I love the look of open wall shelves and floating shelves. They are super good looking, functional and DIY friendly.
Cabinets are much more labor and material intensive. If you have a blank wall and a need for extra storage, wall shelves can be just attractive yet much easier to build than cabinets!
There are many ways to build wall shelves. Here is a collection of 16 inspiring DIY tutorials with detailed steps and many great variations on choosing brackets, supports, materials and finishes!
We will start with floating shelves first. These types of wall shelves are very popular because there is no visible hanging hardware and the shelves really look like they are floating. ( Some of the helpful resources are affiliate links. Full disclosure here. )
1. Floating Shelves with hidden inner frames
One of the ways to support floating shelves is to use hidden inner frames. Sources: Shades of Blue Interiors | Young House Love |
First build hidden inner frames with 1x2s, and screw the frame to the wall studs. A magnetic stud finder is a great tool to help you find studs.
Attach the top, bottom and side panels of the shelves to the frames with wood screws. When everything is put together, each shelf would look like one chunky piece of solid wood.
Shanty 2 Chic | Desert Domicile
Paint the shelves white for a refreshing look, or stain them a darker color for a more traditional feel.
Related Article: Seven recipes to make your own natural wood stains: low cost and earth friendly!
Group 2. Use Crates to build floating wall shelving
Crate make great floating shelves. Sources: Natural Interiors by Ali Hanan| Soul Style
You can either screw them directly into the wall, or use D Rings hangers like these or keyhole hangers to hang them. Always remember to check weight limits!
Group 3. French Cleat Floating shelves
A French Cleat is a linear bracket capable of supporting lots of weight.
You can purchase metal French Cleat like these, or make one with wood like shown below. Sources: Lumberjocks | Domestic Doozie
We all know how heavy pallets are. A French cleat is a great solution for hanging a pallet shelf!
The next group of wall shelves are bracket shelves and hanging shelves.
Related Article: All About Pallets! Lots of tips on where to find and how to work with pallets.
Next group of wall shelves are supported by brackets-
Group 4. Floating shelf with Angle Brackets
The most common shelving brackets are corner brace right angle brackets which are simple to work with, slim and easy to hide.
Sources: Our Vintage Home Love | Mommy Suite
Attach the angle brackets on either top or bottom of the shelves.
Screw the brackets into the wall studs or if you cannot find the studs, use dry wall anchors that can hold up to 75lbs per anchor.
Place the shelves onto the brackets and secure with wood screws.
A beautiful selection of objects will hide the brackets and add much interest to the wall.
Group 5. Ikea Shelf Brackets
Ikea has so many ingenious designs. Their shelving brackets are no exceptions. Image sources: House Tweaking | Ikea
The brackets in the two photo above are Ikea Ekby Bjarnum Brackets, which come in 7″ or 11″ wide, and Ikea Ekby Valter Brackets which also come in two sizes.
Group 6. Make your own wooden floating shelf corbels
A corbel is a type of bracket and often an architectural element. It can be as simple as a triangular piece of wood, or as grand as carved marble.
These two floating shelves incorporate corbel as supports. The reclaimed wood shelf is finished with a coat of non-toxic butcher block oil that really brings out the beauty of the wood grain.
Sources: A Piece of Rainbow | Keeping it Cozy
Group 7. DIY Wall shelves with Pipes and Ropes
If you love industrial style, galvanized pipe like these with floor flanges and pipe caps make gorgeous supports for these stylish shelves.
Space-saving and collapsible, this hanging rope shelf has a charming boho vibe and is totally beginner friendly!
Before we end today, there are more eye-candies for you to check out- 25 stunning kitchens and cabinet paint colors.
Have a great weekend! =)
Source: apieceofrainbow.com
