Custom Built-Ins Completed with KILZ®

Hi, I’m Mark The Builder! I am a woodworker, husband, father, and so much more. I enjoy creating projects and delivering beautiful carpentry to my clients and also for my own home. As a woodworking enthusiast, I take great satisfaction in crafting built-in structures. After purchasing our home, my wife and I planned a remodel to better fit our needs. We recently started renovating our formal dining room into an office, including a T-shaped desk that will serve as two L-shaped working areas for my wife and me. After finishing the first phase of the office built-in, we realized we had enough material to also complete a built-in for the mudroom area within the office. This addition provides extra storage and a designated area for our children to hang their backpacks, with drawers to put additional school supplies, shoes, toys, and more. There is also a wall plug that can serve as a charging station for our oldest son’s school Chromebook. As with previous built-ins projects, I used KILZ RESTORATION^® Primer as a base before painting and KILZ^® PREMIUM SEAL to ensure a flawless finish along the seams.

My wife and I chose BEHR^® Sage Green ICC-77 with gold finishings to match our office built-in. And to top it off, no pun intended, we picked a white oak wood with a smoke stain finish, which perfectly matches the Sage Green paint and the desk tops. Our vision for the office is a sleek, modern feel. We plan to remove the arch in the walkway to install glass doors at the entrance of the office and close up the opening that leads to our kitchen.

In the garage, I set up my indoor painting area with stands and a drop cloth underneath. This is where I sanded and used KILZ RESTORATION^® Primer on the upper and lower cabinetry, as well as on the doors. I applied two coats of primer using a paint sprayer for a smooth and even finish. After completing the cabinetry, I sanded and primed the slats for the mudroom built-in accent wall. I like to prime, sand, prime again, and sand the slats for a smooth foundation. Once the primer dried, with the help of the wind and my fans, I applied one coat of BEHR Sage Green, achieving a smooth, beautiful, and flawless finish. Then, it was time to put it all together in the office!

I installed the base by cutting the trim around the baseboard to fit it perfectly, making it look as though it was built into the house. I secured it with a wooden anchor behind the base, attaching it to the wall. After securing it, I added the oak wood top to create a bench for the kids to sit while putting on their shoes. Next, I assembled the accent wall and smoothed out the seams using the KILZ^® PREMIUM SEAL before adding a coat of paint. Then, it was time to install the upper cabinetry before installing gold hooks.

I really enjoyed using KILZ RESTORATION^® Primer as it is a versatile water-based primer, sealer, and stain blocker. It effectively tackles tough stains like heavy water damage, smoke, grease, crayons, pencil, and pet stains while sealing persistent odors. It can be used on interior surfaces including woodwork, plaster, brick, ceramic tile, and glass. The KILZ^® PREMIUM SEAL was the perfect finishing touch to add to the pre-painting process as it offers great durability and stretch, even capable of sealing active leaks.

Overall, I’m happy we added this new addition to the office, which also provides an organized space for our kids to place their things. It blends perfectly with the rest of the space, and I couldn’t have done it without KILZ. I can’t wait until the rest of the office is complete!