Easy Floating Barn Wood Book Shelves

2 Materials
$50
2 Hours
Easy

I needed to go back to drawing board and figure out the first most important thing my office had to do for me. And that was (as you might guess) some really great book shelves! Next week Iā€™ll post my whole office reveal but, for right now, let me talk about barn wood book shelves! I had lots of dreams and ideas for builts-ins across this entire wall . . .

The more I thought about it the more I wanted something as minimal as possible with as-invisible-as-possible hardware. So, I headed to the store for some L brackets.

Using a pencil, a measuring tape and a level I got to work drawing my lines along the wall where each shelf would hang and finding my studs. I knew I would always have a stud in the corners to hit but I also knew I had to find at least ONE more for these shelves to be able to hold any kind of real weight. With the lines drawn, I put up my brackets using three inch deck screws into the studs. (I really didnā€™t want to be in bed some night to hear the crash of my barn wood book shelves falling to the floor.)

From there I headed out to the barn to see what Grandpa saved for me that would work in this project. Suddenly my book shelves were now, most certainly: Barn wood book shelves! I grabbed the wood I needed and got them cut to length and then put them on towels in my kitchen because they were absolutely FILTHY. Some vinegar and some elbow grease and I was so excited! Isnā€™t this old pine beautiful?

I pulled the boards out from the wall about two inches just so the last screw hole in the bracket would still sink into full wood but also so the shelves would still be as deep as possible. It dawned on me that books certainly did not need shelves that ran flush to the wall, a gap across the back wasnā€™t going to effect anything.


These are true 2x6s meaning: they are actually 2 inches by 6 inches as opposed to the 2x6s of today which are 1 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches. But, really, any wood you choose will work for this project, I just wanted thick enough boards so I would be able to screw up into the bottom of them without having to use bolts and nuts however, doing it that way on your own barn wood book shelves would be fine as well. I am so excited to finally have some real storage now!

Suggested materials:
  • 2x6s
  • L brackets
GrandmasHouseDIY
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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