Floating Gallery Shelves

Hi y’all!!

I’ve seen a bunch of tutorials for floating shelves, but these are different!  Promise!

Just look at this clean profile…

DSCN3447

VVVVVERY NICE!

And if you’re like me, you’ll love the flexibility of these shelves.  You can change them any. time. you. want.  No pain, no muss, no fuss… oh, and no holes to fix.

DSCN3366Didn’t I mention the best part?  It’s an easy and super cheap project!

So, let’s do it!  Here’s what you’ll need:

1.  1x2x10 (or the length you need)

2.  1x3x10 (or again, the length you’re going for.  You could also do a 4″ version if you have a ton of frames)

3.  Nails or a nail gun

4.  Wood glue

5.  Sand paper/stain/sealer – Optional

6.  3 – 3.5″ drywall screws

7.  Kreg Pocket Hole Kit and a clamp to hold the Kreg in place (see photo)

647096232115lg

8.  A Level

9.  A stud finder

10.  A Drill

Many of these, you probably have in your garage or tool box.  If you have a full Kreg system, that’s awesome!  I only purchased the piece that seemed to be the thing missing in my arsenal – and it works great!

Step 1- Secure your pieces together.  So easy, right?  Just put some wood glue on the edge and nail them together like an L shape.  The piece attaching to the wall, will be your 3″ wide piece.

DSCN3298

Step 2- While that dries up, grab your stud finder and level.  Time to check out your wall!

I used a washable crayon (was your mind just blown?!?! I hate cleaning pencil!) to mark where all the studs were on the wall, and used the level to draw a vertical “starting line.”  I knew that I would be hanging both shelves from that point and that the higher one would be a bit shorter… to allow for my larger art piece.

Grab your shelves, line them up on the wall and transfer the stud mark onto the wood.  Now you know where to make your pilot holes!

Step 3 – If you are changing the length of your shelves, do that now.  IMPORTANT!  Hang on to that scrap!!

Step 4 –  Drill your pilot holes using the Kreg.

DSCN3446

Using your scrap piece do a few tests until you feel super comfortable.  I must have drilled about 15 holes!!  I found the perfect location was 0.75 inch from the back.  See the photo… and then leave 1″ in the wood for the screw to have some meat to grab onto.  You will NOT drill all the way through.  Got it?

Once you’ve got the hang of it, just line up the Kreg, and drill away!  So easy, huh!?!

DSCN3316

Step 5 – Sand, Stain, and Seal.  Now if you’re smart, you’ll use that scrap to test your stain… Me?  Well, let’s just say that I ended up doing this twice.  When will I learn?  I used a Q-tip to get into the drill holes.

See the bottom?

DSCN3409

Step 6 – Hang and Style!!

Grab a buddy and your level.  Have them hold the shelf at your starting line, (level of course!) while you come in with the drill and screws.  My wall was not perfectly flat, so we just put on our big girl pants and used those muscles.  Drilling right into the studs means that this thang is solid… solid as a rock!!

Insert Happy Dance!!

You are amazing.  Nay, you are INVINCIBLE.  And, best of all, you are done!

DSCN3371 DSCN3337Want to elevate it?  How about a Yoda quote?  Did you notice that one?!

It’s pretty much a motto in this house.  Tough love, my friends.  (I guess it’s better than “If you’re not first, you’re last” though!!)

It may seem like a lot of steps, but this is totally doable!  Send photos pwwweeeaaassseee!!

Happy Creating!  Jessica

 

Jessica

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *