Shelving Ideas Guaranteed to Improve Your Space

Best Of Hometalk
by Best Of Hometalk

Shelving can easily transform any room in your home. It can be decorative or functional, or both even, saving you valuable square footage. Shelving solves a multitude of storage and organization issues around the house and yet they’re so simple. With a little creativity and imagination, shelving doesn’t have to be boring nor break the bank.

Shelving Ideas (pixabay)

Whether it’s in a kitchen, a bathroom, a garage, a basement, the living room, a bedroom, or a closet or a pantry, shelves make storing or displaying household items easier, more accessible, and more structured. Whether you’re looking for decorative or utilitarian solutions, creating your own DIY shelving is quick and easy! 


With so many shelving ideas and styles out there, how do you even begin to choose? These shelving ideas are just the tip of the iceberg. Use them as a jumping off point for your own exciting ideas and creations. For very little money and a bit of time, your home will feel cleaned up, orderly, clutter-free, and vastly improved. Get ready to be motivated!


Laundry Shelving Ideas

The laundry room can never have enough storage. Shelving is a great option when space is limited as they can fit in near anywhere, near any tiny crevice, and provide much needed places to store the numerous things a laundry room handles.


Laundry Room Shelving Makeover

Ordinary storage cubes can be put to great use in a laundry room. Combine them and dress them up with some molding or trim to create a fantastic built-in look. With this DIY, open shelves were cleverly slipped between to add a decorative touch. Paint or stain can customize and upgrade the look to fit any decor.

Laundry Room Shelving Ideas (SimplyDesigning)

See post: SimplyDesigning|Laundry Room Shelving Makeover


Repurposed Door into Laundry Room Shelf

This project is incredibly creative in reusing an old door, turning it into a shelf in a laundry room. It’s a fancy look that would, in fact, fit anywhere in a home. Just a few cuts, some corbels and trim, and voila, you have the swankiest laundry room on the block!

Laundry Room Shelving (Cindy Richter)

See post: Cindy Richter|Repurposed Door into Laundry Room Shelf


Built-in-the-Wall Shelving - Reclaiming Hidden Storage Space

If space for shelving is at a super premium and there’s absolutely nowhere to put them, go into the wall! Recessed shelving is a stellar solution that makes use of completely unused space, the space within your walls.

Built-In Shelving Ideas (John @ AZ DIY Guy)

See post: John @ AZ DIY Guy|Built-in-the-Wall Shelving - Reclaiming Hidden Storage Space


Garage Shelving

As anyone with a garage knows, it fills up fast with a zillion things, not just cars! Garages double as multipurpose rooms such as workshops or catch-all storage rooms and as a result, things accumulate with nowhere to go becoming an organizational nightmare fast. Shelving can solve garage messes in no time flat, whether they be shelves attached to the wall or stand alone shelving units. Constructing shelving for a garage is quick and easy with a few supplies.


Easy DIY Garage Shelving

This project is generally a basic shelving unit but there’s nothing basic about how it instantly improved and transformed this garage space. If you have the space, this project requires very little cutting as it’s mostly just assembly and in no time at all, your garage can be tidily organized. You can even use it as a makeshift workbench too!

Garage Shelving Ideas (Build It Craft It Love It)

See post: Build It Craft It Love It|Easy DIY Garage Shelving


DIY 2x4 Shelving Unit

While this project is merely 2x4 lumber and plywood, it adds a tremendous amount of storage. Simple connecting hardware makes the task of assembling these units incredibly easy. Using one plan, you can crank out as many units as you need in short order.

Shelving Unit Ideas (SweetPea Paula)

See post: SweetPea Paula|DIY 2x4 Shelving Unit


Industrial Pipe Shelving Ideas

Metal pipes found in the plumbing section of your home improvement store make easy work of assembling all sorts of shelving in near any configuration, whether it be simple single shelves or an entire system. Use these ideas anywhere in your home, from your living room to your bedroom in any place in between.


