How to Make a Simple Wall Shelf for less than $11

Part of my budget Laundry Room makeover includes building a cute little wall shelf.

I’ve never built one of these before – but it’s so simple and I can’t wait to share the DIY with you guys. So follow these steps below and watch the video to learn how to make a simple and stylish wall shelf.

By the way, you should check out my post on restaining a table!

Materials Needed

• Piece of Wood – I picked up a 1x6x4 wood board from my hardware store
• 2 Shelf Brackets – I got mine from the hardware store but Amazon also sells them!
• Screws and nails to attach your shelf brackets to your piece of wood and to the wall
• (optional) Spray Paint – I use Rustoleum Painter’s Touch in Matte Black
• (optional) Stain in your choice of color and paint brush or foam brush- I used
• Old white rag to wipe up excess stain
• Rubber Gloves to protect your hands from the stain
• Drill

Tutorial for Making a Simple Wooden Wall Shelf

Here are the steps to make your simple wall shelf. You can also watch the video below to see how I did it.

Here’s a tip : It’s best to complete most of this project outside. It’s much easier and safer to spray paint and stain your wall shelf in the fresh air. Don’t forget to put on your safety gloves!

1. Spray paint your shelf brackets any color you want. I chose black! Allow the shelf brackets to fully dry.
2. Cut your board down to size if need be. I wanted a smaller size shelf, so I sawed mine to the measurements I wanted. I still have a piece of board leftover to make another shelf! Woot!
3. If your board feels rough, you can sand it down prior to staining. Technically, you should sand it down prior but I didn’t do this. I went ahead and applied two coats of stain to my board as is and allowed it to dry.
4. I took my screws and drilled the brackets to my wooden board. Yay! We have a shelf!
5. Using some nails or screws, drill your shelf to the wall through the holes in the shelf brackets. All Done!

Total spent here in case you are curious : $10.63 !!!

I already had the drill, the stain and the spray paint from previous projects. Nonetheless, even if you had to buy stain and spray paint – this is such an inexpensive project! I love it!

This shelf is happily installed in my budget laundry room – which is oh so close to being completed. I’ll have an update for you guys this week to show you the progress. But, you can see a little bit from these pictures.

Tips on Staining your Wood Shelf

Minwax has an excellent page on their website all about wood stains and applying wood stains. Here’s a few tidbits if you don’t want to click over :

• You really should sand your wood board first before applying stain. I didn’t do this and my shelf was fine – but technically, that’s the way to do it.
• The longer you leave your stain on the board prior to wiping off, the deeper the color.
• Also apply stain and wipe it off in the direction of the wood grain.
• You can apply a clear finish to your shelf after staining for protection.

I hope you guys enjoyed this project!

Check out my other DIY Projects

Check out my other DIY projects, and be sure to subscribe below!

Let me know if you have any questions or comments – I LOVE hearing from you!

xo Karen