17 Hands-on Shelf Ideas, gathered in one list

Over the years, we have brought in tons of shelves to our homes – from floating shelves and built-in bookcases to decorative display shelves and heavy-duty storage shelves. So in this post, we are rounding up some of our go-to Hands-on shelving projects for anyone looking to add smart vertical storage to their space. We are going to cover:

• Floating Shelves
• Storage Shelves
• Decorative Shelves
• How to Style Your Shelves

Our Go-to Floating Shelf Projects

Floating shelves are a strong way to display or store items with a clean, modern, and lightweight look. They can be hung simply about anywhere – in a kitchen, above a TV, in a bedroom for books and toys, even in a dining room – and we have used both storebought floating shelves as well as custom Hands-on floating versions too.

1. Skinny Floating Shelves For Our Bonus Room

The angled niche in this bonus room required some custom-sized shelves, so we built our own floating shelves to the exact specifications we needed. Many floating Hands-on shelves can be chunky and thick, but we hoped something that was not too visually demanding. The skinny versions were a strong alternative and truly let the objects on the shelves be the focal point. Read the walkthrough for building Hands-on skinny floating shelves.

But shelves are not simply for books and toys, which brings us to…

2. Hands-on Wood Floating Shelves On A Tile Backsplash

Using a similar approach to the shelves above, we built and hung floating wood shelves on the tiled backsplashes in our duplex rental property. By tweaking the skinny shelf walkthrough, we not only created heavier-duty shelves that could hold the weight of plates, mugs, and other dishware – we also left the wood look, rather than painting them white.

This project did involve drilling into tile, which can be a little nerve-wracking. Thankfully this post covers the whole installation process for you.

You can also see how we chose distinct wood finishes for each of the two duplex kitchens.

3. Affordable IKEA Floating Shelves

Not every floating shelf has to be homemade! There are plenty of strong store-picked up options, including the IKEA Lack shelves that we have used several times – including in our first home’s dining room (below left) and our previous home’s kitchen (below right). They are affordable, straightforward to hang, and hold plenty of weight (hello, plates!). Plus, they have that classic, clean, and modern look – and come in a variety of sizes and finishes.

The photo (above left) is our first home’s dining room and was taken 15 years ago. We hung the same Lack floating shelves in our current home’s bedroom. So now we have had them in 3 of the 4 homes we have lived in!

If you’d like to see a video of the floating shelves in our bedroom from the photo above, check it out below or watch it here on YouTube. The shelves have evolved, so we will have to film an update soon.

And if you want to add some yourself, you can read our post about how to hang Ikea Lack Shelves. We also have a walkthrough for building your own Hands-on version of the Ikea Lack shelves.

4. Rustic Pottery Barn Floating Shelves

Before we renovated our current kitchen, we also used some substantial wood floating shelves from Pottery Barn to give us extra storage and display space. We began off with simply one set, and later upgraded to two because we liked them so much. Although they were more pricey than the IKEA shelves, they were a ideal fit for the space and the exact style that we hoped for this small space (sometimes the right wood tone is hard to find). They were especially straightforward to hang too!

These shelves were also a strong upgrade from the temporary floating shelves we built swiftly and cheaply right after we moved in. They looked like they were floating, but they in fact were not!

5. Faux Floating Shelves With Metal Brackets

Another way we enjoy to get the look of floating shelves with the sturdiness of traditionally supported shelves is to disguise the brackets. That is what we did with these straightforward shelves in our beach house’s office. By choosing brackets like these iron ones that cradle the shelf, we could use the objects on the shelf to mostly hide the portion that is attached to the wall so they do not dominate that back wall and steal any attention. It allowed us to create a floating-ish look with these Hands-on shelves while introducing a cool mix of materials with the wood + iron combination. Read how we made these shelves.

You can also see how we used the same method in that home’s laundry room.

Our Go-to Storage Shelf Projects

As much as we enjoy floating shelving, sometimes you also need sturdy utilitarian shelving that will stand up to more heavy-duty needs. Here are some of our go-to Hands-on shelf solutions for when function is the main objective (these options can hold so much and still look good doing it).

