DIY Floating Wood Shelves!
Without a doubt, the most important component of our workshop will be – scratch that, is – the ability for heavy-duty storage. For almost two years, we’ve been tripping over power tools and our bulky air compressor, wading through paint cans (only to realize the can we need is at the bottom of a 10-can stack) and digging through cardboard boxes to find the fine grit sandpaper. It’s a miracle anything was ever accomplished in this house at all!
Finally, we have some shelves! Some really big, really hunky, really strong shelves!
After making a list of all the easy access items we’d like to store in the workshop (vs. what’ll end up going in the garage), we calculated and re-calculated how many shelves we’d need, how high they’d go and how much space they’ll allow. We measured our big bins, the height of two paint cans and checked inventory on all the glues, tapes and things that allow us to complete any given project. The prep and planning was a good week’s worth of work alone. And then, we got to work work!
For anyone who wants to take on this same project, your shopping list will vary depending on the width of your shelves, but here’s what we bought for four 6′ wide, wall-to-wall floating shelves:
SUPPLIES USED FOR 6′ SHELVES:
4 – 1/4″ sheets of plywood
12 – 2″ x 4″ x 8′
12′ of 1″ x 6″ alpine planks
2.5″ wood screws
4″ wood screws
Wood stain in Special Walnut
Wall color touch-up paint (Stratton Blue, Ben Moore)
2 – 2″ nuts bolts (not pictured above)
50 lb. anchors (not pictured above)
Drywall or wood screws (not pictured above)
TOOLS USED
Miter saw for small cuts
Circular saw for long cuts
Table saw for ripping down alpine planks
Drill right angle adapter
Nail gun
Measuring tape
Level
Sandpaper
Mallet
Paint brush
Rags for stain
WHAT WE DID. First, we took a minute to locate the studs behind our drywall. Jack likes to get involved, too, which always helps.
We needed to ensure that our shelves are strong, so we needed to build a support system that we would ultimately hide beneath the plywood sheets. We cut our 2x4s to the widths of our wall – two per shelf. To create a ladder-like support structure, we also made 14″ cuts from the remaining 2x4s, which was enough for 7 supports, end to end.
To save time and avoid needing to make any pocket holes, we used 2.5″ wood screws to create 3 sides of our internal structure, with about 12″ between each support. Note: Measure each shelf independently, as drywall is rarely (if ever?) square. For example, some of our wall widths varied by a 1/2″. The more precise your cuts, the better your outcome!
We attached our frame to the wall, putting two 4″ screws into each and every stud along the way. The level became our best friend at this point, and as is typical with inexpensive 2x4s, we did have some less than perfect twists in the wood. A good tug while keeping things level was necessary to get our support in place, and a right angle drill adapter was used for the studs to the left and right of the main wall; it was a tight squeeze. The remaining 2×4 was screwed on to the front, and again, we made sure to level, level, level.
We continued up the wall, allowing for different heights between the shelves, starting with 18″ at the bottom, two at 16″ and one at 14″. These shelves aren’t going anywhere!
I added a light coat of our wall color along the 2x4s, but only where the 2x4s meet with the wall. My thought was more preventative than anything; any imperfect cuts in our plywood would hopefully blend into the wall.
Now, let’s talk about those plywood sheets! We had all four sheets cut down to 17″ strips at the hardware store, which was the perfect depth to skim our ladder supports. (Think: 1.5″ 2×4 14″ support 1.5″ 2×4 = 17″)
This meant that we only needed to use the circular saw to cut down the 6′ widths. The edges got a gentle sanding, and I stained everything using Special Walnut. (We opted to nix polyurethane altogether, since these shelves will be holding All the Things that’ll just scratch it up. It feels less precious this way, somehow.) Once the plywood was ready to go, a mallet helped to ease the boards into place – top and bottom – and we used a nail gun to secure the sheets along the ladder support.
With everything skimmed, we had a height of exactly 4″ for each shelf, and although we initially planned on using the leftover 1/4″ plywood to create the false fronts, we figured that for the amount of work we’d already put into these shelves, we should make it count. And so, we picked up 1×6 aspen planks, ripped them down to 4″ on the table saw, stained them, and, finally, popped them on with our nail gun. It was absolutely worth it!
You guys! We love them. The project turned out way better than we imagined it would, and we both joked that they were too nice for the workshop! In any case, the goal was to make them super strong (check!) and durable (check!), and we can’t wait to load them up.
We have a few more finishing touches for the room that we’d like to finish up this week, but it’s so close to being complete! And then maybe – maybe – we might be able to finish the kitchen. Word on the street is that our back door will be here mid-May, I say, as I knock on wood.
