DIY $100 Restoration Hardware Bookshelf

by Living in a Fixer Upper

$100

3 Hours

Easy

Restoration Hardware. It is seriously so hard to deny oneself of the awesomeness of RH. What's the snag? They are just too darn expensive. So what happens when you really like a bookshelf from RH, but see it as utter madness to dish out $1,000+ for it?

restoration hardware bookshelf do it yourself, shelving ideas, storage ideas

You find an alternative way of making your own, that's what. And it'll look even better than their's. Or so you hope.

How about making similar shelving for under $100?

Well, a trip to Ikea gave me the tools to do just that!

Above you can see a picture of the bookshelf from RH that I used as my inspiration. It has metal framing and raw-looking wood shelves.

The Vittsjo is a metal frame bookcase with glass shelves at Ikea that comes in different sizes - some bigger, some smaller. Ours is middle-sized and came for $70.

When I got home and assembled the frame, I noticed that the stock Ikea shelves left a few millimeters of spare space on each side that looked kind of sloppy. So I measured them and found how much more I wanted them to be extended (3 mm).

The next day, with one of the Vittsjo's shelves tucked under my arm, I went into Home Depot and found a helpful guy in the lumber section. After looking at several options and weighing costs, he helped me pick out a very nice, smooth plywood (which surprised me, as I'd always pictured all plywood as rough and blotched construction wood).

Home Depot cuts wood for free, so he sawed the pieces for me and I left only $15 poorer and with all 10 fingers.

Once home, it was a simple matter of watching the wood shelves sink satisfyingly into their slots, fitting better than even the Ikea shelves had.

Such a simple project, and I love how well it turned out!

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3 comments

Hannah V on Nov 03, 2014
Omg great job!! I love it.

1 Reply
- Living in a Fixer Upper on Nov 07, 2014
  @Hannah V Thanks!
  
  Like
Janet O on Nov 11, 2014
Awesome!!

1 Reply