How We Hid Our Flat Screen TV with a Wall Cabinet

When Dennis and I designed our cottage we planned for our flat screen TV to mount on the north wall of our 8 1/2' x 10' sitting room. Every inch of floor space is precious in this small space, and hanging the TV just made sense. Since neither of us liked the idea of a black screen figuring prominently on the wall, we had in mind some kind of wall cabinet to hide it.

On a trip to Nampa, Idaho in March 2016 we discovered Sweetly Chic Boutique and its lovely owner Amanda.




Dennis found a cabinet in the corner of Amanda's shabby chic and vintage shop that he believed could be modified to work as a wall cabinet for the TV. I was excited about his idea, so we bought the cabinet and brought it home.




The cabinet sat in the workshop for almost two years while other projects that generated income took precedence. Reconfiguring the TV cabinet had to wait for a lull in Dennis' schedule, and finally after this past Christmas the opportunity came: Dennis had time to devote to the TV cabinet.  

He removed the inner shelves, cut the back of the cabinet to make it shallower, put in a new back, and built and installed a new single shelf under which the TV sits. After he hung the cabinet I gave it a fresh coat of paint inside and out. I couldn't be happier with the results. When the TV isn't in use we have a lovely leaded glass front wall cabinet that adds charm to our sitting room.







The doors open fully to expose the TV for viewing; favorite DVD's are stowed on the shelf.



Now I'm on the hunt for a something to place under the cabinet.






Altogether our cabinet cost less than $100. (I already had the paint in my stash.) When I recently saw this Horchow TV cabinet with a similar aesthetic on Pinterest at a whopping cost of $975 on sale, I felt even more satisfied with our adaptation.


Flat-Screen TV Entertainment Wall Cabinet
Source: Horchow

It sure feels good to have this TV wall cabinet project completed. I'll be sharing more changes in the sitting room soon. 

How about you? Are there any home improvement projects you've been dying to complete?








39 comments

  1. Nancy, you two are genius . . . your cabinet is amazing and adds so much charm as well as hiding your TV. I like yours' much better than the $975 model. It's pretty but more Hollywood Regency, and the one you chose it much more "cottagey" (is that a word?)
    It's a bright and wonderful idea . . . Perfect!
    Connie :)

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  2. I LOVE your 'new' TV cabinet. It's perfect for your home. I have a very large TV sitting on a wonderful, but big, piece of furniture in my living room. I'd like to do something different but this works in this house. For now. Yes, I have projects I've waited to finish but many things are up in the air until we know more about future plans.
    ~Adrienne~

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  3. Great adaption on your TV cabinet - looking forward to when you 'find' what will go under it - love the bottom curved piece underneath the cabinet.
    Joy

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  4. Genius Nancy! I love the cabinet and the idea. I just showed my own hubby and he was equally wowed. Can't wait to see what you come up with for underneath. Hugs!!

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  5. These kinds of projects are the best aren’t they? Love the way it looks, Nancy!

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  6. Fantastic idea Nancy! How beautiful the details on your cabinet!! I like it very much!!

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  7. What a great idea. I am on the hunt for a dresser to put in an alcove by the bathroom for linens. There isn't a linen closet and I have had my linens stacked on top of the guest bed. So good to hear from you again. Hope your holidays were blessed.

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  8. What a sweet find. I love the arched doors and the detail to this cabinet. So perfect. Loved seeing your great post today. Hugs. Kris

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  9. This is awesome! You guys did a great job and it looks fantastic. Its hard to hide a television, or make it blend seamlessly into a room, so this was well worth the effort. And the price tag!!

    I've lost touch with you, I have to go back and see if it was a glitch.

    Jane x

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  10. You are lucky you have a smaller TV. Ours is HUGE, but Ruben built a sort of "drapery cornice" from which we hand a curtain and under which we put the TV. It looks pretty good, but I'd rather have a cabinet, but with a SUPER TV as such, it would be quite imposing. But yours? PERFECT SIZE!

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  11. What a GREAT way to hide an eyesore! I'm thinking about hiding mine too once my bro-in-law and I finish doing living room remodeling.

    Your piece reworked is lovely. I'm sure you'll find the right piece, or make the right piece to go under it.

    Happy 2018 ~ FlowerLady

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  12. I love your cabinet! It is just beautiful. That last question is a loaded one! There are a lot of projects I want to complete but we are currently planning a total gut of our tiny bathroom and getting all new everything. I will believe it when the demo starts!

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  13. Nancy, my VERY small house sister..
    Love this cabinet. What a nice piece and perfect to hide the ugly black screen. We think alike. In my past home I had a chunky TV and chunky cabinet from IKEA. I cut it down so that only 1/3 remained and it was converted and mounted to the wall to cover up my new flat thin but still ugly TV. In my current house I converted a narrow book case and had old windows attached to make a TV cabinet that I could set on the floor. I really hate the look of most appliances and even hid my frig in a faux jelly cabinet. You know you can find a beautiful table and cut it down to the width of the TV cabinet to make a lovely really narrow table to put under it. I made one of those to, and think it might work well under that beautiful TV cabinet. Kudos to your hubby too. IF it wasn't for us girls they would just have that big old ugly TV sitting anywhere with cords and remotes all over the place - LOL.

