Shelves provide space for books, accessories and house plants and give the room a distinctive charm. There are numerous shelving systems available in stores to suit every taste and every style of living. But it seems much more personal if you build your own shelves. Because it doesn't necessarily have to be the boring rectangular wall shelf. With a little imagination, the shelves become a real eye-catcher. In today's article we give all creative do-it-yourselfers cool ideas on how to build unusual shelves yourself.
Build unusual shelves yourself: What should you keep in mind?
Whether as storage space for books etcDVD collectionor as a place to display homemade decorative pieces, family photos and souvenirs from your last vacation: a shelf should be able to carry a large load. This makes professional installation all the more important. Several simple rules will help with this.
- Before drilling holes in the wall, check for electrical wires and plumbing.
- Calculate the maximum load that the shelf will carry and get advice from the hardware store about the appropriate wooden boards and bridge brackets.
- Consult a specialist about the best way to hang the shelf on the wall.
- It is worth setting up the shelf near a socket. You can also set up lamps, fairy lights, a DVD player or a projector for the home cinema on it.
Build unusual shelves yourself: Decorative wall shelves made of wood
With a functional construction, you can assemble your wall shelves without much effort. For thenext DIY projectyou can have the individual elements prefabricated. Because most hardware stores can cut the details to the desired size and shape. All you have to do is mount it on the wall. The first DIY idea can be realized quickly. All you need is special glue, possibly dowels for attaching to the wall and some wood paint.
For each shelf you need two wooden semicircles of the same size, which you glue together and then nail or screw together.
Gluing wood: Since it is a shelf that has to carry a certain load and withstand forces, you should use an assembly adhesive. Adhesives of classes D1 and D2 are particularly suitable. Class D1 is an option if you want to hang a shelf in the living room, bedroom or children's room (i.e. indoors). The adhesives, which are classified as D2, can be moistened from time to time and are therefore suitable for use in the laundry room or kitchen. The glue is only applied to a clean surface. To ensure that it sticks, the individual components are held together by pressing. Each manufacturer gives precise information about how long and how hard the details need to be pressed together.
After the two details have been glued in place, they can be painted as desired or painted with a colored varnish or glaze. When it comes to appearance, the biggest difference between varnish and glaze is the finish: the colored varnish is glossy and the glaze is matt.
Build unusual shelves yourself: convert skateboard decks
A wall shelf made of wooden boards is too boring for you?Grab a skateboarddecks. They can be painted as desired and are ideal as replacements for wooden boards.
You can put together a shelf made of skateboard decks in a similar way to a normal wooden shelf:
1. Paint the skateboard decks and let them dry.
2. Color the consoles with metallic spray.
3. Pre-drill holes in the wall and in the skateboard decks.
4. Assemble the shelf.
Build unusual shelves yourself: bookshelves
The next DIY project is for bookshelves. To realize the idea, you need a sheet of plywood measuring 607 mm x 957 mm. The blocking plate should be a maximum of 58 mm thick. You can have four more details cut for the shelves. You can use wooden dowels instead of hooks for hanging.
The shelving system visually resembles a perforated metal wall. You can find such perforated walls in hardware stores; they are usually hung in the garage or garden shed and provide storage space for tools.
First mark the location of the holes on the plywood sheet (distance between holes 7 cm). Then take a 10 mm wood drill with a center point to drill the holes in the plywood. An alternative for those who don't have a wood drill at home is the 10 mm metal drill. 10 mm wooden dowels fit into the holes. You can hang the finished shelving system (it's best to get advice from a specialist about fastening) or simply lean it against a wall.
Build your own shelves out of wooden boxes
If you want to save yourself the hassle of sawing and drilling, then use wooden boxes. They give the interior a rustic touch and can be quickly and easily put together to form a shelving system. You don't need any instructions for the DIY project: simply place several wooden boxes on top of each other or next to each other. Test different designs before screwing the wooden boxes together.
DIY shelf for the kitchen
The wall shelf has become an inseparable element of modern kitchen design. A wall shelf in the shape of a house is guaranteed to attract attention and effectively display your collection of teacups or spices.
About thatWall shelf for the kitchenTo put it together, the wooden boards must first be cut to size and then the individual elements must be glued together. To ensure that the adhesive lasts for a long time, you should fix the details with screw clamps. You can then screw them together for more support.
