Reading books is the favorite hobby of those who want to learn and those who want to visit fantasy worlds. Filled with lush stories, books are often collected by avid readers. They usually have corners in their rooms that are solely dedicated to books.
More often than not, book readers run out of space for their books, especially those who have mini-libraries at home. Every book collector should learn how to make their own bookshelf for times like this. Building your own bookshelf minimizes costs and puts supposedly disposable items to good use.
If you want to build your own bookshelf, there are three options you can take. One option is to go for the traditional bookshelf as you will practically build a cabinet-type bookshelf. Another good possibility is to assemble milk crates en route to creating a makeshift bookshelf. Your third option is to assemble your own plastic storage cabinet that will serve as your bookshelf. Whichever option you take, you will surely get an item that perfectly suits your book-storing needs without the trappings of a high price.
Option A: Wooden Cabinet Bookshelf
The wooden cabinet bookshelf is the priciest among the three options but it is also the most elegant and the most durable among the three. The classic feel of wood nicely blends with the general appearance of books and themes of most homes.
The cabinet’s tough wooden frames are built to last lifetimes and withstand drastic temperature changes if properly maintained. The wooden cabinet bookshelf is the sentimental choice of those who are willing to shell out some cash for an item that is certainly worth more than they have bargained for.
Materials Used:
medium density fiberboard
varnish/paint
hammer
nails
sandpaper
hand saw
tape measure
To create your own wooden cabinet bookshelf, saw groups of five equally-sized boards, depending on the size of the cabinet you wish to build. Rub each board with sandpaper until all of them are smooth. Once smoothened, assemble the fiberboards to form squares with one side open, then nail them together.
Stack the groups of fiberboards on top of each other and affix them together using your hammer and nails. When you have built your cabinet, apply paint or varnish to make it look elegant and to give the cabinet a protective coating, which will also add to the structure’s durability. Wait for the varnish to dry then you can start filling the bookshelf with your book collection.
Option B: Milk Crate Bookshelf
A bookshelf composed of milk crates seems like a product borne from an artist’s twisted thoughts but if you think about it, building such a bookshelf makes sense. If you have a good number of milk crates lying in your storage room, making a bookshelf out of them will cost you nothing. You could even stylize your milk crate bookshelf to look like a pricey room ornament.
The milk crate bookshelf is probably the least expensive among the three options presented in this article. It is also the easiest to build.
Materials Used:
milk crates
cable ties
spray paint
pen
paper
First, sketch your projected milk crate bookshelf on a piece of paper. Take note of the amount of free space that your room has and from there, you can easily conceptualize your bookshelf. Get the required number of milk crates and stack them together.
Once you have formed a tower made of milk crates, bind them together using a pair of cable ties. You can give the cabinet a few playful nudges to check if it stands steadily. If not, you can always add a few more cable ties to make the cabinet more stable.
At this point, you must think about an appropriate color scheme for your bookshelf. You can sketch your designs on a piece of paper and from there, select the best one. Bring out your cans of spray paint and paint the bookshelf. After this step, you will have a nice milk crate bookshelf fit for artists and the modern-day MacGuyver.
Option C: Plastic Storage Bookshelf
The overall usability of plastic makes the plastic storage bookshelf the most versatile among the three types of makeshift bookshelves. The plastic storage bookshelf has very cheap and easy-to-carry components. It is relatively easy to put together and can be stylized to fit almost any room theme. You can even use the bookshelf to store other items such as CDs, magazines and gadgets.
Materials Used:
plastic board
plastic molds (for structure and doors)
mechanical drill
boiler
nuts
bolts
spray paint
To build your plastic storage bookshelf, you must first get plastic strips from your plastic board and place them inside the boiler. Once the plastic melts, place the melted plastic in the door molds and the structure mold. Wait until the plastic dries and hardens then get ready for some puzzle-piecing action.
Take out the structure and the two doors from the plastic molds. To connect each door to the main structure, drill a hole above the opening of the structure and on the top portion of each door. Align the hole on the doors to the ones on the main structure then connect them with nuts and bolts.
Now, you can get your cans of spray paint and design your plastic bookshelf to suit the theme of your room. When the paint dries, you will have a plastic cabinet that is just as stylish and durable as those sold in shopping centers.