Hey friends!!

This is one of my favorite Shanty projects ever!  I get asked about my DIY shelf with hooks ALL the time, and let me show you again how easy this baby is to make!  It’s a perfect beginning woodworking project!

DIY Shelf with Hooks

   I have always wanted a mantle in my house, but don’t have room on the fireplace.  This isn’t quite a mantle, but it kind of feels like one to me!  It took me an afternoon to finish!

I started with 1 2×6 cut at 5.5 ft and 1 2×8 cut at 5 ft.

I attached the 2×6 to the top of the 2×8 using  wood glue and 2 1/2″ wood screws.  This is what it looked like…

My next step was to add just a bit of molding to chic it up a bit.  I didn’t want to mess with cutting crown, so I decided to use a casing instead.  Casing is flat on the back and is much easier to cut and attach in my opinion.  I just cut the corners at a 45 degree angle and I was set.  I attached the casing using wood glue and finishing nails.

this is a great project for the AirStrike nailer we have been telling you about!  This is BY FAR my favorite Ryobi tool on the shelf (at the moment) 😉 It’s a cordless brad nailer that will shoot up to 2″ nails and runs on the same battery as our 18V drills… It’s too legit to quit!  You can get all the great Ryobi tools at the Home Depot!

Ryobi AirStrike Battery Nailer

That’s it for the building!  Super easy, huh???  I caulked my edges and nail holes.  After it dried I sanded the whole thing using 120 grit sand paper.

My next step was to paint her!

I used my very favorite….

Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch in Heirloom White

You can get it at Home Depot and Hobby Lobby!

I sprayed 2 coats on and let it dry.

I found my hooks at Hobby Lobby for $2.99 a piece.  I bought 7 because I am planning on hanging our stockings on this.  I used 1″ drywall screws to attach them to the 2×8.

That was it!  I had my stepdad help me hang it up because it was super heavy.  I marked my studs on the wall using a stud finder.  We used 3″ long screws to drill through the 2×8 and into the studs in the wall.  We put 4 in and it is super sturdy!   I filled the holes with wood filler and put a little touch up paint on them to cover it up.  Good as new! And, I didn’t have to worry about finding the right hardware.

Want to see it all finished???

Ok!

What do you think??

I am finally able to display LOTS of my kiddos pics which I LOVE!

I would LOVE for you to share this and PIN it with your peeps below!  Hope you like it!

It was SO easy!  And, it was under $40.  More than half of that was the hooks!

Thanks so much for stopping by!  We have some super fun things coming up that we are excited to share with you so stick around!

~Whitney

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17 Comments

  1. I made this today & I love it! It was super easy took only about 30 mins to put together then some time to stain & finish. I used 1x’s instead of 2x’s and it looks great! Thanks girls!

  2. I made this today & I love it! It was super easy took only about 30 mins to put together then some time to stain & finish. I used 1x’s instead of 2x’s and it looks great! Thanks girls

  3. Super easy to make. I made my top 2×6, 4.5′ long and the 2×8, 4′ long. I used the same hooks from hobby lobby. I painted it Sherwin Williams Canvas White. Then rubbed on some Valspar dark distressing paint from home depot. I also made the Noel decor, save for the wreath. Got that idea from pinterest. I’ll be making a bench to go underneath.

  4. When you cover the screw holes with wood filler, how do you go about taking the shelf down if you need to? Do you scrape out the filler and then unscrew the shelf from the wall? Thanks!

  5. I am wanting to make this Shelf. I have the boards the paint and screws just need to know if you used any type of clamps if so what size to hold the boards together while you were placing the screws in the correct spot and how is it anchored to the wall it is on

  6. I adjusted mine to fit on the wall I wanted to put it on. I also tried to make it looked distressed by staining it black, painting it lightly with white and then sanding it a bit. I haven’t been able to hang it yet because we don’t have any 3 inch screws and we have a snow storm going on. Loved making this and I may need to make more.

  7. Does someone know where I can find this same style only smaller? I need one for the bathroom and cannot find the plans to make it myself. I am making this one though for the entry way.
    Thanks!

    1. You can still follow the same instructions except you shorten the lengths of wood per your wall space. The wall I wanted to place my shelf on is 54″ wide so I cut my 2×6 at 36″, the 2×8 at 30″. I’m also only using 5 hooks. If it’s an issue of width, rather than length, you can use smaller pieces of wood (aka, use a 2×4 for the shelf and a 2×6 for the base). Hope this helps!

      1. Thank you!!! I really appreciate the pointers. I get nervous tweaking others plans that work;). Lol! Thanks!!!

  8. Love it and cant wait to build it but do you have a secret for figuring out the measurements for the returns? I am wasting a ton of trim on this project and Ana White’s window trim cuz I just cant get the returns right! Argh!

  9. This looks amazing! You did awesome as always! I have a couple questions…. what’s your wall color in this photo? And I saw your other post about the kitchen island and LOVED the cabinet color. I was wondering if you painted them and if you did, what is the color? =) I’m obsessed with paint colors… Haha. You should do a post just on that!