and it’s not a piece of crap! I honestly can’t believe how nice it looks and how sturdy it is, and how easy it was to put together. This might be the first time that poor-people furniture I’m so used to buying was actually a bit impressive once I finished assembling it.
Maybe I’m just getting better at following the instructions?
Don’t knock the poor people furniture. All of my bookshelves, CD racks, etc. are Shopko and Target specials and they all look just fine. I don’t see any reason to spend hundreds of dollars on furniture when $20 will get me the same result of holding up my books.
Most of my bookcases are from IKEA. When I bought the first batch, they were something like $19. Now they’re 20 years old and still have no shelf sag (unlike my department store bookcases). They’re not pretty, and next time I move I’m going over to real wood, but over 20 years that initial $190 investment has amortized really well.
Two of my bookcases are from Target. They’re great, but I’ve learned from experience that the flimsy backboard they provide is worthless, so I buy a piece of particleboard, and I haven’t had a problem.
-Lil
One of the things I found cool about the shelf I just bought is that you don’t have to “stretch and hammer” the flimsy backboard in place with nails. It actually stretches out and attatches all on its own as you assemble it. It’s hard to explain, but the whole thing was assembled without a single tool, using hardware parts that lock and snap into place - even the backboard. I probably couldn’t have assembled a sturdier backboard if I tried, without real wood.