Have you been looking for a cute modern shelf to display your plant collection? Look no further! This modern plant shelf is pretty easy to make and it can be made for under $10. Display all of your favorite pots and knick knack with this easy DIY. #houseplants #displayshelf #diyshelf #modernorganization

Modern Plant Shelf DIY

I am so excited about this project! It’s been a while since I’ve done a DIY and after this one, I’m hoping to bring you more. This modern plant shelf DIY is pretty easy and the best part? You can make it for under $10…whaaaatttt?

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Over the past year, I’ve been collecting pottery from different makers and artists. My obsession started with collecting pots from Morgan at @pottingpink and quickly evolved from there. While Morgan’s pot are my #1 favorite, I have a hard time resisting a cute small pot when I come across one.

I’ve been wanting a modern plant shelf to display my small pots and plants for a while now but they were all just so expensive. My needs were also very specific… cute, nothing on the sides to prevent sun from getting in, modern, clean lines, etc…

Before we get to the DIY, I want to introduce you to Tim. He’s my hunky husband and he’s taking over the blog today. Take it from here, Tim!

Tim here, the other half of Clever Bloom, the one who makes all the school lunches. In my past life I designed houses between Arizona (where I’m from), and Oregon. Now, I design the exterior facades of high-rise buildings for one of the largest glazing contractors in the United States.

My adorable wife wanted an adorable shelf to put her adorable collection of mini adorable pots on. Turning to the internet she showed me the basic style of shelf she was interested in, and it was, you guessed it, adorable. We were probably only seconds away from ordering one when I looked at the price. 80 US dollars. As delicately as I could, I said something on the order of, “There’s no way we’re spending 80 dollars on an 8 dollar shelf!”

The problem with my stubbornness is that it usually commits me to a project, where the goal is saving some cash. In this case, I was home for the holidays, and more than happy to spend some time in the garage, with tools, and beverages. So we started designing and came up with this modern plant shelf DIY.

The Shelf

This shelf is really very simple to make. With a little lumber and a few electric tools, you’ll be on your way to making this modern plant shelf. I highly recommend the affordable nail gun we mention below, it’s battery powered, meaning you won’t also need an air compressor, and other various parts that make that setup overwhelming. Point, shoot, done.

The lumber needed can be found at any home improvement store, and is usually referred to as, “common boards”. We get ours locally from Parr Lumber. If “knotty pine” isn’t your thing, you can cut around the knots for a cleaner look. The 1×4″ boards are usually with the trim and moldings. The 1×2″ strips are usually used as furring strips, and more often located near the framing lumber. Be careful to select boards that are as straight as possible.

You’ll need:

1 piece of – 1×4 common board 6′ long (probably the shortest length sold)
1 piece of – 1×2 common board 8′ long (probably the shortest length sold)
Nail gun (if you can’t obtain the nail gun, you will need 18ga. brad nails, 1-1/4″ long and a hammer)
Sandpaper for finishing
Paint or a stain if you’d like (we kept this one natural)- get creative!
Chop Saw

Let’s get started!

Step 1

Cut wood lengths as described below…

Step 2

The 30-1/4″ (1×2) is your backer board – all the other pieces will be nailed to this. Choose which side is the front and which side is the back (based on aesthetics). Align one of the 7″ (1×2) pieces with one end of the backer board and nail together from the back side.

Step 3

The next board in the order will be the fist shelf, which is an 8″ (1×2) . We’re not nailing this one in just yet, use it as a spacer to get the next 7″ (1×2) in place.

Step 4

Nail the second 7″ (1×2) in place, leaving a 3/4″ gap for the shelf. Work your way up the backer in exactly the same way, until all four of the 7″ (1×2) have been used. Now you’ll be left with (3) gaps for shelves.

Step 5

Measure and center the first shelf within one of the gaps (3-1/4″ overhang on each side), and nail several times from the back side. If the shelves don’t fit tightly, I recommend drilling a short wood screw in from the back side, but that wasn’t necessary for us, and isn’t pictured. Continue this step with all three shelves until complete. Sand if necessary after shelf is completely finished.

You can paint or stain the shelf however you want, in order to match your home decor. We left it natural so the eye is drawn towards the items we’re displaying. I love the way the different colored pots stand out on the natural shelf.

Step 6

Installing the wall mount hardware. There are different options for hanging the plant shelf. You can decide which hardware works best for you. This hardware kit is nice to have. It works for 10-75lbs of hanging weight. We went with a piece of hardware called a threaded insert.

Decide what end is the top, and from the back drill a 3/8″ hole for a piece of hardware called a threaded insert. I drilled this hole 3″ from the top, and dead-center in the back of the backer board. Set the threaded insert in the hole and hammer flush. This just gives a nice ridged hole to hang the shelf from.

When hanging this, keep in mind that there will probably be a decent amount of weight on the shelf. Use a molly or wall anchor if not attaching directly into a stud. Also, the finished shelf is pretty much a pendulum, so distribute weight evenly. To make sure it didn’t ever rotate when on the wall, we used some clear mounting tape, at the very bottom.

Now it’s time to display all those adorable pots you’ve been collecting. We actually made two shelves so now it’s time to start decorating our second! As always, if you have any questions, drop them below in the comments and we’ll get back to you. If you make one of these modern plant shelves, don’t forget to tag me so I can see them!!