glass, and it doesn't compete with anything.

The tricky part will be cutting your film to match the lovely moulding inside the cabinet doors. You'll need to make a pattern to get the shape right.

1. Tape some tissue paper or butcher paper to the outside of the door.
2.Set a lamp or flashlight on an inside shelf to get the moulding to throw a dark shadow.
3. Trace your pattern shape.
4. Cut it out. Test it on the inside of the door and refine it.
5. When your pattern is perfect, trace the pattern onto the window film's paper-backing.

****Remember to reverse the pattern when you trace it. Otherwise, you'll have the right side of the pattern traced to the left side of your film. ****

Good luck! I hope you send in photos of your final results, whatever you decide to do.

Wow, thank you guys so much for all the comments! I was worried everyone would say "what a terrible idea!" and am pleased that you all think it is worth a shot :) I will definitely look into the faux frosted glass window film stuff. That could be perfect.

And @Tiamat, a part of me does think it is a bit sad at drilling a hole, but luckily it is a small hole and one day if needed I could replace the back of the cabinet or fill the hold with another small piece of wood. I plan on putting the hole at the bottom where the back of the cabinet meets the base so it isn’t like a huge gaping hole you would find in a regular TV armoire.

Also @ValHalla- yes, good suggestion! I hadn’t thought about the heat as a possible issue but I appreciate you bringing it up. I will definitely leave the doors open after watching the TV.

I have also seen some amazing wrapping paper that could be used (a la Young House Love) so I may play around with both. I believe this will be my weekend project!

I may try one door of each, and will send in the photos to let you all see what you think is best if one doesn’t stand out as the obvious choice. And regardless, I will send in photos once it is done so you all can see how it turned out!

Thanks again everyone! This is exactly why I love AT :)

Before you do anything, double check the value of the piece by getting it appraised. If it's worth a lot, things like drilling holes and frosting the glass will significantly decrease its value. If you plan on keeping it long-term, this may not be such a big issue, but if it's only a temporary piece that you may want to resell, I'd rethink doing anything to it.

I like the idea too - as I doubt that this is a particulary valuable piece

Only thing that could present a difficulty is that older pieces like this sometimes don't have removable shelves - You may have to get a handyman to saw the shelves out...

Love it! I converted a vintage sideboard for our media cabinet, and love the idea of using something antique/vintage to hide something modern. Having said that, ValHalla is right about the heat from your tv. We installed fans in the back of our piece for the components and I would assume you'd need to do something similar to vent the heat from your tv as well. Or dare I suggest drilling some venting holes that would be hidden by the tv.

And I like the idea Jalapeno had of replacing the glass with mirror or some vintage wallpaper inside the glass

I only paid $50 for it so it was a steal, and it really probably isn't very valuable- it was made by the Eastman Furniture Co in Maryland in the 20s. However, I do think I will keep it for a long time so I don't mind working with it to find the best use for the time being.

Luckily the shelves all came out easily and without any trouble too!

Love the idea, with flatscreen TVs the possibilities for concealing a set is far removed from the overly bulky armoire. I might suggest using mirror tint film instead of a frost/etched film, I think it might fit better with the style of cabinet.

http://www.gilafilms.com/Residential/window-film-mirror.htm

Hi!
I think it's a great idea- I did it with a bookcase.

I hung off white sheers doubled up so it was very tight, and it looks really nice.

I also have hung a deep teal velvet-just cut it to the size of the doors and then tucked under the ends and duct taped them and then used double sided sticky tape to put them on.

I like the versatility of fabric, although I never thought of using window film-that could look really nice too.

What you'll notice when you start to play around with this piece is that the dark wood will "pop" a lot of different colored fabric next to it.

p.s. I have almost the exact same one painted white with a vintage tablecloth on the doors in my kitchen for a little extra storage.

p.s. after re-reading the posts about the heating up of the TV, the reason I used my bookcase is that the back had cracked during a move, and I just took the whole thing off-so no back.

Which is why I had to get inventive with the doors.