The best way to amp up your home’s cozy factor? Add quality pieces that help give it that lived-in feeling while bringing some function to the table.
That’s where we come in! Dunn DIY is here to help you make your home feel a little homier with nine projects that are sure to make you want to light a candle and curl up with a good book. From adding shelving for a book-filled reading nook to creating ambiance with decorative lighting, these projects are easy to do and won't break the bank. Whether you’re a homeowner or renter, there’s a project in this list that’s sure to transform your space into the cozy oasis you've always wanted.
Cedar Panels for Closets
Aromatic cedar paneling is a wonderful way to protect clothes without the unpleasant smell of mothballs. This project allows you to reap the benefits of a cedar-lined clothes closet with much less labor. And, as an added bonus, these panels can move from closet to closet or home to home.
DIY Coffee Table
Sometimes, the search for the perfect furniture piece can be more difficult and time-consuming than the effort of building exactly what you’re looking for with your own hands. In the case of this project, we built a simple DIY coffee table with a handful of options to customize to your liking along the way.
Entryway Hall Tree
Small spaces can be challenging to declutter, especially high-traffic areas like entryways. Despite its slim size, this entryway tree makes space to stash all the necessities—keys, dog leashes, coats, hats, wallets, and the like. It’s easy to customize by adding (or removing) hooks or adjusting the overall width.
Indoor Wood Bench
An attractive bench is one of the most versatile pieces of furniture you can have in your home—it serves as extra seating for guests or a beautiful place to showcase books, plants, and decor. We created this elevated take on the classic wood bench by using several small pieces of wood to create an ornate mosaic-like top, industrial metal legs, and finishing it with epoxy for a beautiful sheen.
Geometric Hanging Light
Lighting is one of the most important elements when creating ambiance in a room. Our goal with this project was to create a light fixture that functioned as a secondary light source to contribute to the mood of a room, but we also wanted it to be versatile enough to suit a number of spaces in your home.
Mid-Century Planter
An attractive plant stand can transform even the scrawniest little plant into an interior design element that elevates a whole room. Our version uses dowels and wood stain of your choice to keep the project budget friendly and customizable to suit your space.
Wall-mounted Bookshelf
If you’re on the hunt for a bold, statement-making bookshelf, look no further. This semi-spherical wall-mounted bookshelf (also known as a Masseroni-style bookshelf) uses only three pieces of wood to create an interlocking pattern. The result is the true definition of form-meets-function.
Wood Bed Frame
There’s nothing quite as satisfying as achieving an interior design look for less, and this project certainly delivers. Inspired by the bold look of Crate and Barrel’s Big Sur furniture collection, we built this bed and headboard for a fraction of its store-bought counterpart.
Display Case Shelf
If you’ve ever shopped for shelving, you know how pricey good-quality shelves can be. Lucky for you, shelving is an easy DIY project for a fraction of the cost. This alternative take on a traditional flat shelf adds a lived-in feel to a room while giving you a multitude of ways to display plants, art, and more.
Looking for more home decor projects and inspiration? Browse our project library for hundreds of DIY tutorials.
