DIY Modern Rustic Bookshelf

Need a little more storage space in your home? Why not build a bookcase? This rustic bookshelf also has a gorgeous modern feel. It’s a simple DIY project that can easily be customized to your home’s style. 

I am not a builder, y’all.

I usually come up with amazing build projects and think they are going to be really easy and I can totally do it – then I have to call in Grunt Labor at some point for help.

But this modern rustic bookshelf is so easy to build, Bill and I did it all by ourselves.

Well, we did have Grunt Labor on standby.

After Bill had decided what he wanted in his room makeover, I found this bookshelf over at Waiting on Martha.

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I thought it would work perfect for his room, so I tracked down where it was from…All+Modern…and it was $1000.

One Thousand Dollars.

I’m sorry, but I just don’t know if I could ever bring myself to pay $1K for a bookshelf.

On top of that, the bookshelf was quite a bit larger than what we needed or could even fit in the space. After looking at it though, I was totally like, we can build that. I sent an image of the shelf to Bill and asked if he liked it. His response was “That’s awesome.” So the next day, we went and bought our materials and came up with our own DIY bookshelf version for less than $50.

It is seriously an easy build ya’ll and I am so thrilled with how well it turned out.

Rustic Bookshelf DIY

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Materials Needed:

• Two – 2″ x 10″ x 10’s  (That link is to the pressure treated version, which you don’t need – you just need the regular wood version. For some reason, that is not online, but I wanted you to know what I was talking about.)
• Two – 2″ x 2″ x 8’s
• 3″ Wood Screws
• Wood Stain (We used this shade.)

• Spray Paint (We used this green shade.)

Tools Needed:

• Either a circular saw or miter saw (We used our miter saw.)
• Drill & Drill Bits
• Nail Gun (We use this battery powered one.)
• Wood Glue
• Clamps

• Right Angle Drill (We found this helpful, but it is not necessary.)

Cut List:

• Five – 2″ x 10″ x 36″ (Cut the 2″ x 10″ x 10′ down into five 36″ long pieces.)
• Four – 2″ x 10″ x 9 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x 10″ x 10′ down into four 9 1/2″ long pieces.)
• Eight – 2″ x 2″ x 6 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x  2″ x 8′ down into eight 6 1/2″ long pieces.)

• Eight – 2″ x 2″ x 9 1/2″ (Cut the 2″ x 2″ x 8′ down into eight 9 1/2″ long pieces.)

Steps

Step 1:

Make all the cuts noted above.

Step 2:

Set aside the 2″ x 10″ cuts. Gather the 2″ x 2″ cuts, wood glue, nail gun and clamps.

Create a square using two of the 2″ x 2″ x 6 1/2″ pieces and two of the 2″ x 2″ x 9 1/2″ pieces as shown below. Put wood glue on all the joints and clamp.

 After clamping, nail the pieces together. Do not remove the clamps yet. We waited a few hours before removing the clamps to ensure the glue dried properly.

Repeat this three more times to create a total of four “open” squares. These will become your shelf supports.

After each square is completed and dried, paint or stain the squares the color of your choice.

Step 3:

Take one of the 2″ x 10″ x 36″ pieces and drill three pilot holes along the left end of the board.

After drilling the pilot holes, come back with a larger drill bit that is the size of the screws head and drill out just a little bit over the pilot hole – this is so you can countersink your screw and give the shelf a more finished look.

On the same board, come in 9″ on the other end of the board and drill two more holes the same way you did above, however you only need one on each side of the board as shown below.

Step 4:

Using the wood screws and drill, place one of the 2″ x 10″ x 9 1/2″ pieces on the end of the board where you drilled three pilot holes and secure it from the bottom of the longer 2″ x 10″ piece. Place one “open square” on top of the place where you drilled two pilot holes and secure this piece with wood screws from the bottom as well as shown in the image below.

It comes in really handy to have someone on standby to hold the pieces as you secure them.

Step 5:

Place one of the 2″ x 10″ x 36″ pieces on top of the pieces you just fastened together.

Repeat the same process with the pilot holes and fastening the pieces together with the screws, however this time, you will be doing this from the top.

The arrows in the image below indicate where your pilot holes and screws should go.

 Step 6:

Place an open square and a solid square on the second shelf you just fastened together as shown below.

Once more, you are going to drill pilot holes, then fasten the pieces together with screws as you did before. This time you will be coming up from the bottom. This is where we found that a right angle drill came in handy.

It was easier to get the right angle drill into the tight spots, rather than the full size drill.

Step 7:

Place a 2″ x 10″ x 36″ piece on top of the open square and solid square you just fastened together.

Repeat the pilot hole and fastening process as you did with the other shelves.

Next, you will add on another open square and solid square, however you are alternating the location of each with each new shelf you add as you can see in the image above.

Continue fastening on shelves and squares until you have no more left. You can also alter the size of the shelf by adding more or less shelves.

Step 8:

After the shelf is assembled, stain or paint it the color of your choice. I did this after the shelf was assembled, however, I should have done it before – would have been much easier!

$50 DIY bookshelf vs. $1000 bookshelf. I’ll take the $50 any day of the week.

Have you ever made a DIY bookshelf before?

Want more easy DIY projects and decor ideas?

See the full Masculine Bedroom Makeover – this shelf is used in here!

How to Build Wall to Wall Shelves – built-in shelving that is easy, easy, easy to make and super functional.

Power Tools 101 Series – Learn how to use a drill, saw and more – perfect for beginning DIYers!

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