This turned out to be a huge post. The text is details for newbies if they want to do their own shelves or you can skim through the pictures.
Right this moment I am reeling from the total beat down hanging the largest 60” shelf turned into. Don’t get me wrong. These shelves are easy and so awesome to custom fit exactly to the space you want them.
Now having made several – and I am new to woodworking – I don’t think buying a ready-made ledge or coat hook shelf is a good buy. Not when you can make them at a far more reasonable cost and have the custom height, depth, and width you need for each specific space.
My problem: no storage space
I moved into a house with no storage and most notably lacking any kind of guest closet. Where do you hang the jackets or coats you wear on a regular basis. Where do you hang jackets or coats for guests. My solution was coat hook shelves with ample hooks for hanging and a 6” deep shelf to put things like decor items.
Next came a master bathroom with no towel bar. Seriously? Where the heck are you supposed to hang towels? I solved the problem for the short-term by hanging my bath towels on the shower door, but hated how that looked. I have a beautiful shower and wanted it to show unobstructed by towels.
I kicked around the idea of doing board and batten in the entry and bathrooms since I love the look, but in the end I felt baseboards made it a deal breaker. To complete the look I would need to pull builders grade basic baseboards and replace with something more substantial and that was a financial deal breaker at this point. So my shelves would not be the nailed to the wall as the top shelf on board and batten. I would have to be able to hang them. The good part of this is they could go with me if I move.
Test project: 30” shelf by door to the garage
I made the first 30” shelf to hang by the door to the garage so I had a place for my purse, sunglasses, and jackets. It was my first project with my air compressor and nail guns. Along with my compound miter saw I couldn’t believe how quickly and easily the coat hook shelf went together.
Cost of entire project
As of this writing you can get 1” x 6” common boards for around $10, 1” x 8” common boards for around $12-13, and I paid $.80 a linear foot for basic primed baseboard. I also used boards from a shipping crate I had torn apart. I strongly encourage the use of scrap wood whenever possible.
A note about the trim you use: I know a lot of people love the more expensive crown molding. If you decide to go that route purchase your hooks (if this is to be a coat hook shelf) and measure how much clearance you need to be able to hang things on the hooks. You may have to use something larger than a 1” x 8” back board. I really like the way the simple molding looks on my shelves and don’t think it needs anything more.
I also recommend getting the hooks in advance to see how they have to be fastened. For the black hooks I wanted the holes drilled before painting so I didn’t mess up the finished shelf trying to get the hooks in straight.
If you have the paint or stain you want to use on hand, the only thing left to purchase will be some sort of hanger. I used the Ook hangman cleat for the first shelf. It’s strong and works well, but the shelf isn’t flush against the wall. So for the last 4 shelves I built I purchased keyhole fasteners. More about keyhole fasteners later.
Materials
- Back board against wall 1” x 8” common pine
- Top shelf larger shelves 1” x 6” common pine
- Top shelf for small shelves 1” x 4” common pine
- Filler board behind trim 1” x 4” crate wood
- Basic trim
- Oiled-bronze GlideRite hooks (I sprayed them matte black)
- Brushed nickel GlideRite hooks
Hooks are potentially your biggest expense – they were slightly over half of mine. I couldn’t believe some of the prices I saw and was thrilled I could get 10 packs of hooks from GlideRite.com. I love their hardware and have used it in a kitchen update and two bathroom updates as well. It’s decent hardware that doesn’t break the piggy bank.
I had all the paint, etc on hand so I didn’t have to buy any of that.
For less than $85 I built 5 beautiful shelves with the smallest costing $8 and the largest costing $33. Couldn’t find that in a store.
Steps in construction
- Glue and nail filler piece to back board taking care to not nail lower than the filler board (I glued, clamped and nailed from the back). The filler piece should be the exact same length as the back board and a little wider than the trim board you selected.
- Glue and nail top shelf to filler piece and back board taking care to not shoot nails past the tops of the boards. My top boards were 4″ longer than the back board so they would overhang the back and trim.
- Measure and cut trim pieces and then glue and nail in place. Use a miter saw to make the cuts for the front corners.
- Caulk trim and all seams
- Fill nail holes on trim and top shelf with wood filler (the remaining holes are in the back and I don’t bother filling them)
- Sand entire shelve unit until smooth enough to finish
- Drill holes for hooks if necessary
- Install keyhole hangers
- Do test install of shelf*
- Finish shelves with stain or paint (I used chalk paint and clear wax)
- Attach hooks making sure they are all perfectly straight
*Learn from my mistake – hang the shelves before finishing. I will go into the nightmare hanging of the 60” shelf for my entry hall later in the post. Much pain and agony could have been avoided if I would have hung the shelves before finishing.
