What do you get when an avid woodworker marries a genealogy fanatic? You tend to NOT get a clean house, carefully planned meals, and long afternoons by the fire (well, we don’t even have a fireplace).
But what you DO get is furniture built specifically for genealogy. When Hubby started talking about this bookcase, I told him my needs:
- Genealogy books come in every size so the bookcase must accommodate small, medium and large heights
- We needed to fit the printer into the bottom shelf
- I needed storage for maps and rolled charts
The new bookcase matches the filing cabinet that was made for me last year.
The new bookcase matches the filing cabinet, and makes my old “unpainted” bookcase look pretty pathetic. To accommodate large and small books, Hubby stepped each shelf , with the largest being at the bottom. That shelf matched the measurement of the printer we needed to put there.
The shelves vary in size
The bookcase was so heavy that we had to wait til my future son-in-law was around in order to move it upstairs. Then future son-in-law helped me get the books set up and move the pictures. Yup, he’s a keeper!
The top has two drawers to hold microfilm and rolled-up things
We thought of slots or vertical holders, but in the end Hubby went for drawers for the charts.
map and chart drawer
Hubby works almost entirely by hand these days; that is, he usually manages to avoid power tools.
hand made dovetail
His work always includes surprising and lovely details.
amazing details
All in all I am appreciating how this bookcase makes my tiny space work better. And I was able to store my scanner in the old bookcase, line up my journals in holders, stow my box of files in the old bookcase, and get my books at eye level.
details at the top
It is a very unique experience in life to have a piece of furniture built especially for you. Hubby designed this himself, and spent every evening and weekend for five or six weeks crafting this by hand. It was so popular on his blog that he had to mail a “story board” to a reader.
It’s pretty popular at home, too!
The post you are reading is located at http://onerhodeislandfamily.com/2012/11/18/a-genealogy-bookcase/
Oh, boy, I’m showing this blog post to Santa! By the way, could your husband go into business and sell some of these? It looks like he’d get a few orders right away….
Thank you all for the nice comments. I will have to remind him to look again at them! And no, Heather, he works strictly by inspiration and he’s already onto the next challenge!
What a beautiful, useful and practical bookcase. You can see the workmanship. Lucky girl
That is so beautiful! My husband would really love to get in to woodworking…perhaps this is just the type of project he could do down the road.
What a beautiful piece of furniture, unqiue and one of a kind. We do need bookcases in our genea-spaces. I just purchased another bookcase and am slowing getting more organized. Your husband has a beautiful gift.
What a handsome piece of furniture – he is a wonderful craftsman!
What a beautiful bookcase that will sure to be a family heirloom one day. Thanks for sharing.
Beautifully designed and SO useful. Those “nights by the fireplace” are overrated!
Lucky you.
What a beautiful piece. You are so lucky (and I am SO jealous!). Where’s Hubby’s blog … I want to see more!?!
Jenny, his blog is http://accidentalwoodworker.blogspot.com/. Since he blogs every day, posts about the bookcase are a ways back.
Wow. Fantastic bookshelf. I’m already scheming about how I get one built for me.
Thanks Lisa and Val! He really is talented.
Beautiful, Diane! You two make a great team.