Unusual Shelving Ideas – Part 2

We hope you are enjoying these fun shelving ideas so far. Let’s keep going and delve into some more creative ideas…

Drawers – These look so neat on the wall. Just as with the wine crate, attach the drawer by screwing the bottom of it into the wall. You can use shallow or deep drawers depending on what size items you want to display.

Vintage suitcases – If you’re decorating a space with a retro vibe you will love this shelving solution. Bolt the top half to the wall so it stays open, and support the bottom half with floating L brackets. If you want the bottom half to be a flush display surface, simply insert a cardboard structure and cover it with fabric. This way anything you display can be easily seen. Or you can leave it empty and store stackable things like folded towels. Don’t forget, vintage luggage often had pockets on the top half so you can easily use those to create a display of things peeking out.

Hat boxes – Yes, they’re beautiful stacked in a corner, but they also take up a lot of space. If you indeed store hats in them then leave them to their work. However, if you want adt’l storage options out of them, hang them on the wall. Screw the bottom of the box or the lid, or both, into the wall. Then fill with lightweight item that don’t require a flat, flush surface.

Ladder – We love the look of a vintage wood ladder when it’s attached to a wall. How, you ask? Simply find an old ladder that doesn’t require folding. (In other words, not the modern ones that open to stand.) Paint or stain it to match the room and hang it sideways. You now have lots of space to curate a quirky collection of shelf décor. 

Brackets without shelves – Give the appearance of floating stacks of books by using standard L-shaped wall brackets. Make sure the first book you plan to set atop them is large enough to completely hide the bracket. Then just keep stacking until you reach the weight load of the brackets.

Crown molding – This one is pretty simple. Rather than attaching it at the top of the wall, hang it at eye level and use it as a shelf display for shallow depth items.