DIY Full Wall Industrial Piping Shelves

This project makes excellent use of tight or limited space in a bedroom. Going vertically up a wall frees up valuable square footage and floor space. Plus everything has its designated spot and is super well organized. It’s as stylish as it is functional!

Bedroom Shelving Ideas (One Broads Journey)

See post: One Broads Journey|DIY Full Wall Industrial Piping Shelves


DIY Industrial Pipe Open Shelving

These shelves fill in a tiny spot in a kitchen previously occupied by a closed-door cabinet. As you can see, plumbing pipes are quite strong and sturdy. Sometimes a simple shelving project can completely transform an entire room, providing a sense of airiness and openness.

Floating Shelf Ideas (Vernichel // created by v.)

See post: Vernichel // created by v.|DIY Industrial Pipe Open Shelving


Kitchen Shelving Ideas

Open shelving can be a fantastic option in a kitchen, allowing one to remove upper cabinets which creates a very airy feeling and can visually expand the room. Open shelving can also be used anywhere around the house and can range from basic problem-solving storage in a pantry or garage to high end looks.


DIY Open Shelving

This project goes to show you don’t have to spend a ton of money on some great open shelving. Simple brackets and basic 2x12’s cut to size at the home improvement store go on a wall near instantaneously. A fantastic look for less!

Kitchen Shelving Ideas (Love & Renovations)

See post: Love & Renovations|DIY Open Shelving


Rustic, Open Shelving for Free! My “How-To”

Even two simple boards trimmed to size, stained and sealed can create an impressive visual impact. Here, these two shelves appear to float as a bridge between upper cabinets. Don’t overlook free wood! With just a little elbow grease, wood can shine.

Kitchen Shelves (Creatively Living)

See post: Creatively Living|Rustic, Open Shelving for Free! My “How-To”


Create an Open Shelving Pantry with Ikea Shelves

As we all know too well, there is never enough storage in a kitchen for all that’s needed in that space, between the pots, pans, utensils, and food. With a quick fix of Ikea shelving, an amazing pantry is put together in minutes, instantly expanding your storage capabilities.

Pantry Shelving Ideas (Lela Burris)

See post: Lela Burris|Create an Open Shelving Pantry with Ikea Shelves


Bathroom Shelving

Shelving in the bathroom does not need to be boring or basic. Bathrooms are generally smaller spaces and always in need of more storage. Take advantage of your walls by adding clever ideas like these which are not only stylish, they’re functional too!


Modern Wood and Acrylic Shelf

This project merely looks expensive when in fact simple, inexpensive materials come together for a major wow factor. Not only is this unit of decorative, light, and airy, it also is functional and sturdy enough for towels.

Bathroom Shelving Ideas (Elisha PneumaticAddict)

See post: Elisha PneumaticAddict|Modern Wood and Acrylic Shelf


Upcycled /Repurposed Ladder | Bathroom Shelf DIY

Sometimes shelving material can be right underfoot, quite literally. Reusing an old wooden ladder provides a slew of storage opportunities plus you can feel good about repurposing an item if it has been broken. Take an open-minded look around the house, you may trip right over your next shelving material.

DIY Bathroom Shelves (Endless Acres Farmtiques)

See post: Endless Acres Farmtiques|Upcycled/Repurposed Ladder | Bathroom Shelf DIY


How to Create a Nice DIY Floating Bathroom Shelf + Free Plan

And sometimes bathroom shelving can be accomplished with one or two boards of lumber. This impressive shelving unit is simple enough for anyone to assemble, especially if you have the wood cut at the store. This great look installs in no time at all.

DIY Floating Shelf Ideas (Mr. ATC)

See post: Mr. ATC|How to Create a Nice DIY Floating Bathroom Shelf + Free Plan


Living/Dining/Family Room Shelving Ideas

There are a million and one ways to add shelving to a living room, dining room, or family room. Decide what you plan to use the shelving for such as books, decorative items, or for practical purposes such as entertainment units or storage and design from there. Regardless of use, shelving does not have to have a utilitarian look or feel. In rooms like a living room, dining room, or a family room that see the most daily use, take some time to dress up your shelving.


