How to Build Pantry Floating Shelves

The perfect floating shelf is strong and seamless, and it is my favorite solution for upgrading any nook, closet or pantry. This is exactly what I was looking for in our new pantry because it’s the last piece of my full kitchen remodel.

Steps for Building Custom Floating Shelves

Before I began, I removed the old door to widen the opening and prepped space for the new custom shelves.

Prepping for floating shelves

1. The first step is to decide how many shelves you want. One easy way to do this is to play around with tape spaced about 16 inches apart on the back wall. (My pantry is going to have five shelves.)
2. Next, I marked a ½-inch thickness of my shelf’s frame on the wall. I took the time to mark a line above and below the 1×2 since, as I work higher, I would get harder to see the top line above the shelf as I level everything.
3. As a last bit of prep, I used a stud finder to locate at least two studs along the back wall and at least one stud on each side wall. Then, I used a level to carry those marks vertically to each shelf.

How to build the floating shelves

1. To build the shelves, I began with sandwiching a frame of four 1×2 boards between a ¼-inch plywood bottom and a ¾-inch plywood top. To cap the front edge of the layers, I used a 1×3 which just happens to be the each 2 ½-inch-thickness of combined layers.
2. Next, I cut the 1×2 boards to length using my miter saw, and then drilled pocket holes in all the long front and back boards. I applied glue and used my drill/driver and 1 ¼-inch screws to assemble each frame.
   
   This is the part where I learned some valuable lessons on this project. First, I failed to account for the walls being a little wonky near the top of the pantry, so I needed to take the top two frames back apart and trim the width of the long front and back pieces. Secondly, I tried installing the frames all at once, first from the bottom, and then skipping up to the top, only to remember that the opening is not as wide as the closet’s interior, so I couldn’t angle the plywood between the frames to fit them into place. Lastly, in dry fitting the location of my highest shelf I realized basic items couldn’t clear the opening of the doors, so I ended up moving my top three shelves a bit lower to allow more clearance.
   
   Tip: Be sure to keep the unique specifications of your closet in mind, as you measure out the shelves.
   
3. After the shelves were assembled, I cut the ¾ and ¼-inch plywood to size and coated everything with stain and two coats of poly, sanding lightly between the clear coats. You can do this after installation, but I prefer to use an oil-based paint. This can be a bit malodorous, so I chose to stain it in my workshop.
4. Starting from the bottom, I installed the frame, pre-drilling holes at the location of each stud then driving 2-inch screws through the frame and drywall and into the studs. I made sure to constantly check the frame for level from side to side and front to back.
   
   For the first few shelves, I figured out how to finagle the ¼-inch plywood down through the frame where I then added glue and nailed it to the underside of the frame with 1 ¼-inch finish nails. Next, I tried to add the ¾-inch plywood on top, but couldn’t get it into place You’ll see I uninstalled the frame above it to make space, but then installed it with glue and 1 ¼-inch nails.
   
   Tip: The key here is to place the next ¼-inch piece into the space BEFORE installing the frame above, so it can be raised easily into place. From there, continue gluing and nailing plywood to the frame before moving on to the next frame.
   
5. Once all the shelves were installed, I applied glue to the front edge and added the 1×3 caps with 1¼-inch nails.

Finalizing the Look

With the shelves complete, I worked with my local branch of a company called One Day Doors to measure my exact pantry opening, so that they could custom cut the doors to fit my frame. This was a huge help because they were not standard size. They have a ton of door styles to choose from. And if you’re looking for to upgrade your existing doors or install a new door, this process will take a ton of guesswork out of trying to fit a stock door into the opening that’s not a standard size. When the doors arrived, they already had my choice of hinge color installed and the team completed the super quick install with perfect spacing all around.

Materials

• (1) ¾” x 4’ x 8’ plywood to top the frame
• (1) ¼” x 4’ x 8’ plywood to enclose the bottom of the frame
• (8) 1 x 2 x 8’ boards to make the frame
• (3) 1 x 3 x 8’ board to cap the front edge
• 1 ¼-inch coarse thread pocket hole screws
• 2-inch deck screws
• 1 ¼-inch 18 gauge finish nails
• Pencil
• Wood glue
• Wood filler

Tools