Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Closet Shelf Building Ideas

You can repurpose items like ladders for a closet shelf system.


Closets offer a finite amount of space for storing clothes and other belongings. Building your own shelves in a closet is one way to make the most of available space. To organize closet items in a detailed way, you might need shelves of various heights in a closet storage system. If you're flexible about utilizing the closet, uniform shelves will do the job. Does this Spark an idea?


Ladder


MarthaStewart.com suggests a way to build a closet shelf without investing in new building materials. If you have two shelves spaced far apart, connect them horizontally using an old ladder. You can finish a wooden ladder with paint.


This building idea requires using mounting hardware to connect the wood at each end of the ladder to the wood on the shelf flanking it. Depending on the strength of the ladder and the load intended for the shelf, you might need to reinforce it with braces. A ladder shelf offers space above for storage and space below for hanging clothes from the ladder's rungs.


Shoe Shelving


To free more floor space in a closet, use lumber to create shoe cubbies, or shelves with slots for storing shoes. Before you buy the wood, take measurements of the shoes intended for the space. This ensures you have deep enough cubbies so shoes won't stick out. Or try an alternative suggested by designer Mary Danowski on ThisOldHouse.com: Install rollng shelves above or below the clothes rod. Deeper shelves enables shoes to be stored two or three pairs deep.


Cabinet With Shelves


Another way to create shelves for any closet involves building a cabinet from materials like wood, plastic lumber, metal or wallboard. Study the items stored in a closet, such as a hall closet, to determine the dimensions needed for the shelves. Finish the cabinet shelving system by adding doors. Glass doors allow you to quickly see what's inside. Doors also minimize the dust that otherwise tends to collect on stored items.

Tags: closet shelf, might need, shelves closet