Use Closet Rods to Create a Custom Fit Shelving Unit

Living and family rooms are notorious for having weird nooks and spaces that are hard to work with when it comes to decorating and storage. Some of the best ways to maximize those areas are to add clever custom shelving cut to fit such as this project. This project even has wiring in the pole with outlets on the shelves, incredibly clever and multipurpose!

Closet Shelving Ideas (Deirdre Sullivan)

See post: Deirdre Sullivan|Use Closet Rods to Create a Custom Fit Shelving Unit


DIY Nature-Inspired Shelf Decor

Bring a little bit of the outdoors in with this great idea for a wall mount shelving unit. A few cuts from one inexpensive piece of lumber along with a splash of paint and a free tree branch make for a stylish way to display anything anywhere.

Shelf Decor Ideas (Glen)

See post: Glen|DIY Decor Shelf


One Sheet Plywood Floating Shelf

This modern take on a floating shelf unit uses only one single piece of plywood to build all sorts of storage for a wall. The cubes and open shelves create many opportunities for displaying and stashing your things. You could even add hooks underneath for hanging items. Make a pair and double your joy.

Floating Shelf Decor Ideas (Mother Daughter Projects)

See post: Mother Daughter Projects|One Sheet of Plywood Floating Shelf


Free or Near Free Shelving for Any Room

Don’t have extra cash around but could use some shelves? No problem! There are plenty of materials that are inexpensive, free even, but will provide maximum bang for the buck! Check online on sites such as Freecycle or Craigslist for free or near free materials that you can transform into something fabulous. All it takes is a little imagination!


DIY Fence Board Shelves

Using very inexpensive fence boards can provide loads of display shelving. An added bonus is that they are narrow so they won’t take up much depth in a room. Sanded and stained, they look high end!

Living Room Shelving Ideas (Lisa Battisti)

See post: Lisa Battisti|DIY Fence Board Shelves - Cheap


DIY Wood Pallet Shelves

Many times pallet wood can be found for free or very inexpensively. Check your local area for pallet rehabbers or other pallet resources. Who knows, they may have pieces or entire pallets they are more than willing to give away. Pallets can also be purchased then broken down into the individual pieces of wood. Let your imagination run wild with the potential of this inexpensive, or free, material. With strips of leather, old belts, or strapping, these shelves are stylish on a budget!

Pallet Shelving Ideas (Creatively Living)

See post: Creatively Living|DIY Wood Pallet Shelves


Shelving Hacks

Don’t forget too that as good as shelving is at storing and maximizing the potential of any room in the house, it too can be hacked to squeak out yet even more extremely valuable square inches improving your life that much more. 


Ikea Hack: Customizing a Shelving Unit to Add More Function & Storage

Make use of the sides of a shelving unit by filling them in with something like a corkboard or pegboard as this tutorial shows. Not only will you have great storage in the unit itself but smaller items can be stashed on the sides then found quickly and efficiently.

Shelving Hacks (Engineer Your Space)

See post: Engineer Your Space|Ikea Hack: Customizing a Shelving Unit to Add More Function & Storage


Make a Raised Shelf to Maximize Cabinet Space

Sometimes cabinets alone won’t solve all our storage woes. Why not make a raised shelf insert, or several, to expand your cabinet storage further? These simple yet highly effective little units take full and complete advantage of that gap we all have. Try stacking a few too!

Shelf Ideas (Brittany @by Brittany Goldwyn)

See post: Brittany @by Brittany Goldwyn|Make a Raised Shelf to Maximize Cabinet Space


What’s not to love about shelving! Shelving solves multitudes of storage and organizational dilemmas as well as providing a way to showcase home decor. Not much in the home is as practical, as functional, useful, and as wonderful as shelving. As you can see, there’s no end to creativity and imagination when it comes to shelving ideas. Keep your eye out for anything that can be turned into a shelf such as a chair, a suitcase, shutters, folding doors, crates, books, or drawers. All sorts of materials can be used and with a little DIY spirit, high-end looks can be achieved for very little money in every room of the house.


Written for the Hometalk community by: Becky | Flipping the Flip

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