Using leftover crate wood to fill behind trim board
Painting the shelves
Attaching the black hooks to 60″ entry shelf
Hooks I chose for entry shelf $24.95/pack of 10 and bathroom shelves $19.95/pack of 10
Keyhole fasteners
If you want a flush mount install nothing beats keyhole fasteners, but you will need a Forstner bit and chisel to install them. The keyhole fasteners themselves aren’t expensive – I got them at Lowe’s The Hillman Group 2-Count Heavy Duty Keyhole Hangers $1.38.
Before I built these last four shelves I did a lot of research and decided on keyhole hangers. They’re more work, but they are economical and an incredibly strong fastener.
To install you have to drill 3 holes with a Forstner 5/8” bit and then chisel out to create an oval hole. The center hole should be a little deeper to accommodate the screw head. I do not have a drill press and just eyeballed the depth and they all worked out fine. Yes, fine woodworkers are cringing at my total lack of precision…
Moving location of keyhole fasteners to match where studs were in the wall
I didn’t have a chisel set when I did the last four shelves, but I did when I had to move the keyhole hangers on the 60” shelf. Oh my god, I could believe how easy a chisel made it. I got my set of 4 chisels and set of 6 Forstner bits at Harbor Freight for respectively on sale for $4.99 and $9.99. Not everything at Harbor Freight is good, so be sure to read customer reviews before buying — they will tell you if it’s junk or not.
Installing shelves on the wall
For the smaller shelves that wouldn’t be holding much weight I felt hollow wall anchors would be good enough. I used these for the 3 bathroom shelves since they would only be holding towels and décor items. Just measure precisely and level and install the screws in the wall. Then hang the shelves.
For the coat hook shelves that would potentially have to support more weight or people pulling on them I wanted a firmer install. For the 30” in shelf in the kitchen that I would hang my purse and jackets on I tried an Ook hangman cleat. It’s a strong support but the shelf isn’t flush to the wall and I really like flush to the wall.
60” shelf for entry
Oh my god, what a beating. I installed the keyhole hangers an inch from each end and installed hollow wall anchors in the wall. I hung the shelf – which was a bear doing by myself since it was so long and weighs a ton. I did a gentle tug and the shelf and wall anchors ripped right out of the wall and landed (thank god) on the ladder shelf I had used to assist me so the shelf wasn’t destroyed.
Fine. I ordered the larger Ook Hangman cleat that is 18” long and is supposed to hold up to 200 pounds. My assumption is that weight limit applies if mounted into studs.
So began my search for studs. I could find studs toward the ends of where the shelf would be but nothing in the middle. What???? I thought my stud finder was screwing up so I started tapping holes into the drywall with nails. Nothing. I went to the other side of the wall and searched for studs. Nothing. In my entry there is a 30” gap with NO STUDS. Quality construction. Geez. No stud and swiss cheese drywall from my search for a stud.
The cleat had to go into studs on both ends so now what? I stood back and looked at the patched holes from the wall hangers and the nail holes from my search for studs. Dear god. Now what do I try?
The only option I could see was moving the keyhole hangers to match where I could find studs 14” from the left end of the shelf and 19 1/2 “ from the right end.
After an enormous amount of measuring and double checking and triple checking I installed the keyhole fasteners to match the studs. I put long screws deep into the studs and tried to hang the shelf. Lo and behold after all the various disasters the keyhole fasteners matched the screws and the shelf was FINALLY firmly hung on the wall. Sheesh – what a beating.
This is why I say hang your shelves before finishing. I manhandled (womanhandled) that poor shelf up and down so many times. I felt I had to drill and chisel the new holes in the house resting on carpet so I wouldn’t rip all the paint off of it and then had that mess. I had to adjust the keyhole hangers up and down multiple times to get it level – I must have been in total brain-fart mode by that time. All I can say it was a total beating for me and the poor shelf. Hang the shelf before applying the paint or finish.
‘Nuf said.
I love the shelves
36″ bathroom shelf
15″ ledge shelf with hooks
15″ ledge shelf with hooks – finally a good place for bath towels
60″ coat hook shelf for entry
30″ shelf by door to garage for everyday things
When all is said and done I love the DIY ledge shelves. I have solved the problems of coat hanging for both everyday and guests. I have a ton of places to hang things in the bathroom. And all for around $85. You can’t beat that price for five shelves that are very classy looking and functional.
You could also use a spade bit for drilling out your keyholes, I think. I’ve read the make a somewhat messier hole, but since your hole will be hidden by the keyhole plate, who cares.
I’d be afraid to use a spade bit on wood that’s 3/4″ thick and needs a fairly decent depth for the keyhole brackets. I wouldn’t want the tip of the blade (which extends considerably past the wide part of the blade) to break through on the good side of the board.
This works perfect with the Forstner bit, easy to mark and get them perfect distance from the top of the board.