I came across this post recently and thought it was so much fun that I just had to share it again!
My nephew
just recently moved into his big boy room in anticipation for the arrival of
his baby sister. This came with a lot of changes, a big boy bed, a couch and
new organization for all of his toys. Once everything was said and done he was
still in need of a place to keep his books organized, but his room was a little
short on space for a bookshelf, so it’s time for my sister and I to get
creative.
In looking
around for functional, DIY shelves for little M she came across this tutorial
by Raising Olives for gutter bookshelves: easy, affordable, functional and
super snazzy! The perfect solution. So here’s how to make the shelves.
First we go
to the hardware store (I know this is a strange place to get craft supplies,
but there are a ton of awesome things at the hardware store). We pick up a ten-foot,
vinyl gutter (not the easiest thing to carry around the store, by the way). In addition
to the gutter we grab 6 end caps (you need two per shelf), and 6 brackets (also
need two per shelf, unless your shelves are going to be longer than 5 feet,
then three per shelf would be more stable).
We want
three shelves out of our 10-foot gutter, so we decide cut the gutter into 3,
four-foot sections using a handsaw (ok, well it was actually my brother-in-law
who will cut it for us).
Once we get
everything cut we wipe it down with mineral spirits (the spray paint can says
to use paint thinner but all we have is a can of mineral spirits). This step
removes any potential chemical residue from the production of the gutters.
Now that
everything is prepped and ready to go we get to spray painting. My sister wants
black because all of M’s furniture was black, so it would look great in the
room, you can use whatever color you would like. We set everything up on a
rubber maid tub covered in a drop cloth and get to spraying.
My sister is
a spray painting pro, she teaches me that it’s important to use a lot of layers
when it comes to spray painting; patience is key. The first layer hardly covers
anything. Just keep going and until you get a solid covering. Let the paint dry
and flip everything over and paint the other side.
Once
everything is painted it’s time to put each shelf together. Slide in each
bracket and then put on each end cap (this can be tough, but you’ll get the
hang of it.)
Measure on
the wall where you would like your shelves and put a mark where each bracket
is. We put our brackets as far to the edge as possible to allow for as much
space in the middle as possible. Using a screwdriver, screw through the holes
in each bracket. This is hard to explain but is not very hard at all!
Once all
your shelves are secure, load them up with books and enjoy!
I love the
fact that you can see the fronts of all of the books, it makes it really easy
for a little kid to see what book he’s picking out! And this is a great shelf
for little kids because kid’s books are really thin and they can stack a few
deep in each shelf!
I hope this
gave you a fun idea! Good luck, I know you can do it!
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