By now everyone knows that our new house is just FULL of projects–sometimes I don’t know which one to tackle next. We started our Kitchen Makeover slowly but surely and while Christy was here I asked her to help me build shelves in that little niche with the blank wall, you can see it below. It was shallow for a piece of furniture, so it was wasted space:
We decided that adding a wall of open shelving would be the perfect solution since it would add to our storage (always a plus in the kitchen) and create visual interest on an otherwise boring wall.
For this project we went with a dark stain for these shelves, because eventually the cabinets are going to be painted white, and I figured the dark wood would be a nice contrast to light cabinets. Keep reading, we actually created a video about the entire project, you’ll see it later in the post.
This was such an easy project with huge impact! I gathered our supplies ahead of time since our time together was limited. And since, we’re HomeRight Ambassadors and their products make DIY’ing so much easier, we used our HomeRight Paint Sprayer which cut the shelf preparation time down to next to nothing.
Supplies (for four shelves):
- 4 lengths of pine (we chose pine because it’s so inexpensive, but you should inspect your wood to be sure that it’s free of knots and cracks)
- 8 brackets {from Home Depot}
- Drywall anchors (or screws if you’ll be able to install the brackets into studs)
- Wood Stain in Dark Walnut and Rust-Oleum Ultimate Polyurethane in Satin
- Sandpaper
- Drill, screwdriver, tape measure, and level
- HomeRight Finish Max Pro Sprayer
- Rags, mineral spirits
We used a walnut-toned stain and simply sprayed it on the wood. If we were painting a similar piece of unfinished pine, we would need to sand, prime, sand, paint (possibly 2-3 coats depending on the color), and so on–and don’t forget the drying time in between all of those layers–so spraying stain on instead of paint made this go so much faster. Then we just sealed with a top coat of polyurethane.
Using the stain in a sprayer was so easy! Stain by nature is thinner than paint, so you can skip the usual step of thinning it with water before you put in in the sprayer. The FinishMax gave it a nice even coat of stain, just do several coats until you get the desired amount of coverage. I just set up a little spray area on my deck and we gave the wood two coats of stain, it dries super quick which was important since this was a weekend project!
After the shelves were stained, given a clear coat for protection, and enough time to dry, we moved on to the next step–actually hanging them on the wall.
Here is the “How-To” video of the project–it’s rare Christy and I are even in the same state much less creating a project together so we decided to create a video! Take a look, but don’t forget to keep reading to the end of the post because there is a giveaway for a HomeRight FinishMax Pro Sprayer.
With tape measure and level in hand, we did some advanced math (not really) and decided on the placement and spacing of our shelves. We wanted them about 12″ apart, although we probably could have gone as far as 15″ apart and they still would have looked good. If you know that you have a taller item that you want to store on your shelves, just plan their height accordingly.
Two sets of hands were so helpful as we installed the brackets and checked (over and over again) to be sure we had the shelves level! Since we didn’t have wall studs located where we wanted our brackets, we used 50lb. drywall anchors to be sure that our shelves would be able to hold quite a bit of weight.
Before we knew it, it was time for the best part of every DIY project–decorating the results! We operate in a similar manner when we’re staging a space–place an item, step back and stare at it, move it an inch to the right, step back and stare at it, move it to another shelf, step back and stare at it…you get the idea. It’s not very scientific, but I love what we came up with:
The little bench might get replaced by a covered basket one day, but for now it’s the perfect place for my daughter to sit and pull her shoes on and off.
Projects are so much easier and much more fun with a friend. Next up we’ll have to tackle something in Christy’s new house, since I am the lucky one that gets to enjoy these every day.
Thanks Christy, for making the trek to do this project with me. And thanks to HomeRight for sponsoring this post 🙂
Did you like our video? We need to make some more “how-to” videos, in fact I think Christy and I need to plan another DIY weekend again soon. Good luck with the giveaway everyone!
{The fine print: We are proud to work with HomeRight as a brand ambassador and they sponsored this post, however our opinions are always our own. Affiliate links are used in this post}.
XO,
