How to make a space-saving shelf from pallet wood

Use scrap wood to create a space-saving storage solution that’s perfect for narrow spaces

Published: August 5, 2022 at 8:58 am

This pretty and practical little shelf is ideal for stashing your post and keeping keys to hand. It doesn’t take much wood to make it either, so it’s a great way to use up any wooden off-cuts.

Check out more pallet wood projects here!

You will need...

  • A piece of scrap wood (measuring approximately 40 x 30cm)
  • Pencil
  • Tape measure or ruler
  • Dinner plate
  • Jigsaw with scroll saw blade
  • Workbench
  • Clamp
  • Sanding block
  • Drill with wood bit
  • Screwdriver
  • 3 x wood screws
  • Masking tape
  • Royal Metallics paint in Gold, £1.98 per 125ml, Protek Woodstain
  • Paintbrush
  • 3 x square cup hooks
  • 2 x Command Strips

Step 1

Take a pencil and draw a 28cm diameter circle at one end of your wood, a few millimetres in from the edge. We drew around a dinner plate to create an accurate circle. Clamp the wood securely to a workbench and, using a jigsaw fitted with a scroll saw blade, carefully cut out the circle from the wood.

Step 2

Use the pencil to draw a horizontal line across the centre of the circle. To make the shelf, use a pencil and ruler to draw a rectangle measuring 11cm wide and 28cm long on the remaining piece of wood. Cut out using the jigsaw. The shelf ends should marry up with the widest part of the wooden circle. Use a sanding block to smooth the edges.

Step 3

With a tape measure, mark a cross in the centre of the horizontal pencil line on the wooden circle and another one at a distance of 7cm on either side of the central point. Draw three corresponding crosses, using the same measurements, on the long narrow edge of the shelf. Using a drill and wood bit, drill pilot holes through each of the crosses on the wooden circle. Next, drill a 1cm-deep pilot hole into each of the crosses on the shelf.

Step 4

Working from the back of the wooden circle, fit a screw into each of the three pilot holes until the tips just poke through the other side. Hold the shelf up against the wooden circle and marry the pilot holes in the shelf to the screw ends. Push the shelf firmly against the wooden circle, turn the screws so they go into the shelf.

Step 5

Take a length of masking tape and place it centrally around the sides and front of the shelf board. Use a paintbrush to apply three coats of copper paint to the lower half of the shelf unit, allowing each coat to dry before applying the next. Once the paint is dry, carefully peel away the masking tape.

Step 6

Use a tape measure and pencil to mark three points 5cm below the bottom of the shelf on the front of the wooden circle. Mark the first point centrally and the second and third points at a distance of 5cm on either side of the central point. Using a drill and wood bit, drill a 1cm-deep pilot hole through each of the three points marked on the wooden circle. Screw a square cup hook into each pilot hole ensuring they are level. Attach two self-adhesive Command Strips to the back of the shelf unit, to hang the shelf securely without damaging the walls.

Feature, project and step shots Anna-Lisa De’Ath Main photo Sussie Bell

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