Making a Shelf out of a Stair

We will get to this project in a sec – but first, I want to explain how we got there!  The hubby has been wanting new speakers for awhile.  Since we got married actually.  And he finally found a great deal, so we got them.  Now with his speakers came something called a center channel.  That is the small long speaker that sits in the middle – and it is where the majority of your vocals comes from when you run 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound.  (Obviously – I am not a speaker expert here so we will leave my explanation of sound at that.)  We had a center channel set up in our old house on a shelf I bought from Target and we were going to use the same thing.  Then the speakers got here.  The new fancy center channel was WAY too deep to fit on the shelf. 

So now we had to come up with a different solution.  Hubby called me to meet him at Home Depot after work to look at some pre-made shelving options.  However, when I got there – he had come up with a different idea.  He decided to take a stair riser (which already has a fancy bull nose edge) and two wood brackets and make our own.  (Have I mentioned that I love this man!)  See below for the project pieces – total cost was about $30 – the stair was $9 and the each of the brackets were about $10 a piece.

We measured for the shelf in the living room and then Hubby started assembling the shelf.  Please excuse our mess of a garage.  That is another project that we are working on finishing.

We decided to stain the shelf Minwax’s Stain and Poly in one in Bombay Mahogany.  Here it is with the first coat on – so pretty!  I love this color! 

So here was our TV area before the shelf went up.  Sorry for the picture – not a great one – but you can see the new center channel sitting there on the console on the right side of the TV. 

Now here is the space with our new shelf!   (And the hubby’s beautiful new center channel!)

I just love it!  I think the stain came out BEAUTIFUL!  The console is actually that same color – just a smidge darker.  I thought about giving it another coat – but was afraid it wouldn’t look right. 

Of course I claimed all space that was not occupied by the speaker in the name of Jess and gussied it up a bit!  It is kinda like having a mantel!  I get to participate in mantle parties now!!  Hooray!!

Now I do have a question for you guys!  Do you think I should hang a sign of some sort below the shelf?  See doctored example below of “HOME” in the space.

I am not sure if it works … or if it just becomes too cluttered.  What do you think?

Linking this up to

Metamorphosis Monday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch
Making it for Monday with Cindy @ Cottage Instincts
Table Top Tuesday with Marty @ A Stroll Thru Life
Anything Related with Rebekah and Bridgette @ All Thingz Related
Tip Me Tuesday with Laurie @ The Tip Junkie
Get Your Craft On with Kim @ Today’s Creative Blog
Boardwalk Bragfest with Jan @ Bobbypins Boardwalk
Make it Yours Day with Carolyn @ My Backyard Eden 
Transformation Thursday with Gina @ The Shabby Cottage 
Get Your Craft on Thursday with Lori @ Life with Lori 
Strut Your Stuff with Steph @ Somewhat Simple  
Furniture Feature Friday with Miss Mustard Seed @ Mustard Seed Creations
Frugal Friday with Gina @ The Shabby Nest
Show and Tell with Cindy @ My Romantic Home 
Weekend Wrap-up Party with Jen @ Tatertots & Jello 
Saturday Night Special with Donna @ Funky Junk