Chris, son to one of us, nephew to the other, recently turned 11. As he approached that milestone he began to find fault with the decor of his bedroom. The dinosaur wallpaper border suddenly was too adolescent. It wasn't "cool" any longer. That was just the beginning. Next, the twin bed wasn't roomy enough.

Soon the dinosaur border was history. Not far behind was the bed, the window covering, a chest of drawers (it matched the bed), the ceiling light fixture and the sliding wardrobe doors.

A fresh coat of interior latex paint was the first step in putting things back together. As soon as the paint dried, a new double bed was purchased, followed by a new comforter, dust ruffle, pillows and more. Shortly thereafter, there appeared a new pair of sliding mirrored wardrobe doors, a decorative ceiling paddle fan (complete with light) and new window coverings. This metamorphosis took about a week.

In addition to the more mature look, there are practical benefits: The decorative paddle fan will help move the air in the room, making it more comfortable and perhaps even lowering the utility bill. The mirrored doors make the room look larger and provide an abundance of natural light reflected from the window at the opposite wall.

It wasn't until all of the pieces had come together that we discovered that, with the chest of drawers retired in favor of built-in shelving in the closet, there was no room for the host of trophies that Chris had accumulated. Where would they be displayed? They, it turned out, would be placed on a decorative shelf that would run the full length of one of the walls about 18 inches below the ceiling.

A trip to the lumber yard for a piece of two by eight, 12 feet long was made. Since the shelf was to have a painted finish, kiln-dried vertical grain Douglas fir was in order. Four corbels were needed to support the shelf. These could be hand-made or purchased prefabricated. We opted for the latter since time was an issue. The prefab corbels are made of pine, have decorative curves and include artistic details created with a router. The corbels attach to the underside of the shelf material and are then anchored to the wall with screws. Whereas metal brackets or other methods of support could have been used, the corbels offer an elegant "tied-together" look.

The first chore in building the shelf was to measure and cut the lumber to size. The kiln-dried fir was in excellent condition, so only a touch of sanding was needed. Although the shelf would hold only relatively light objects, the decision was made to beef up support should Chris ever use it as a bookshelf. Four corbels were to be used in 12 feet, and they were to be screwed into studs.

The studs were easily located using an electronic studfinder. The stud layout was transferred to the shelf material which was resting on a pair of sawhorses. A speed square and pencil were used to create a right angle line to align the corbels. Each corbel was glued and screwed to the shelf material. The screw heads were countersunk and spackled for painting.

With all of the corbels in place, the entire object was given a coat of an oil-base primer. After the drying, the primer was lightly sanded and wiped down with a tack cloth. While we would normally suggest an oil-base enamel finish coat, due to the time constraints we opted for a latex enamel. The first coat was applied with the shelf still on the saw horses.

A level line was drawn on the wall using a pencil and a carpenter's level. After the first coat of enamel dried, the shelf was anchored to the wall studs using long screws. Again, the screw heads were countersunk and wood plugs were installed for a professional look. Another light sanding, cleaning and the finish coat of latex enamel was applied.

Today the shelf is covered with all of Chris' special memorabilia and it, along with the other decorating elements, make for as Chris puts it, "a really cool room."