Nook Build | DIY Project
When we purchased our home, this little area was where the previous owners had their dining table. It never felt “right” to me for this space, but over the last few years, neither did anything else we did (high top with wine bottles, plant area, reading area, etc…) then one day I stumbled upon this beautiful nook by the AirBnB “The Burrows” and I knew that’s what I wanted here! Once we found out we were pregnant with our little lady, the idea made even more sense. Our dining room is in a semi-secluded area, meaning if we’re cooking or hanging out, that room is not very visible. We wanted a space where she could sit and read, nap by the window, or eventually color pictures/do homework/eat food at (the idea is to build a round table next and have that space be a breakfast nook!).
We spent quite awhile deciding on how we wanted to do this build, as we did not want to permanently change the area in case we later changed our minds again. There was also a cabinet that we didn’t want to have to bother with closing is, and didn’t want to lose that character if we did something different later on, as well as a heater vent that we did not want to have to bother with altering (there’s nowhere else in that area to place it). .
Then I found The Happy Home Project nook build and knew it was perfect for our space. Other than caulking, our nook build is completely removable. In addition to that, the entire bench is storage. Love it!
Jake is amazing and built the entire thing himself (cushion included). My assistance was painting, haha, and sourcing pillows, hand pulls, etc. The white paint was leftover from the previous owners so we did not have to spend any money there, and the green paint was from our bathroom makeover when we first moved in.
Below I’ve listed sources/links when available. I had Jake write up a little blurb about it in case you’d like to try one for yourself! So far we’ve loved it, and it fits perfectly with the style (and age) of our 73 year old home.
Cushions: For the cushions we obtained several quotes to have them custom made, and the prices were insane ($400-$800+) which we knew we did not want to pay if the space was to be used often by a baby/toddler. Jake found a DIY tutorial where you use curtains to make them! We purchased the same curtains we have for our living room, and Jake made the cushions (he even made a small bed for Navy with the leftover pieces, haha). After making them, he scotch guarded them.
I’ve included photos from when we purchased our home, iPhone progress photos, and professional completed photos.
Additional:
The window design is a static cling! We’ve had it here for 3 years (at least) and it’s still in great shape. Our homes are all on a hill so this allows us to have the natural light but provide privacy from our neighbors home and privacy at night. We’ve loved this window cling so much we used it for our bathroom window and in Franklin’s room as well.
Thanks for following along!
From Jake:
“Brittni loves projects. I am…intimidated by projects. Brit came from a family of builders and DIY-ers who have a long history of generational knowledge about how to do things. I do not.
We have been talking about putting in a breakfast/reading nook in the area off our kitchen since we moved into our house in 2020. Brit has a "jump right in" mentality when it comes to starting projects whereas I have a much more planning oriented mentality. This generally has worked out for us because with Brit pushing me it forces me to start my meticulous planning phase and eventually get things done that I would normally put off indefinitely because, like I said, I am intimidated by projects and building things.
However, with the breakfast nook project, I had some time on my hands and one day was staring at the empty space in our house, and just up and decided to go to The Home Depot and buy a bunch of supplies and get started. To be fair, I had already done my planning phase and was ready to go.
Brit and I were both surprised how quickly the nook came together. I had it basically built in an afternoon/evening. I had gained some confidence from building our chicken coop and some other projects around the house. I have also been accumulating more and more tools (Brit likes projects, I like buying tools for projects) and had everything I needed to work pretty quickly.
The nook was built very quickly, but where I got hung up was making the cushions. I priced custom sized cushions and they were ridiculous. I ended up purchasing foam from Amazon (cheapest) and found a YouTube video suggesting using curtain panels for cushion covers.
I thought the cushion foam was rigid enough to cut on my table saw. I asked a buddy with construction experience if this would work and he gave his approval. It did not work. It created a terrible mess, was dangerous, and nearly ruined my table saw. I ended up using a very sharp chef's knife and it was super easy and fast to do. Once I had the foam cut to size, I used curtain panels to wrap them. I used a fabric glue to hold them in place as well as pins. I believe this glue would have worked by itself, but I ended up hand sowing the covers in place to make sure the cushions would last.
I am very happy with the results. We have a bespoke nook with built-in storage that looks beautiful and like it was custom built for the spot in our house…because it was. My takeaway from this project is that there is a happy middle ground for planners and "just do it" people. This nook is proof of that.”
ORIGINAL:
PROGRESS:
FINAL:
Sources:
Nook tutorial: The Happy Home Project - Instagram
Cushions: Blue and White - TJ Maxx in store
Cushions: Brown - Amazon, Inserts
Cushion DIY Tutorial: YouTube, second YouTube video
Fabric: Amazon
Foam: Amazon
Handles: Amazon
White Paint:
Green Paint: Behr “Global Green”
Window Cling: Amazon
Tan “pouf”: Amazon - these ones are awesome extra blanket storage!
Ceiling Fan “Fandelier”: Home Depot
Wood Materials: Home Depot
Cost us roughly maybe $500 with build and cushions!