Give empty corners a new lease of life by building your own set of corner shelves

Two different-sized white shelves are mounted to the wall in the corner of a room. — Give empty corners in your living room a new lease of life with a set of DIY corner shelves made from wood.

Difficulty

medium
Cost

< 50 £
Duration

1-3 h

Not all room corners are exactly 90 degrees. This makes it a bit more difficult to mount shelves to them. We’ll show you how to give empty corners a new lease of life with your very own set of DIY corner shelves.

You need

Tools

Utilities

paint roller
pencil
ear protectors
face mask
safety glasses
pocket rule
protective gloves
circle/rope/string/piece of wood

Materials

Birch plywood boards (18 mm)
Support strips
Wood stain
Screws

L: Length, W: Width, H: Height, D: Diameter

Let's go - step by step

Step 1 8

Measure the angle of the corner

Close-up of a woman. She is measuring the angle of a corner using a protractor. — Measure the angle of the corner.

You need: Angle measurer, circle/rope/string/piece of wood

Use a protractor to measure the angle of your corner. The corner in our example measures 116 degrees.

Step 2 8

Draw the radius onto the wooden boards

Close-up of a woman using a wooden ruler and a pencil to draw the radius for a set of corner shelves onto a wooden board. — Draw the radius onto a wooden board.

Close-up of a woman. She is marking an angle using a protractor and a pencil so that she can draw out the measurements for a shelf in her set of corner shelves. — Mark out the radius on the boards.

You need: Angle measurer, pencil, circle/rope/string/piece of wood

In this step, you will mark out the outlines for your shelves. You will first need to draw the radius on the boards for the shelves. You can use different aids to do so. A compass or a pencil and a piece of string are perfect for this task.

In our example, we took a thin piece of wood and drilled a hole on one end. Then, we drilled three more holes for our three radii at distances of 20, 30 and 45　cm from this point. This makes marking them out very simple: Insert a nail or a screw into the lower hole to hold the piece of wood in place on the board for the shelf. Hold the pencil in the other holes and use it to draw the radius.

The radii and measurements you use will depend on the corner in your room and the set of corner shelves you would like to build. You can adjust the size and number of boards you use to suit your style or your requirements.

Place the protractor on the edge of the board after marking out the radius. Make sure that it is set to the same angle measure of your corner and make the mark. Well done! You have just drawn out the outlines for your set of corner shelves.

Step 3 8

Saw out the shelves

Close-up of a gloved hand sawing a shelf from a wooden board using a cordless jigsaw. — Saw out the shelves.

A woman is sawing out a shelf from a wooden board. The board has been secured to a wooden table using a G-clamp. — Saw out the shelves.

You need: Jigsaws, g-clamps, safety glasses, work gloves, ear plugs

Secure the board to your workbench using G-clamps and saw out the shelves using a jigsaw.

Step 4 8

Measure the support strips and cut them to length

Close-up of a hand drawing a mark on a support strip using a protractor and a pencil. — Measure the support strips and cut them to length.

Close-up of a cordless saw being used to saw a support strip to size. The strip is secured to a wooden table using a G-clamp. — Measure the support strips and cut them to length.

You need: Jigsaws, Mitre saws, Angle measurer, pocket rule, pencil, g-clamps, safety glasses, work gloves, ear plugs

Now, measure the support strips that will be attached under the shelf. You will need two support strips for each board. They should be a little shorter than the boards so that they won’t stand out.

Then, transfer half of the angle measurement of your corner and shelf to the strip. Use a protractor and a pencil to mark this measurement out on the strip. Alternatively, you can just use a mitre saw and set the corresponding angle. The corner in our example measures 116 degrees. For that reason, we have plotted a measurement of 58　degrees on our support strips and cut them to size.

Step 5 8

Sand down the rough edges

Close-up of a gloved hand sanding the edges of a wooden corner shelf using a cordless multi-sander. The wooden board is secured to the workbench using a G-clamp. — Sand down the rough edges.

You need: Multi-sander, g-clamps, safety glasses, work gloves, ear plugs, face mask

Now it’s time to sand down the rough edges of your shelves so that your DIY project will look perfectly smooth. Use a G-clamp to make sure that the board is firmly secured.

Step 6 8

Drill holes for the mounting bracket

Two support strips lie on a wooden table. Measurements have been marked out on them. — Mark out measurements.

Two wooden support strips lie on a wooden table. Holes have been drilled into them. — Drill the holes for the mounting bracket.

A support strip has been secured to a workbench using a G-clamp. A hole is being drilled in it using a cordless drill. There are already some holes in the strip. — Drill the holes for the mounting bracket.

You need: Cordless Drill, Countersink, safety glasses, ear plugs

In this next step, you will drill the mounting bracket so that you will be able to mount your set of corner shelves to the wall. To do so, drill two holes on the ends of the wooden support strips. The one on the top side will be for attaching the strips to the shelf. The other hole on the side will be used to attach the strip to the wall. Make sure to drill both holes slightly offset to each other so that the screws will have space and won’t block each other.

Use a countersink drill to prevent the wood from being drilled out of shape.

Step 7 8

Paint your pieces of wood

Close-up of a hand painting a shelf using wood stain and a foam paint roller. — Paint your pieces of wood.

You need: Paint spray system, paint roller, wood stain

Paint all of the pieces of wood. We have used white wood stain in our example. Feel free to choose whatever wood stain or paint you like. Then, allow the paint to dry well.

Step 8 8

Screw the mounting bracket to the shelves

One of the corner shelves has been mounted to the wall. The support strips prop up the board from below. — Screw the mounting bracket to the shelves so that you can attach them to the wall.

You need: Cordless combi drill, work gloves, safety glasses, ear plugs

Screw the support strips to the shelf. You’re almost done! Now all that’s left to do is mount your DIY shelf to the corner walls. Choose the right screws for your wall and shelf thickness so that it will remain securely mounted to the wall.

Please note: Before you mount the shelf to the wall and begin drilling, make sure to ask your landlord if it’s OK to do this, especially if it is an external wall. You may face financial and legal consequences if you fail to do so.

Have you mounted your set of corner shelves to the wall and added a few decorations to them? Then your home is in tip top shape!

IMPORTANT NOTE!

Before you attach the shelf to your wall and start drilling, especially for an exterior wall, make sure you check with your landlord to see if this is allowed. Otherwise you may face financial and legal consequences.