• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
If Only April
  • MEET APRIL
  • DIY PROJECTS
    • Kids projects
    • DIY furniture
    • Design plans
    • DIY holiday projects
    • Macrame
    • Transformations
    • Woodworking
  • VIDEOS
  • CONTACT
  • SHOP
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • MEET APRIL
  • DIY PROJECTS
    • Kids projects
    • DIY furniture
    • Design plans
    • DIY holiday projects
    • Macrame
    • Transformations
    • Woodworking
  • VIDEOS
  • CONTACT
  • SHOP
×

Unique DIY wall-mounted bookshelf for kid's playroom

Please note, that some of the links below are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links (at no additional cost to you). Thanks for your support this way.

FacebookPinPrintEmail
DIY bookshelf

I'm currently in the process of renovating our kid's small playroom. Last week I finished this EPIC IKEA hack using two TROFAST storage units. And this week we'll be tackling the book situation. Basically, we'll be building a DIY book display. To be completely honest, I had a hard time naming this project since it's not really a book display, but neither a bookshelf. We can say that it's a DIY wall-mounted bookshelf or a DIY arched bookshelf wall. And guess what, all of those things are kind of correct. Because this fabulous arched goodness is a book display, a shelf, a book wall, but first of all, it's just amazing! So let me show you how to build a bookshelf wall.

In our previous playroom, which to be correct we never had, but rather in our previous play space, we used these 4 ledgers for book display.

DIY bookshelf


I built them a few years back when I decorated my toddler's bedroom. They worked great! And I was very inclined to use them again, but then everything changed...

I saw a video on YouTube of this beautiful arched magazine stand that super talented DIY Danie made. And as she always likes to say about Pinterest, I just HAD to make one for myself! *khe khe, I mean for kid's playroom of course"

I decided to make it a bit wider than Dani's and I'm not sure how tall is her magazine stand, but I feel that mine is a bit taller. I also plan to make a cubby under it to fit more books, but more about it later.

But let's get to the weeds and see how to make this fabulous thing for your home.

Contents hide
1 Materials
2 Tools
3 Instructions to make this DIY book display
3.1 Cutting the base
3.2 Cutting an arch
4 How to make shelves
4.1 Determine the positioning
4.2 Assemble the shelves
5 Paint
6 Assemble
7 Mounting bookshelf to the wall
7.1 What are french cleats?
7.2 How to make French cleats from plywood?
8 Watch video tutorial on YouTube
8.1 Share this:

Materials

  • ½" plywood sheet
  • (2) - 1x3"x8'
  • (4) - ¼" thick poplar hobby boards
  • screws
  • paint (optional)

Tools

  • jigsaw
  • any saw to make straight cuts
  • sander
  • drill
  • level (this is not what I have but it's so cool because it folds)
  • Swanson tool
  • stud finder

Instructions to make this DIY book display

Cutting the base

Since the plywood sheet that you need is quite large, you'll need to ask your home department store to cut it to length. You can choose any length and width that you want, just make sure to measure your car before you go, to avoid a situation where you stand on the parking lot confused about how to fit the whole thing inside your car. (Yep, it happened to me before). This was one of those cases where the size of my car determined the scale of this project haha I'd go probably for a bigger size of the arch.

After I measured my car I decided to make this book display 40" x 80" so it could perfectly fit into my car. Well, it didn't go as smooth as I'd hoped and you can watch my Instagram stories (I saved it in highlights) what could be done better.

Cutting an arch

A few months ago I already made half arches for my pegboard room divider and you can read there how I used a thread to trace a perfect ¼" of a circle. The thing is, it didn't come out as perfect as I wanted. I didn't have a proper thread to nail to the middle so mine was making inaccurate rounds.

So this time I decided to make a simple jig for it. I took scrap wood and measured the distance from the center of the board to the edge. Then I drilled a small hole on the scrap board at exactly halfway distance. And I put a nail loosely in the center. This way the pencil could trace a perfect half-circle without wiggling off.

Then I took a jigsaw and cut the half arch. Try to go slow with the jigsaw to make sure it's staying on track.

