Love the looks of the DWR parallel shelving that I just blogged but can't afford either the white-lacquered $1,700 version, or the $2400 find in oak? No worries. Order the sturdy Thomas O'Brien bi-fold bookcase for $239 (74H x 72W x 11.75D) from Target and pimp it! It has great customer reviews, and since I examined this bad boy in person, I know it's nice and would be fun to alter a little with a mere can of paint.

You can white-lacquer your hearts out, or paint it bold red, black, or leave it alone because the wood is an appealing color in person. You can even do a little two-tone magic on it, like the bookcase shown above from a back issue of Living Etc magazine. Sure, the design is different, but it's the paint job we're focusing on here -- the lovely two-tone style in white and wood. Oh wait... You see this bookcase and like it so much for it's compact cuteness, and want that one instead? Well, this is a no-brain situation because you can order the Remsen bookcase as-is from West Elm for $399.

So my friends, we do have affordable options sometimes, ones that don't involve lumber yards and power tools. Just add paint!

(images from target, DWR, and living etc)