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  14. Oh, my goodness! It is just amazing! You two are so talented and creative!! And, so frugal, too!! It is just perfect. Thank you for sharing, sweet friend. God bless you. :)

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  15. Oh Nancy, that's absolutely beautiful, you are both so clever. We had a new kitchen last Oct. and now the rest of the house looks tired, so lots of decorating is on our 'To do' list.

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  16. Your cabinet looks great, Nancy. I love how good it feels to finally accomplish a long-awaited project. Once you find a piece of furniture to ground your wall, you will really be patting yourselves on the back. Kudos to you both!

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  17. Nancy.. always love seeing your posts. That cabinet is ingenious! Who would have ever thought to use something like that to hide a TV? Not me! Yes.. pat yourselves on the backs! Hope life has been going well and treating you well. I'm enjoying slower days now and my Christmas decorations are almost put away. I DO SO WANT TO downsize those to just one little tub. I don't see the need for putting anymore than that out to enjoy. So many things are sentimental to me and hard to part with, but am hoping maybe my son will take a few that he remembers from his childhood. Your simplifying your cottage inspires me to do the same (though slowly). Hugs.. Marilyn

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  18. Wonderful idea. So nice that both you and Dennis are so handy. Can't wait to see what's next.

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  19. Nampa???? My hometown!!!!
    Uniquely, creative and an outstanding idea.
    Now I have to go visit Sweetly Chic Boutique.

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  20. Great idea, I like this very much

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  21. I’ve done this similar cabinetry on job sites where hiding the TV for a working model home was a must.
    I had my carpenter build a shallow box that mounted to the wall, and then bifolding shutters were added that closed off the tv behind them. The tv was a 50” inch and mounted on the wall. When the shutters were open the tv could swing out of the box and swivel in any direction. When the tv was not in use it pushed back into the framed in box and shutters again closed it off.
    This is such a sweet cabinet that inspired
    A wall to hideaway your TV. I think you could place anything under this piece. Even a simple bookcase, or slender cabinet for added movie dvd storage. Your small house lives big with the beautiful use of your space. I’m sure a perfect piece will come along soon enough.
    Xx
    Dore

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  22. I absolutely love this, what a fantastic way to hide your tv!!! I have always wanted to hide mine, it's this huge black box on my wall...but I think I'm going to end up hanging things around it perhaps.....I'm hesitant to start nailing into the wall until I make up my mind, yikes it's been nearly three years!! :)

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  23. What a fabulous idea to hide the TV! In such a small space this really is an amazing way to make great use of the space that you do have. What a great feeling to see one on TV that cost so much more than what you have, and I don't think even looks as good! You two are both so creative and resourceful :) Hugs to you Nancy!

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  24. You two are a fantastic team . . .
    Perfect!

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  25. This is brilliant, Nancy, Dennis is a master craftsman. I also don't like it when a TV monopolizes the room, especially when they are a boring black. For myself, I found a folding wooden chair in the skip that I am recycling. The chair itself has already been painted and now I'm adding needlework to the upholstery fabric to make it more interesting. I'll blog about it when done. A hug.
    Amalia
    xo

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  26. Love the new cabinet, Nancy. Can't wait to see more!

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  27. It is very sweet looking and such a creative solution. I don't have a tv so I guess I don't need to hide it.

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  28. Lindos detalhes. Bela ideia Nancy. Feliz dia. Cumprimentos.

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  29. 875 dollars saved - that must feel good!
    We've been getting round to doing jobs in our small cottage that have been on the list for ages. One of the most satisfying is the new tracking on my airing cupboard doors. A small job, with no visible difference to see, but, oh, the joy of effortless sliding!

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  30. This is a sensational idea, Nancy. I really want a TV at the lake, but the wall in the great room is stone and very uneven. Your method--a bit revised--would be fantastic for the covered patio idea I have. It would be so fun to have the Cubs and Sox on when we are outdoors!

    I hope I haven't missed many post. I'm going to check to make sure I'm following.

    Take care,

    Jane

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  31. Your cabinet turned out beautifully. We have a huge tv hanging on our wall. I wish I could find a creative way of hiding it, but who am I kidding,LOL it is always on. LOL
    You and your hubby did a beautiful job with re-creating your tv cabinet.

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  32. I love this idea Nancy! Wish I was a bit more creative with furniture.

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  33. very clever idea! love the look of it!!

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  34. There’s a rather long post over on HOUZZ about hiding tvs. Someone said that it’s ‘provincial’ to want to hide it...I in turn said there are those that don’t want all their time, effort and money to make a room pretty to be ruined by a black box.

    Love your cabinet! So Pretty!

    xxx

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  35. Hi Nancy, I just dropped by to wish you a happy spring. Hopefully your weather is beginning to warm up and that you are having fun playing in your garden. Just so you know . . . you are missed.
    God bless you both,
    Connie :)

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