How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Why I Put In custom Shelves

I discovered I have major issues with wire shelves. They take up a lot of space and don’t provide a lot of storage. I feel very strongly about utilizing all of the space you have (I learned that when we moved into our tiny apartment, read more about that here) so wire shelves really get in the way of that. And it turns out that builders love to put wire shelves into closets and call it a day. Every closet in our house has wire shelves so I am slowly going closet to closet, adding custom shelves to get the most out of the space. So today I want to talk about how to add shelves to a closet to fit your needs.

In most of our closets, we don’t need built ins. I am hoping to do a great build out of our master closet one day but for now, it’s working well as is. So I decided to add floating shelves that would act as storage and a place to hang clothes underneath as well! Today I’m going to walk you through how I did it in Jackie’s closet and in our upstairs closet.

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Jackie’s closet design

As you can see with Jackie’s closet, the only shelves in here were two wire shelves. And since we put the steamer trunk in here, there wasn’t a lot of hanging space. So at a minimum, I needed to shift the shelves a bit higher and add hanging rods. The door on the right side of the closet leads to the second floor HVAC unit, so it needs to remain accessible but I felt like I could put a shelf above the door for storage and not bother the door at all.

I like to draw out my designs by hand so I can write down all of the measurements and keep track of my ideas. I also use Sketch Up for bigger projects.

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Designing the 3rd Floor Closet

This closet really stumped me for a long time. It had the water heater in it (on carpet) and is a weird shape. It also has an angled ceiling. So I couldn’t just add some shelves and call it good. I spent some time working on it and then ask my mother in law for some ideas. She is really good at coming up for solutions like this! She suggested using a combination of drawers and shelves. So I bought two sets of these drawers and two sets of these drawers to use under the shelves. Then I drew out the plan above to add shelves on top of the drawers. I did change things a little mid project but it worked out well I think! I did like leaving space under the shelves (where the drawers are) so this space can be used a clothes closet later down the road.

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | What You Will Need

These floating shelves are VERY easy to build. Every shelf is going to measure differently so I can’t give you exact measurements to go by but I can give you a materials list and how to build the shelves! You can then adjust the measurements to fit your space!

Materials

2x4s
1/2 plywood (or MDF)
3” wood screws
2 1/2” pocket screws
Primer
Paint
Caulk
Wood filler
Polyurethane
Wood Glue

Tools

Stud finder
Miter saw
Table saw or circular saw
Drill
Pocket hole kreg jig
Brad nailer (optional)
Painting supplies

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Building the Frame

First, you are going to build the frame for your shelf. Decide where you want the shelf to be on the wall and use the stud finder to find all of the studs along the length of the wall. Mark where the studs are. Now measure the length of the wall. That’s going to be how long you cut your front and back pieces of 2x4. So if it’s 48” long, you will need two pieces of 2x4 cut to 48”.

Length of wall = length of front & back pieces

Next, you will need to determine how deep you want your shelf to be. This determines the lengths of your support pieces. Take the depth you’ve decided on and subtract 3”. This is because 2x4s are actually only 1.5” wide on the 2” side. Factoring in the front and back pieces of the frame means you have to subtract 3” from the total depth. So if you want your shelf to be 16” deep, you will need to cut the support pieces to 13”.

Total depth of shelf - 3” = length of support pieces

Now that you know the length of the support pieces, you need to figure out how many to cut. You will need one for each end of the shelf, and then one for each stud on the wall.

2 end pieces + # of studs on the wall = # of support pieces

Now you can cut and attach your frame! Add two pocket holes to ONE end of each support piece being used for the wall studs. The support pieces for the ends of the shelf don’t need pocket holes! Using one of the longer 2x4 wall pieces, attach it to the wall using 3” wood screws. Place the screws where the studs are for increased support. Next do the same with two support pieces, one on each end of the shelf. If the shelf sits between two walls, you can screw the end pieces into the wall. If not and you’re just ending the shelf (like I did in our upstairs closet), you will need to pocket holes on one end to attach the support piece to the back wall 2x4.

Now let’s attach the support pieces. Using the ends with the pocket holes, attach the supports into the long 2x4 that is attached to the wall with the 2 1/2” pocket hole screws. Do this where the studs are for extra support. Using clamps to hold the support pieces in place while you screw them in will help a lot!

Last, let’s attach the front piece. Using the second, wall length 2x4, clamp it onto the ends of the support pieces. Then use 3” wood screws to attach the front piece to the support pieces.

Your frame should be very sturdy. Since it is screwed into the studs, it will be able to hold a lot of weight. I tested mine out by sitting and standing on them! I wouldn’t necessarily recommend doing this but I thought I’d give it a try!

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs| Adding the Plywood

Now that your frame is done, you can add the plywood to it. You will want 2 pieces of plywood that are the length and depth of the shelf. So if the shelf is 16” deep and 48” wide, your plywood pieces should measure 16” x 48”.

Length of shelf x depth of shelf = plywood cuts

For the front / any side pieces you may need, you will want to measure the length of the piece you need. The width will be 4.5” (3.5” board + (1/2 + 1/2).

Attach these to your frame using the Brad nailer. If you don’t have a Brad nailer, you can use the 3” wood screws to attach the plywood to the frame!

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Finish Work

Now that the frame is built and the plywood is one, you need to do the finish work! So take the wood filler and fill in the screw holes, any cracks or extra holes. Wood filler should go anywhere you have two pieces of wood jointing together flush. I like to use the wood filler on knots in the wood as well so that it’s smooth when I paint. You will want to overfill all of these places. Wood filler shrinks as it dries and overfilling will keep you from having to go back and refill holes. You can sand down the access when it dries.

You also need to caulk. You want to use a paintable caulk that is made for wood work. There are lots of different kinds so it’s important to get the right one! Caulk goes where the wood joins the wall and where two pieces of wood meet at an angle. Using as small of a bead as possible, run a line of caulk where it needs to go. Then use a baby wipe to smooth it out and remove the access. You can’t sand caulk so don’t leave any residue you won’t be ok with seeing!

Once the wood filler is dry (it can take some time especially for larger holes/cracks) sand down all of the access and the plywood. This will give you a smoother finish! Be sure to clean up all do the dust when you are done sanding. A damp cloth, cheese cloth, a broom or vacuum are all great options for clean up.

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Time to Paint

Now it’s time to paint! First, since you are working with raw wood, be sure to use a primer. This will help the paint adhere to the wood better and will reduce the number of coats you will have to do. Once you have allowed the primer to dry for the amount of time the can recommends, you can start painting! I like doing white shelves because they are neutral, but you can paint your shelves any color you want! You could even stain your shelves for a more natural look, just be sure to use a wood conditioner before you stain!

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Adding a Top Coat

It doesn’t matter if you painted or stained your shelves, you need a top coat. Since these shelves are going to have items on them, and in our case be used A LOT, you want something on top of the paint to keep it from scraping and scratching. I like to use polyurethane as a top coat. You can paint it on with a paint brush. Just be sure to clean your brush throughly when you’re done! You may need 2-3 coats of polyurethane depending on how much use the shelves will be getting.

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Use Your Shelves

Once the top coat is dry (this may take a few days), you can start using your shelves! For Jackie’s closet, I added the handing rods under the two left side shelves. I used baskets to help organize everything else and I love how it turned out. There is so much more space in her closet and it doesn’t give me anxiety every time I open the door!

As for the third floor closet, I combined the drawers and shelves to really utilize the space. And it is SO MUCH BETTER!

I’d love to see how you make your own shelves!

How to Add Shelves to a Closet to Fit Your Needs | Shop

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