Hey kids, how are ya doing? Long time no see! Although that doesn’t mean I had my feet up and did absolutely feck all, just so you know. In fact, I have been very busy – one (Shaun) would even say that I’ve become a full time DIY obsessed potato. So many projects! I have gotten rid off my old wardrobes and replaced them with a swanky clothes rack, gave my old boring fish tank cabinet a remake, even upgraded the bog-standard IKEA shoe cabinet which everyone and their cat owns. Would you like to see any of these (and more)? I thought that easing you into proper DIYin’ on this blog would perhaps be the best approach – let me show you how Shaun & me (I tend to be the ‘let’s build a ten floor high bumble bee house in the garden right now’ person whilst he drills the holes and swears that things are not as easy as they seem in my head) build a hanging rope shelf for the bedroom.
What will you need?
✓ a plain shelf (mine was the plainest one you can get for something like £2 and I painted it with some Rust-Oleum chalk paint – the shade was Cocoa I believe, and the Rust-Oleum finishing wax)
✓ some rope (make sure you measure accordingly to the size of your rope and don’t forget to get a touch extra for the knots!)
✓ 2 screw hooks (large enough to fit the rope through)
✓ 2 plastic wall plugs
✓ a drill (also a spirit level is a good idea!)
And here’s what to do:
Measure carefully where you want to have your shelf placed – and keep in mind that the shelf is actually going to be much lower than the holes you’re making. Drill, slot in wall plugs and screw in hooks. That’s the dirty work done. Now do whatever you fancy with your shelf – I wanted mine to look quite rustic and aged so I used some chalk paint and then some finishing wax to give it the rough look. Now all you need to do is measure the rope (your shelf can hang as high or as low as you want it to obviously), make some strong knots and hang your shelf! Et voila! A very affordable but effective little project.
Let me know if you try to make it yourself, I’d love to see your pictures!
