These 3 easy DIY wall shelf brackets make it easy to add a shelf where you need it, from your kitchen or bathroom to the living room or bedroom.
3 Easy DIY Wooden Shelf Brackets
Building a shelf is a great beginning DIY project – inexpensive, requires minimal tools, and easy to customize. You could purchase inexpensive shelf brackets to make open shelving at any home improvement store or even Walmart… or you can pick up a few pieces of wood from the scrap pile and make your own!
The best part of making your own DIY shelf brackets is that you control the size of the bracket for a custom fit for your desired shelf depth – you can even glue 2 brackets together for a thicker shelf bracket.
In this blog post, we’ll show you 3 ways to build a wood shelf bracket, with different size brackets and styles to fit whatever you need. You’ll just need the lumber of your choice and some basic tools.
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Materials & Tools to Build a DIY Wall Shelf Bracket
- Lumber: depending on the style of shelf bracket, you’ll want a 1×8, 2×8 or 2×10, or 4×4 board. Basic pine is the cheapest and takes paint well; if you’re looking for a beautiful stained wood shelf bracket, consider investing in hardwood boards instead.
- Miter saw and/or jigsaw
- Drill
Note: These shelf brackets combined with a 1 1/2″ wood shelf are strong enough for decor and other lighter items. For heavy loads, such as books or dishes, shelves MUST be installed securely in the wall studs.
Simple Chunky DIY Wall Shelf Bracket
For this simple decorative shelf bracket, all you need is a scrap of 4×4 lumber (or larger), a miter saw, and a drill to hang the shelf bracket on the wall.
Sarah showed us how to make these simple corbel shelf brackets step by step:
- Cut the bottom of the bracket board to the angle you like. Most miter saws will cut up to a 45-degree angle. To cut a steeper angle for a longer bracket face, just follow Justin’s instructions here for using a scrap piece of wood to create a new fence and cut a 50-degree (or more) angle using a miter saw.
- Then measure 1-3″ up from the top of the miter cut and cut the top of the bracket at a 90-degree angle, to hold the shelf.
- Repeat to create a second shelf bracket.
- Stain or paint the shelf bracket (and shelf) as desired.
To hang the shelf brackets, predrill 2 holes through the angled edge of the bracket and into the studs in the wall, then secure with 3-inch screws. (If there are no wall studs where you want the shelf, use drywall anchors.) Use a laser level to ensure that the brackets are level at the same height.
Cut a a 2×6, 2×8, or 2×10 board to your desired shelf length, and attach to the brackets using wood glue and 1-2 screws through the shelf into each bracket.
Basic Curved Wall Shelf Bracket
It’s so easy to make your own curvy wood shelf bracket, and this is a great project to use up some scrap wood *and* to practice cutting curves with your jigsaw or scroll saw. You’ll need a 2×8 board or scraps, a jigsaw, a drill, and 2 keyhole hangers.
Ananda gave us the easy step-by-step wood bracket instructions (including a printable template!):
- Draw your curved bracket (or use the free printable template) and trace 2 on to the 2×8 board.
- Use a jigsaw to cut both curved edges.
- Clamp the 2 pieces together and sand any rough edges along the curves smooth to match.
- Attach a keyhole hanger to the back of each bracket. The hanger can be attached flush or use a router or small Forstner drill bit to recess the hanger slightly into the back of the bracket.
Use wood glue and screws or nails to attach a board to the top of the brackets to form the shelf. (Or, get creative and use old books to make a shelf like Ananda did!) Install screws in the studs (or wall anchors) to hang the shelf using the keyhole hangers.
If you have a router, you can dress up the simple curvy bracket like Sara did on her extra-thick mantel corbels here.
Vintage Layered Wall Shelf Bracket
This layered shelf bracket is a beautiful combination of a chunky bracket and a curved bracket, and so simple to make! Just grab your jigsaw, a 1×8 and a 2×10 (full boards or scraps) and some wood glue to add this decorative element to your shelf.
Amy shared the step-by-step instructions, and you can download the printable template here.
- Trace 2 outer bracket pieces on the 1×8, and 1 inner bracket piece on the 1×10.
- Carefully cut out the 3 bracket pieces using a jigsaw (or scroll saw or band saw) and gently sand any rough sections to remove the pencil marks.
- Glue and nail the outer bracket pieces to the inner bracket piece, one on each side, flush with the top and overset about 1/4″ on the curved edges.
- Measure and cut a piece of 3/4″ thick wood to roughly 1″ x 8″ to fill the top of the decorative section. Glue and nail it in place.
To hang the shelf brackets, you can drill holes through the center section of the bracket, or use keyhole hangers on the back of the bracket. Like the other shelf brackets, you’ll attach the shelf to the brackets using glue with nails or screws through the shelf and into the bracket.
Other Uses for DIY Shelf Brackets
Brackets are functional support for shelves, and they can also be a beautiful visual addition to other horizontal ledges in your home, like your kitchen island, a mantel, or even a doorway.
Brackets can be used as bookends on an open shelf, too – just flip the bracket upside down like this simple IKEA shelf bracket hack. (This will reduce the weight limit on the shelf, FYI.)
And if you need a cheap and easy open shelving system with strong brackets, check out how we made the Cheapest and Easiest Open Shelves with Brackets that Disappear.
DIY Shelf Bracket FAQs
How much weight can DIY wooden shelf brackets hold?
Shelf weight limit is determined partly by materials and partly by the attachment to the studs. For these 3 shelf types, using a 1 1/2″ shelf of around 30″ or less in length and attached securely to 2 studs, I would estimate the shelves can easily hold 20+ lbs (10 lbs per stud attachment) and probably even more – that’s a conservative estimate!
If you’d like to add extra strength to your DIY shelf brackets, use this trick we saw at the Parade of Homes: Add a horizontal support board along the length of the shelf. This installation also uses some additional vertical boards for a nice clean look.
Should shelves overhang brackets?
Yes, from both a visual and structural standpoint, shelves can overhang brackets. The front edge of the shelf should not be more than a couple of inches over the front of the bracket, though.
What size should shelf brackets be?
As a general rule for shelves, the shelf bracket should be taller than it is deep, and the depth of the bracket should be at least 2/3 the depth of the shelf (and more will be stronger). The shelf bracket should be attached to studs in 2 locations, and to the shelf in 2 spots, minimum.
Do you attach brackets to a wall or shelf first?
Either, depending on the project. Attaching the brackets to the shelf first ensures they are level and square with the shelf, but attaching the brackets to the wall first can be easier to ensure a secure attachment to the wall (without the shelf in the way).
More DIY Shelf Ideas You’ll Want to Build
Lorene has been behind the scenes here at Remodelaholic for more than a decade! She believes that planning projects and actually completing them are two different hobbies, but that doesn’t stop her from planning at least a dozen projects at any given time. She spends her free time creating memories with her husband and 5 kids, traveling as far as she can afford, and partaking of books in any form available.
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