6. Making Custom Built-In Pantry Shelves

We majorly upgraded our beach house’s kitchen storage with built-in Hands-on pantry shelving around the refrigerator. They were straightforward and inexpensive to create, plus we got to totally customize the configuration and color. They are made entirely of straightforward-to-work with MDF plus some 1×2″ pine boards to make the shelves look chunkier along that front edge. It is one of our go-to methods to create built-in shelves! See how we made this built-in pantry shelving.

Perhaps the most durable workhorse shelves you will ever need might be in another area of the house though…

7. Building Heavy Duty Shed or Garage Shelves

This storage shelf walkthrough is a foolproof way to create especially sturdy Hands-on shelves in a garage, shed, or attic. It uses 2×4″s and plywood, plus a fairly cool trick for getting everything square and level. They are especially strong and reinforced, making them strong for storage bins, tools, paint, yard equipment, or other weighty items. We enjoyed this step-by-step process so much we have used in two distinct sheds!

You can also see how we repeated this process to make shelves for our beach house shed. I am even gearing up to do some again for our current compact shed! Psst – if you did not know we had one here in our smaller home, you can see it !

And as you can see, they can be customized to fit the exact space you are working with. The one above is even holding heavy boxes of extra tile too. They are indeed quite heavy-duty!

8. Wall-To-Wall Laundry Room Shelves

When we needed a swift way to take advantage of the room above our washer & dryer, we built these plain wood laundry shelves. These wall-to-wall Hands-on shelves make this closet much more functional for us. They are made from basic 1×2″ pine boards and plywood, but are strong for holding everything from towels, linens, and even extra holiday decor! We even made a matching countertop over the appliances that can lift off if needed.

This technique is strong for adding shelves to any closet, like we did in our son’s closet too. We painted them white and used MDF instead of plywood for the version you see below (either method works). Read the walkthrough for building these closet shelves here.

But wait, shelves like this can hold so much more than baskets or clothes…

9. Adjustable Toy Closet Shelves

If you want something like the closet above, but with a bit more flexibility, this solution we used in our former toy closet may do the trick. We used a Rubbermaid closet shelf system that was straightforward to install. It simply involves hanging these metal tracks on your back wall. Then you can add solid shelves (not wire!) anywhere using these metal brackets. They turned out to be a strong solution when we converted a spare coat closet into toy storage for our daughter. Read how we installed the adjustable closet shelving system

If you have an extra coat closet (or simply one you never use) this is a strong solution for family board games, craft storage, etc. Sidenote: we have a devoted post all about this paint color if you want to see more photos of Edgecomb Gray in our house & read why we enjoy it so much.

10. Creating Hybrid Built-In Shelving That is Adjustable

Here is a project where we used a combination of custom built-ins and adjustable track shelves to create a ideal, but flexible, fit for our former laundry room. We had a narrow gap next to our stacked washer and dryer, so we used wood to create storage between the appliances and the wall. But when it came to in fact adding the shelves, we used an adjustable track system (similar to the one above). That way we could pull out the shelves and access the vent pipe in the back whenever necessary. Read how we built these custom laundry shelves.

So yeah, we have installed quite a bit of shelving. And if you think we are done with this round-up… what is that they say in all the infomercials? But wait, there is more!

Our Go-to Decorative Shelf Projects

As much as we enjoy the function of adding vertical storage, sometimes shelves are a strong aesthetic addition to a room. Whether you are talking about drawing the eye up and adding architecture to a room, or creating the ideal spot to display stuff that you enjoy. So here are some of our go-to shelf projects that brought in a ton of style to our spaces.

11. Built-In Bookcases Around A Doorway

Using a similar technique to the built-in pantry shelves, we dressed up our living room with this built-in bookcase that wrapped around the doorway to our kitchen. We used stock cabinets on the bottom to incorporate closed storage. Then we used a combination of MDF and 1×2″ pine to build Hands-on shelves on top. They brought in so much architectural detail to the room while giving us plenty of space for books an decorative objects. See how we built these traditional bookcases around the doorway.

