DIY Shoe Rack

I surfed all over Pinterest and could not find a simple shoe rack plan that had more than two rows for shoes.

Well, I already have two rows for shoes and it’s not enough.

We’re over-flowing our little mud room (and I took this photo while Hubby was at work and the kids were at camp – which means a minimum of 3 extra pairs of shoes are missing from this pile!)

I decided it was time to up our storage and revamp our mudroom layout a bit so as to utilize the space better.

These DIY shoe rack plans can be edited to give you as many or as few shelves as you wish – so I can’t give you an exact “buy” list for wood.

DIY shoe rack:

• 2×4’s – enough to give you 4 legs at the height you want.
• 2×2’s – enough to cut two 12″ pieces per shelf
• ½” MDF – enough to cut 12″ deep shelves at both the number and length you want.

For our mudroom, I had room for 43″ x 43″ worth of shoe storage beneath my mirror.

I calculated the spacing between the shelves to be sufficient to fit our shoes, at 8″ high – with a 12″ shelf for boots at the bottom.  (Updated:  I should have gone taller on the bottom shelf – adult ski boots and my taller boots won’t fit.)

If I were to build this DIY shoe rack again, I’d allow for a 16″ – 18″ of space at the bottom – but what I have will suffice.

I cut my four 2×4’s to 36″ high – this allowed me to put shoes on the top shelf without them knocking against my mirror.

I used 2″ wood screws to attach my 2×2 boards at 11 ½”, 19 ½”, 27 ½” and 35 ½” onto two of my 2×4 legs.  Repeat with the other two 2×4’s and you have your legs.

In hindsight, I could have put the top shelf all the way across the top of my DIY shoe rack for a nice smooth look.  If you decide to do this, put your top 2×2’s at 36″ high and cut your last piece of MDF at 12″ by the entire length of your shoe rack – for me it would have been 43 ½” long.

Oh well, this way leaves a little ‘nook’ to tuck umbrellas into.

Attach your MDF shelves, in my case 12″ deep by 39.5″ long.  Start at the bottom shelf and work your way up.

I sanded my DIY shoe rack down and added a couple of coats of “Paper White” from Behr paint for a nice, clean finish.

I can’t believe this one is full too!  Ski boots will have to be rehomed to the sports lockers in the garage.

Feels like a lot more floor space by just moving the rack to run perpendicular to the bench.

The great part about my 2×4’s being exposed at the corners is that I can build a second rack, just like this one, and use my Kreg Jig to attach the second DIY shoe rack right on top of this one!

I started this project while Hubby and the girls were out, and had it painted, installed and loaded up before they got home.

It’s that easy!

Have a great one!

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