How To Make An Easy Shutter Shelf

Today I made an Easy Shutter Shelf DIY.  I love old shutters but sometimes they come in less-than-perfect shape.  I bought four at Three Speckled Hens in Paso Robles.  None of the shutters functioned so they sat in the garage for a year before I finally decided it was time to put them to use.  I’ve been decorating my she-shed so I have a lot of space to fill.  Turning the shutter sideways while the paint dried gave me the idea to turn an old shutter into a shelf!

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Here’s what I used to make my easy shutter shelf:

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1. old shutter
2. chalk paint
3. chip brush
4. shelf brackets
5. shelf boards (I used scraps from the yard)
6. Dewalt drill (of course you can use any but I like Dewalt)
7. Gorilla brand wood glue
8. Shelf hanging hardware

If your shutters are broken, you can use the Gorilla wood glue to glue them in place so they don’t fall out when you hang the shelf.  If they aren’t broken, lucky you!

Painting the shutter

I painted the old shutter using chalk paint.  I wanted some of the natural color of the shelf to show through, so I watered down the paint a bit. This part takes the most patience because painting every part of the shutter is a bit of work.  You don’t have to paint the back if you don’t want, but I recommend painting all of the edges around the outside because you’ll see that portion when it’s hanging on the wall.  I used a cheap chip brush to paint the shelf.  I like to reuse things, so I actually rinse my chip brushes and use them as many times as possible.  

Cutting The Shelf

Now that you have the shutters painted, you’ll need to cut the piece of wood that you’re using for the shelf.  I cut mine to the exact width of the shutter.  Lowe’s or Home Depot can do it for you but I used old wood from my woodpile for this project.  When you pick your shelf, make sure it’s as deep as the brackets.  The wood in my pile wasn’t deep enough, so I pieced two together.  I love rustic, but that may not be your thing.  Here’s a picture of my two pieces from the side.

Attaching the hardware:

Attach your shelf brackets to the thickest part of your shutter.  After both brackets were attached to the shutter (aligned with the top of the shutter), I attached the shelf pieces using the same method.  I pre-drilled the holes and then attached the shelves to the top part of the bracket.  The last thing you have to do is attach the hardware to the back.  Again, pick the meatiest part of the wood so the screws will support the weight of the shelf.  And, yes, you have to pre-drill one more time.

I also added some rustic drawer pulls to the bottom of my shutter shelf.   If you’ve been wondering what to do with old shutters, now you know! 😉

If you want to learn how to paint mason jars, you can read my 3 Simple Mason Jar DIY Projects to learn how I paint them and other ways I love to use mason jars.

Thanks again for joining me at Hootshack.  I hope you enjoyed this easy shutter shelf DIY!