And things do not consistently have to be that involved. This next one was such an straightforward update.

12. Reclaimed Wood Kitchen Shelves

In the kitchen pictured above, we hoped to dress up an empty wall by making these decorative shelves that were simply as visually interesting as the items on them. So we sourced reclaimed wood, stained it a vintage tone, and paired it with polished nickel brackets that matched the hardware in the rest of the room. These elegant Hands-on shelves were a lively way to mix materials and create a truly striking place to display some of our prettiest kitchen objects in an otherwise cabinet-filled room. See how we made the reclaimed wood shelves.

It is consistently lively to add plants and stacks of books to any shelves – from the kitchen to the bathroom to an office.

13. Floating Plant Shelf In A Window

Installing this plain plant shelf in the window of our bathroom was one of the quickest shelf projects we have ever done. We even used a piece of scrap wood to make it, meaning it barely cost anything too!

Utilizing a small space like this for a decorative shelf has been a strong way to add life (and plants!) to our little bathroom.

14. Statement Shelves With Painted Wood Brackets

In one of our prior kitchens, we hoped to create statement display shelves to pop against our penny tile backsplash. We used store-picked up wood brackets that we painted a crisp white to make plain Hands-on shelving. Then we styled them with a mix of kitchen items and some cheerful decorative items for a lively colorful look. See how we built and installed these wood kitchen shelves.

In hindsight, we would have used fewer brackets on that project. Perhaps three on that side would have been strong.

15. Plain Butcher Block Display Shelf

We dressed up our cramped utility closet with a plain Hands-on shelf made from some store-picked up metal brackets (spray-painted brass) and a leftover piece of the same butcher block we used for the countertop below. It earned us a narrow shelf that has become quite functional for storing extra items, while also making this utility closet a lot better to look at. You can see the whole utility closet makeover.

Never underestimate the power of even one small, well-placed shelf.

16. Built-in Kid’s Bedroom Bookshelf

Our son’s room is small, so we hoped to squeeze every inch of function that we could out of that space, while still making it look pleasant and inviting. Enter a built-in bookshelf at the foot of the bed, stage right.

It makes such good use of a formerly useless sliver of floor space, and built-in cabinetry consistently feels so customized. This bookshelf gets tons of use and can be seen from the hallway. So we enjoy that it is both functional and good-looking. Read more about how we built it here.

We even snuck a hidden storage nook into the base of it. That rectangle of wood on the bottom that you see in the photo above pops out.

17. Multipurpose Metal Shelving Units

Last but not least, we have to shout out one of our go-to store-picked up bookshelves. We have owned these two Fjalkinge metal shelving units from IKEA for nearly a decade! They first appeared in our last house’s home office. We enjoyed that we could customize the mix of open shelves and closed drawer storage. The drawers can house various office supplies and paperwork. And the shelves can be more decorative – which is how we used them back in Richmond.

When we moved to this house, we first used them in our kitchen to store food and dishes. The shelves looked fairly with stacks of plates/cups and the drawers were strong as a little pantry. These babies are flexible! We later moved them up to our family room (seen below) and the bottom drawers hide tools and office paperwork. Meanwhile the tops remain largely decorative, with books, plants, frames, etc.

These shelving units have worked so well for us over many years and rooms. So they felt like a strong way to end this post. Plus, they embody our go-to mix of functional and decorative. Hardworking, but still straightforward on the eyes.

How To Style Your Shelves

Let me end this by assuring you that there is no right or wrong way to fill up your shelves. Some households need or want shelves to be purely functional and hardworking. And others simply want to display things that they enjoy looking at. Our go-tos are frequently somewhere in between. And if you are struggling for the right mix of items to put on your shelves – books? art? knick-knacks?!? – we have a timelapse video to assist give you pointers on how we style our shelves:

Note: You can also watch this video on YouTube.

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