Tag: shelves

Arched bookcases in oak and ikea

The ask was twin arched bookshelves to go on either side of a bed, like the following reference photo. Howevere these were to sit on top of some existing nightstands.

We started with a couple ikea bookshelves. I have mixed feeling about this. While I think it can be an excellent timesaver to start with factory-made furniture and customize as you like, I personally dislike chipboard and laminate, and I try to avoid them if given the option. Each material has it’s own vibration, some more pleasant than others. I picked up a bundle of oak molding, wide enough to give me a few options for creating the “shell.”

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Classroom Cubbies


It was only a passing request from my daughter’s first grade teacher – whether I had any ideas for improving the book storage above the coat cubbies, which was admittedly an eyesore. Upon some examination of the alcove, I told him he should rethink the entire situation, and via my own pushy compulsion, somehow volunteered to rectify the situation. What I peeled away during demolition was an unused legacy cubby system of hooks mounted on a long shelf, which sat unused behind the existing milk crates housing the kids’ stuff. The milk crates rested on top of a couple of unused shelves fashioned out of the doors that once rendered the alcove a large closet. Above all of this nonsense was a shelf, also made of the doors, housing a few hundred pounds of hidden books (yes, above where the kids retrieved their coats), covered with a few pieces of 1/2″ plywood, held vertically in place by small bolted slats that he would turn to remove the wood in order to get access.

Some remnants of what I ripped out:

milk crate cubbies alcove with shelf Read More →

Corner Cabinet

Body & shelves made from 1/2 plywood to save on cost and weight. Edges concealed with iron-on veneer. Doors and facing made of solid pine. Chinese cabinet hardware purchased ebay.


Initial sketches, which my toddler decided to comment on

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Vestibule Cubbies

I used slot joints to create this one, but in retrospect, I think dado joints would have been a better choice. Slot joints are great for flexible materials, or in a perfect world where all the pine you get from the lumberyard is flawlessly straight and uniform, but well, yeah.

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