Build a round hanging shelf yourself
A round hanging shelf is a real eye-catcher. But you don't have to spend a lot on it; with a little skill you can build it yourself. You need the following materials:
- a 100 cm long and 3 mm thick strip made of beech wood.
- a 190 cm long and 3 mm thick bar made of beech wood
- Twine for hanging
- Glue for wood
- screw clamps
- a large pot
1. Pour 2 liters of water into the pot and bring to the boil.
2. Place the 190 cm long wooden strip over the edge of the pot and leave it under the closed lid for 6 minutes.
3. Then bend the part softened by steam with your hands.
4. Place the strip over the edge of the pot again so that a different part is steamed this time.
5. Repeat the process until the entire bar is bent into a circle shape. You should get a circle with a diameter of 60 cm.
6. Fix the circle with screw clamps, wipe the strip and let it dry overnight.
7. Now glue the ends of the strip together.
8. Cut the second bar into three pieces and assemble the round shelf.
Build unusual shelves yourself: hanging shelves on the window
Next, we offer you an idea for a space-saving hanging shelf for the winter garden, kitchen window or garden shed. Since the shelf is made of acrylic, it will not darken the room. For the project you will need the following materials and accessories:
- transparent acrylic glass, ready cut
- a clamp support for roller blinds
- Perforated wall hook made of stainless steel (long)
- a wood drill
- a cordless screwdriver
- Metal wire for hanging
1. Attach the clamp supports to the top of the window frame.
2. Cut a piece of metal wire, thread the perforated wall hooks and hang the acrylic glass shelves.
3. Guide the metal wire through the top of the clamp carrier and fasten it.
4. To be on the safe side, check during assembly whether the shelf is hanging horizontally. Since the acrylic glass is not screwed or glued, you can redesign the shelf at any time. However, it is important not to place objects that are too heavy on it.
DIY ideas for bookshelves
A bookshelf doesn't necessarily have to take up a lot of space. The next idea looks very compact, but can easily accommodate up to 100 books. The design is therefore also suitable for niches and narrow walls. However, in order for the shelf to be able to support the weight, you should first assess the load. You need the following materials:
- a 100 cm long shelf made of solid wood (thickness 18 mm)
- two 60 cm long shelves made of solid wood (thickness 18 mm)
- two 40 cm long shelves made of solid wood (thickness 18 mm)
- two 20 cm long shelves made of solid wood (thickness 18 mm)
- Bridge brackets for wall shelves with a load capacity of at least 100 kg
- Paper tape
The maximum distance between two dock brackets should be 70 cm.
1. Mark the desired position of the shelves with the paper tape.
2. Determine the position of the bridge consoles and mark them with strips of adhesive tape.
3. Create the first bridge bracket and mark the location of the holes with a pencil. Drill the holes and screw the bridge bracket to the wall. Proceed similarly with the other bridge consoles and attach them all.
4. Screw the shelves to the bridge consoles.
Build your own Tetris shelf
Next, we will explain to you how you can build modular niche shelves yourself. If free wall space is limited, then the Tetris shelf is ideal. It is inspired by the game of the same name and consists of several parts that fit together. You can arrange these together like a puzzle or distribute them across the open space. The individual parts are then painted in different colors and can spice up bare walls.
Proceed as follows:
1. Make a sketch with the exact dimensions of the boxes and wooden details.
2. Have the wooden details cut to size at the hardware store.
3. At home, paint the details as desired or paint them in any color and let them dry.
4. Assemble the individual Tetris blocks. To do this, glue the body together and then press it with screw clamps.
5. Pre-drill holes in the wall and in the details and screw the boxes together.
Build corner and niche shelves yourself
Wall shelves for corners and niches are best built as a plug-in system. This means that the shelves can be attached virtually floating.
Space saving bookshelves
Another cool idea is thishomemade bookshelfhang upside down. For this purpose, attach the consoles above and not below the shelf as usual. Cut an elastic band (the wider the band, the better the heavy books will hold) and staple it to the lower side of the wooden board using a cordless stapler and narrow-back staples. Complete!
We offer you several ideas for unusual shelves that are suitable even for inexperienced DIYers. Round, made from skateboard decks or in the shape of Tetris building blocks: there are no limits to your creativity!
