Almost two years ago, I wrote about reducing the visual noise of this glass-door bookcase I use for DVD storage. Though not ideal for this purpose, the piece has sentimental value because it belonged to a neighbor/surrogate grandmother who has since passed away. My original effort to reduce the visual noise using paper I had in the house was successful, but never really made my heart sing.
Skip ahead to last month when I found this beautiful inspiration image from Elle Decor. The moment I saw that cabinet, I knew I wanted to try to create a similar feeling with my inherited bookcase. I scoured the internet for a chinoiserie paper or fabric, and finally found an affordable pattern I liked on eBay (Geisha- Black from Robert Kaufman). I also ordered a sampler pack of Rub 'n Buff online after seeing many design bloggers rave about it. My fabric finally arrived on Wednesday, and I got right to work.
I cut the fabric into two strips and secured them behind the glass using painter's tape. I then taped up the front of the doors and applied Antique Gold Rub 'n Buff to the raised and curvy trim on the front. The golden wax was surprisingly easy to use, though I did wear a latex glove on one hand to make for easier cleanup. I applied the Rub 'n Buff unevenly and with a light hand because I wanted some of the wood grain to show through. After a few minutes, I buffed using a bit of cotton rag to get a nice sheen.
I am delighted with the final result, which to me definitely calls to mind my inspiration photo. I also think the original owner, Miss Matthews, would appreciate the change — she was a member of the National Geographic Society who traveled the world after she retired from government service, and populated her home with art and artifacts from her travels in Asia and the Middle East.
(Images: Colleen Quinn)
Small Cool Lessons: Discovering Small Space Design Ideas That Really Work
Marisa and Peter's Playfully Eclectic Home
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Z2 iPod Dock and Wi...
How to Make Easy 3-Ingredient Energy Bars at Home
How to Make Fresh Pasta Dough in the Food Processor
aw! good for you! well done.
Beautiful! Definitely an upgrade to first class!
This is beautiful! I've done similar fix-ups using paper but this is really inspiring !
Lovely, useful and sentimental...isnt that what decor is all about?
Oh, wow.
This is amazing, and super inspiring.
Usually in the "don't paint it" school, but I have to admit this looks fabulous!
Love it!
Big improvement + with the artwork above it.
What a beautiful result!
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for not painting the cabinet and appreciating its history instead. It looks beautiful.
This looks really nice, but I'd love to see you use it for something other than DVDs. Having DVDs around just takes me back to a dorm room. And they're such space hogs! Put those suckers in a cd book and shove 'me in a closet and turn this lovely new piece into something more grown up. Barware and booze would be amazing in there. Open the door: surprise! Cocktails!
Great work, though.
@FrankieFrank: What's wrong with DVD's (or, in my house, Blu-rays?) Some of us (and by that I mean my partner) like to collect our favorite movies and then, when formats upgrade, sell the old ones and replace them. For that, you kind of need the boxes they come in. To have those, you need storage. We use a closet next to the home theater, but for those without that luxury, this cabinet is perfect!
How clever!
Beautiful, and I like yours better than the inspiration cabinet!
Curious where the camels are from? Our family lived in the Middle East for a year and love camels!
Thanks everyone- I am quite pleased with this ~$25 makeover!
rmbnn- the artwork is a hand painted map from the Old Book Bazaar in Istanbul.
alainnotebook- the camels on top are from the Friday Market in Kuwait and the camel table on the right is from Desert Designs in Saudi Arabia.
Its gorgeous,good job!:)
I like what you've done and I'm glad it works for you. I think the fabric is true to the cabinet and to the woman from whom it was inherited.
That said, I find fabric like that to have as much "visual noise" as the DVD's behind it. I could not use it in my field of vision, but I'm glad you got what you wanted.
This is brilliant! Well done!
Wow, FrankieFrank and mosaicwench, how deep did you have to dig to say something negative about this beautiful redo?
FrankieFrank, like SherryBinNH said, folks have lots of reasons to keep CDs and DVDs and store them in a convenient place.
mosaicwench, I consider this piece to provide "visual music" as opposed to "visual noise."
Love!
I think this looks great, Colleen! I particularly like the gold rub detail on the trim. That was a nice touch for the style and pattern you chose.
(And it's not AT until someone tells you that the contents of your bookcase/furniture isn't "right", hahaha!)
Great job on the cabinet! I prefer to keep my DVDs and CDs in their cases as well. In my teen years, I kept my CDs in big binders as space was limited in my tiny bedroom. The result was that I either forgot what I had or it was too laborious to flip through the pages in my binders to find what I was looking for (many CDs not have their names and titles legibly printed on the discs).
Love the idea of taping fabric to the inside of glass cabinet doors! So easy and you can change the look often. Definitely going to have to do this with our DVD case :)
Beautifully done.
@Frankiefrank - To each his own vice. My partner - a non-drinking filmmaker, would find your claim that DVDs are too college followed up by a suggestion to put booze and barware in the cabinet rather hilarious.
This is brilliant! That particular wallpaper was a great choice.
Personally, I would have taken it a notch farther and I would have painted the cabinet lacquered black and I would have probably replaced the knobs for something more Chinoserie-looking hardware.
Amazing! Love the fabric choice!
Simple and cool solution. Since it's Japanese influenced, can it be called Japonaiserie? Is there such a thing?
clever!
just a comment on the camel 'table' on the right side of the pic. it is actually a stool, it is just missing it's leather cushion.
just an FYI, if the owner ever wants to use it as a stool :)
judicious use of paint & fabric, and we do not have to know what is in it.
What a clever idea - chinoiserie is so sophisticated. I do agree with another poster, painting the rest of the wood black would kick this up a notch. It's great to have a piece that's beautiful, useful, and sentimental!
"visual music" - well said.
Absolutely a lovely redo that really honors the memory of your neighbor.
Wow! This looks really great! And, good that you took the CD player off the top (I have the same player!) because it did not do those camels justice! The print on the wall also looks good. Goes well with the cabinet door fabric. Great job!
There was no painting. Didn't you read the article?
Too cool! What an elegantly simple change-up! My husband and I also have a wood-and-glass CD case (and my husband loves his Blu rays) but if we ever go to 100% streaming (or some newer technology we haven't dreamed of) I will seriously consider this technique for a cocktail cabinet. I also don't drink, but this would make such a fine 1940s-movie-style cabinet just for looks!