Man oh MAN is there a bajillion floating shelf tutorials out there, and half of them are just the same thing over and over! You all know I am not a fan of reinventing the wheel. So I did my DIY floating shelf research. I’m talking SCOURED Pinterest and YouTube. I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for (without going broke), so I came up with my own idea based on some other popular plans, with important and distinct changes! Check out the video below, or get the instructions in this post! Don’t forget to pin it for later or subscribe to the YouTube channel so you don’t lose it. This is seriously Sooo easy!
DIY Floating Shelf Tutorial Video
BOY DID I LEARN A LOT WHILE MAKING THIS VIDEO. And that is an understatement. LOL I think my poor computer just about died producing it. I used my camera and phone to record different bits, as well as voice memos and ya’ll, it’s just too much. 😂 This is me vowing to produce all future DIY videos with only my phone because this was like 900 cuts of video and audio by the end. 😳 I was trying to keep it as succinct as possible but woof! Plus the light in that room was changing every .2 seconds so that was fun to try and edit, haha! I cut out a lot of the obvious how-to footage so we will see what you think…
DIY Floating shelf supplies
First off, here is what ya need. My plan was based off of the shanty to chic 2×3 arm design but I wanted my shelf to be a certain depth and height, needed to make sure it was strong enough to be almost 6′ long, and didn’t want to see seams. Please note this post contains amazon affiliate links because I am an amazon affiliate (see full Amazon Affiliate disclosure at end of blog post). Thank you for helping keeping this blog running ad free! This shelf cost me around $50 at the time I wrote this.
- 1x10x8
- 1x4x8
- 2x4x8
- Table saw or Circular saw that can make mitered cuts
- Kreg jig and 2.5″ screws
- Finishing nails/nail gun (Kind of optional but not really?)
- Wood glue
Before you read further, note that this shelf IS sandwiched between two cabinets, and I DID screw into the cabinets. I *think* it would be fine without doing that, but I can’t say for sure not knowing how much weight you may be putting on it! I made a smaller one of these for our basement where a side was exposed, and just added a miter cut to those edges of the top and front board so I could add that sideboard with the same look. The most important thing is making sure you have studs to screw it into.
Step One: Prep boards
The first thing you need to do is determine how deep you want your shelf to be. I wanted mine to be somewhere around 8-9 inches, and did not have a huge preference otherwise. The actual width of a 1×10-in board is typically 9.25 in. So What I did was set my table saw for a 45 degree angle, then set the measurement to to 8 inches. Because of the tilt of the saw, this meant that my interior (underside) depth would be 8″. I knew that mean the 45 degree miter would make it closer to 9″ on the topside of my board. Really hope that explanation makes sense. Watch the video to see what I mean! I did NOT cut the long side of my other, front board during this step. I waited to be able to measure and make sure I did it right later.
The other board prep you can now do is ripping your 2x4x8 in half lengthwise. I did not buy a 2×2 because they are often warped and twisted. This option allowed me to get a better quality board for my frame. (Plus, it is cheaper). Cut one of those halves to be the length of your shelf. The other one will be cut up for the arm pieces.
Prep the Peg Arms
Measure the distance from interior angle to the back of your top board. (Should be 8″ if you used my measurement above, mine ended up being 8 1/8″ bc of table saw handling error, lol). Now subtract your now 2×2 from that to get the measurement for your peg arms (mine ended up being about 6.25″)! Cut as many peg arms as needed. I spaced mine about 11″ apart on my 66″ shelf so I used 6.
Mark Studs on wall and back brace piece and Kreg the arms.
Now before you kreg and attach these little arms to your back support, take your shelf back inside. Mark your studs on your wall, then put the back piece on the wall and mark where the studs will line up on it. That way, you don’t accidentally place a peg where you need to access a stud later. Now you can evenly space your arms, and glue and kreg them into place. I put a kreg hole on other side of each arm to be extra. Glued the arm on and kreg into place.
Assemble on the wall
Screw your bracket into your studs. Use a level and check it all over to make sure you are good. I worked slowly and kept checking my level as I worked. When that is attached to the wall securely, you are almost done! All that is left is the finish work. Dry fit your top board to make sure it will work. the end of your peg arms should line up with the inside part of your 45 degree angle. Put glue on top of your arms and lay your top board on if it is ready. I also used finishing nails into the arms.
Grab a scrap piece of your under board. I used a 5mm thick plywood. Hold than under your arms, and measure your overall depth now so you can cut your front piece. I also measured what my “interior” measurement would be and set my saw to that since that is the direction my blade was set.
Rip front piece to size lengthwise with a 45 degree miter along long edge. Add glue to the ends of your arms and along the miter edge of your front piece, and clamp into place. Then, nail into the arms! I marked where the arms where on my wall before so I could see easily, which helped when I went to attach my underneath piece.
DIY Floating Shelf Finish work
Now you need to create an underlayment piece to hide the framework. Rip a rectangle piece of your plywood to size and attach it with finishing nails. You should have already accommodated for its width in the step above, so it should be hidden when attached. Follow it up with wood filler in nail holes and good sanding, then finish with your stain of choice. I am still undecided on my stain color. I will update with another post when I do stain it!
Celebrate and do more DIY!
For more DIY ideas, check the list of related posts below!