Aw yeah, we’re living on the ledge. We’d been waiting to hang the postcard shelves from our first house’s office for more than two years, and we finally found the perfect spot. Ta-da:
We documented the original build process before, so here’s how we adjusted the shelves to fit this space:
- Measured the width of the dresser that would sit beneath them. The shelves initially looked a bit too long and top-heavy, so we trimmed them down.
- Trimmed the extra length on a miter saw so each shelf ended up 2″ narrower than the dresser below.
- Held different heights up to the wall and settled on placing the lowest shelf 16″ above the dresser — it looked best there. A level made sure everything was straight.
- Used long screws (about 2.5″) in three spots per shelf to secure them. For light shelves holding postcards or flash cards, screws through predrilled holes provided plenty of support; heavier items would need anchors.
- There were some celebratory high-fives along the way.
- Taped a yardstick to the wall, leveled to be perpendicular to the floor, to use as a guide for aligning the left edges of all the shelves.
- Spaced each shelf 9″ apart vertically. There was a bit more help from our resident assistant and a few more high-fives.
- We stepped back and enjoyed the view.
Then I pulled out two things I’d been saving for a while.
Clara loves these boxes of flash cards, so I’d been waiting to hang the ledges and turn them into flash card shelves.
It’s an easy, inexpensive way to add color and interest to the wall, and the cards also create a subtle learning corner. Clara already enjoys counting the animals, finding the ones we call out, and identifying first letters — she woke up recently and announced, “F is for Flamingo!”
One more picture because I’m a flash card ledge fan.
What projects are you cutting, leveling, and hanging these days? Do you repurpose pieces from another house or give old shelves a new function? It’s satisfying to tweak something you already own to suit a new room. Also, I’ll admit I’m proud of keeping this short and to the point. $herdog’s keeping it concise.