Custom Wall Shelving

I decided to install some shelves. After seeing what 'off the shelf' shelving had to offer, I thought it best if I made my own. Unfortunately this blog was an afterthought so I don't have much content in terms of process, but here it is.

The Concept

After consulting more experienced persons than myself, I was advised to secure a wooden board to the wall stud and then attach the shelving track to the board.
I've seen many shelves that run around the inside corner of a room, but I really wanted to see a shelf that wraps around the outer corner of a wall. Not only is it more interesting, but it would be a perfect spot for a digital projector. This outside cornering is only on the top shelf which is high enough that it's out of the way. If this were carried through the other shelves, it would cause several support issues as well as encroaching on a high traffic area.

Concentrating on function in my form, I chose to cut the shelf ends at 45 degree angles. This makes sure the boards are out of the way when you walk around the corner since they are flush to the edge of the wall.

look concept, suspension concept

Having the shelf run around the outside corner of a wall poses one major problem - the corner will be a significant distance away from the support. Having any weight that far out from the wall isn't a great idea and options are limited, so I chose to use metal cable to suspend the outer edge from the ceiling.

Materials

Unfortunately this section and the next are pretty bare. I have no photos, but here's the skinny.
- Knotty pine boards (cheap) making sure it was as straight, and in varying width.
- Matching brackets in sets of 3
- Metal cable
- Turnbuckles
- Rings to fix the cable to the shelf/ceiling
- Cable crimps to create fastening loops in the cable
- Screws
- Horizontal and vertical L brackets
- Shellac
- Wax

The Process

First thing is cutting everything to size. It's a good idea, so you can seal all of the cut ends when you apply your wood finish.

Preparing the wood was pretty easy. Since I wanted a nice natural look, it's just a matter of applying the shellac, allowing it to dry, and then buffing it with some wax. It looks great and it's water resistant.

I then marked off the studs in the wall, secured the boards to the studs making sure they are level horizontally, and fixed the shelving track to the boards.

Add the brackets, check the level, add a shelf, check the level, screw shelf to brackets, check the level...

Fixing the top shelf was easy, using horizontal L brackets fix the 90 degree corner, and vertical L brackets to secure the top of the shelf to the wall discreetly. After creating the cable supports (cutting that cable was incredibly difficult without the right tools), I measured, leveled, and installed them. The turnbuckles are useful for making sure the cable is nice and taught.

The Product

And there you have it. Not too far off from my original concept art. It's sturdy and the lower shelf is a nice height for a bar or perhaps a few turntables!

A small piece of scrap wood and a few extra brackets made a nice floating shelf