PIN TO MAKE IT LATER >>>>>

DIY bookshelf

How to make shelves

Determine the positioning

Place 1x3"s on the arch and decide on how long you want the shelves to be. I measured 2" from both sides which brought me to 36" wide shelves.

Then you need to decide how large of the spacing you want for the shelves.

If you make this DIY arched book display for kids then take the tallest book that you have (assuming it's not THE only big book your kids own) and use it as a spacer. The spacing between our DIY bookshelves is about 14". It gives enough space for books to wiggle.

 

Assemble the shelves

When you know all the numbers, cut the boards to size.

Use glue and brad nailer to attach the hobby board to the 1x3". The nail gun in this case acts as a bonding effect for the glue to start doing its magic. Obviously, don't skip the glue (like I once did when I made a farmhouse-style produce stand last year). That's a fun story, you can watch it here!

Leave the glue to cure and fill the tiny holes with wood filler so they are not visible when you paint it. If you are planning to stain it, use a wood filler that can be covered with stain.

Paint

This is the most fun part! I'll talk more about my color choices in my blog about my mood board for this playroom. But let me tell you that I chose a "Dandelion Wish" by Behr as my yellow and "Vanilla paste"  color for the shelves. I think they go so well together and give out this retro vibe.

I used samples for both and was very confident that the sample would be enough to paint the arch. Unfortunately, I didn't have the right roller in the beginning and I felt that I could swing it with a big roller for walls. Well, not so fast. Most of the paint was soaked into the big roller till I was forced to go out to my local hardware store and get a smaller roller. I could've used a brush, but oh well, good ideas always come later. It took me longer than expected to paint this arch and I almost ran out of the paint sampler. But if you'll attempt to make the same one just use the right size roller from the start and the paint sampler will be more than enough. Noted for the future.

While the paint on the arch was drying, I painted shelves (or you can also call them ledgers). This unit has so many names hahha. I applied two coats. And if you watch a smooth finish, make sure you sand it between coats.

Assemble

To assemble this adorable bookcase you'll need clamps, screws, and wood glue. I measured where the shelves will go, and drilled 4 holes throughout. Then I added wood glue to the shelves and clamped it to the arched plywood back. After that, I flipped the whole thing over and drove screws through the previously predrilled holes. Easy peasy! Clamps in this case are your best friends! I absolutely love these clamps by Irwin. They are so easy to use!!

Mounting bookshelf to the wall

Ta da!! The DIY bookshelf was ready but since it's for the kids, I couldn't just lean it against the wall as Danie did. I had to attach the whole structure to the wall.

There were a few options to do it. First, simply screw it to the wall (to the studs). But in this case, we'd end up with the screws on the front.

Another option was to use French cleats. And here is where it gets exciting!!

 

What are french cleats?

A French cleat is a way of securing a cabinet, mirror, artwork, or other objects to a wall. It is molding with a 30–45 degree slope used to hang cabinets or other objects. French cleats can be used in pairs, or with a cleat mounted to the wall and a matching edge cut into the object to be hung.

Wikipedia

Basically, you need 2 boards cut at 45-degree bevel cut. One will be attached to the wall and another one attached to the bookshelf. When they both are secured, you "hang" the bookshelf to the board on the wall.

You can buy aluminum french cleats online or make it yourself. I chose to make it myself.

How to make French cleats from plywood?

I think that if you choose ¾" plywood, it will have a stronger connection but I decided to use a ½" plywood since I didn't want it to be bulky and too visible on the wall.

I researched what's the best way to make French cleats and it seemed the most accurate way is to make it with a table saw.

Adjust the blade on your table saw to 45 degrees and rip the plywood sheet in half. Both of my boards are approx 8" wide. I guess I could go for a smaller width but I thought it will be more secure if I use a wider board.

When you have two boards, attach one to the bookshelf and another one to the wall. Find the studs on the wall to make sure you are not driving your screws into the hollow. Always level at every step of the way, to make sure it's not skewed.

When you attach both boards, take the bookcase and hang it on the board on the wall.

Well, it worked like a charm😁

When this step is done the only thing you have left is to put the books on it and let your kids scream in excitement!

I'm still planning to add a bookcase on the bottom of the arch so we could fit more books in the playroom but it's a whole different story!

