Our DIY Projector Screen Unit
Probably one of the things I get the most questions about is our hidden projector and screen we have built into the shelving unit in the living room! 100% one of the most requested blog posts ever, I wanted to walk you through the elements of how we made our DIY Projector Screen Unit! I will apologise in advance for the lack of photos though, one of my biggest regrets is not documenting the process properly when this was made, but it was long before I ever knew how much interest there would be! However, I think I’ve hopefully managed to explain it pretty well so hopefully this will be of help if you want to create your own!
So, our built in shelving unit actually started off its life as an Ikea hack! Three Billy bookcases on top of 3 Metod kitchen units and a sheet of MDF and the structure was formed!
At the top, we created an separate enclosure hanging down from the ceiling, but the important part here was leaving a gap between it and the shelves for the projector screen to appear from by allowing the top section to protrude slightly more. The projector screen was then attached behind this box to hide it! This means at the press of a button the screen will appear or disappear - the ultimate movie time magic!
We were really keen to not need to have a projector on display all the time so in the middle cupboard we built an extending shelf where we could place an ultra short throw projector that could project straight up onto the screen! The best part about this is when we close the doors and put the screen away nobody would ever know we even have a projector in here! It’s the best bit about the projector screen unit, 100%! I love not having to have the projector attached to the ceiling as well, it’s one of the big things I really think makes it extra special!
Other little details we made to help make it look completely built in were the small wooden base to lift the cupboards from the floor and added a trim around the top of the unit just to finish the whole thing off. We also filled all the shelf holes in the Billy bookcase so you’d never even know they were there! We then used Zinsser B-I-N Shellac-Based Primer to coat everything (the best primer for using on Ikea furniture) before finishing with an eggshell paint.
It really was quite a simple project all in all as starting off with pieces from Ikea really helped cut down on the time for creating and building it! Now we’ve had it about a year and I honestly couldn’t imagine life without our secret projector - it brings me so much joy settling down with a big bowl of popcorn to watch a movie, plus equal joy being able to shut it all away when we have guests over and just want to chat! It then transforms into the most beautiful shelving unit for styling which I get enough compliments on even when they don’t know it houses a hidden projector!
I hope that answered a load of your questions and hopefully inspired you to give this a go yourself! Getting a projector is honestly one of the best things we ever did and I just couldn’t see us going back now so I’m basically just here preaching about this until someone listens! Making your own DIY Projector Screen Unit is definitely not a small project, but it will transform movie nights in a way you cannot imagine!
Would you ever get a projector in your home?
Eliza x
