This is my first “built-in” piece.  Purely utilitarian, this shelf unit makes use of the space in the kitchen island-bar unit that we never really used as a sitting area.  One design decision was to build as a stand-alone unit that simply slides into place (as opposed to a true built-in).  We did this in the event we decide to sell the house and if new owners might want to revert this back to a sitting space.  I used Baltic Birch Plywood and covered exposed ply edges with solid birch edging.  Over the years I’ve come to prefer working with solid wood vs plywood, it’s just a personal preference, but I still found this to be a satisfying project.  The shelf unit is painted with two coats of Benjamin Moore Insl-X Cabinet Coat, which is a water-based urethane acrylic enamel that is advertised as a very hard, chip-, scratch-, and scuff-resistant finish.  Jackie and I are very pleased the way this project turned out and we think it blends into the island in a seamless manner.