Watch video tutorial on YouTube

xoxo,

April

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Print
« The only IKEA toy storage hack you need to know
DIY bathtub caddy for a relaxing end of the day »
FacebookPinPrintEmail

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Hi, I'm April! I love woodworking and making things! I hope you will stay for a while and get inspired to make something!

More about me →

Popular

  • The progress of Sia's bedroom and my favorite finds for her room
  • 10 LEGO table ideas that kids would be excited about
  • Sia's room makeover moodboard
  • Step-by-step tutorial on how to reupholster a chair

ifonlyapril

DIY single mom | 📍CT
Hi 👋🏻 I haven't done this in awhile so thoug Hi 👋🏻
I haven't done this in awhile so thought I'd introduce myself.

Im a DIYer by passion, art business MA by education. 

I came to USA from Russia 13 years ago. I had an itching urge for adventures 😅

I lived in NYC for the most part and worked at the auction house till I had kids and had to move and adjust to suburban life. 

My passion for DIY started when I had my first baby and saw a Montessori baby gym. So I thought.. I probably can make it too! 

And I did 😅 

When we already moved to CT, I saw a Montessori floor house bed that was well over my budget, so I thought I'd try it out too... 

That's when I got my first power tools as an anniversary gift and the rest was history😂

Now I'm a single mom to 2 little girls (Sasha and Sia) and a beautiful long coat German Shepard puppy, named Drogo (after khal Drogo from GOT😁)

We bought our first house in the summer - a 1900s beauty so I had to switch gears from woodworking and start working on room renovations, to make this house our home. 

The progress is very slow, since life always gets on the way🤦🏻‍♀️ but my motto is progress, even slow is better than nothing. 

I can't wait to get a shed so I can pick up my woodworking projects again. Working out of my porch in the winter is not pleasant 🥶

If you'd like to know me more, sign up for my newsletter in link in bio! ☺️

Thank you for following my journey, now tell me something about yourself! 

#introduction #ifonlyapril
I'll get a cookie if I'll finish this bedroom at s I'll get a cookie if I'll finish this bedroom at some point 🤣 it's moving so slow but progress is good😁  @spoonflower 
#kidsbedroom #diykidsroom #homeimprovement  #ryobi #behrpaint #spoonflower
Three evenings well spent. Amazing DIY project, gr Three evenings well spent. Amazing DIY project, great conversations and now I have a beautiful 3-D book nook on my library shelves😍❤️ @byanavrin #diybooknook #ifonlyapril_diy
Yep, another "progress shot"... although I feel th Yep, another "progress shot"... although I feel the end is near 😁 follow @ifonlyapril to see this room transformation for my little bunny🤗☺️ 
#diyroomtransformation #diymakeover #diykidsbedroommakeover #makersgonnamake #kidsroominspiration #kidsroomdesign
I can't express it in any other words then... I ju I can't express it in any other words then... I just hate it🤷🏻‍♀️#roommakeover #kidsroommakeover #ifonlyapril_diy #ihateprimer #paintingdoors
We all love beautiful "before" and "after" room tr We all love beautiful "before" and "after" room transformations. But truth is... there is a lot of "work in progress" in between 😁 #diyroommakeover #diy #roomtransformation
Haha so here is a thing... I'm not sure how often Haha so here is a thing... I'm not sure how often you wash your hair, but I do it every 4-5 days. And my entire schedule depends on a "hair day"🤣

I'd never do a workout or a messy project if I just did my hair that morning😁 

Making videos every day with fresh hair is quite hard lol 

Now I'm trying out a new thing... I make "lifestyle", nice reels on my hair day and leave all messy projects for "not a hair day" 🙈😁

Can you relate? Or am I the only one?😁
Would you ever do a workout or a messy project if you just did your hair in the morning? 😅 
#dayhairdontcare #dontmesswithmyhair
Haha New Yorkers has seen it all 😅 so who cares Haha New Yorkers has seen it all 😅 so who cares🤣 #hairstyles #hairstylegoeswrong #funny #lifemoments
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • Disclaimer

Newsletter

  • Sign Up! for emails and updates

Contact

  • Contact
  • Media Kit

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Copyright © IfOnlyApril 2023

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!