Hanging Shelves with Faux Live Edges

Hi all! I’ve got another office project today. I finished this project last year and originally posted it over on Sawdust 2 Stitches, but today I’m sharing the tutorial with you here. Hanging shelves are great if you want the space to be airy and light and you don’t have a ton to store. Closed cabinets tend to get things shoved into them and they get cluttered and messy fast, especially if you are my husband. I did these shelves with a sports theme and minimal decor.

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. Please see my full disclosure policy HERE.

I decided to go with galvanized wire to use. I’ve built hanging shelves with rope before, which you can check out HERE. Galvanized wire is a bit more modern and masculine and perfect for this space.

Materials Needed

Dried Lumber in Desired Sizes

Galvanized Wire

Rope Clamps

*Make sure the clamps are the right size for the wire

Stain

Drywall Anchors

D-Ring Hangers

PlexiGlass (optional)

Tutorial

The only thing my husband wanted for this space was a white board. I changed it up a bit and used plexiglass instead of a whiteboard. It can still be written on and wiped off, and it still lets that planked wall show through.

I started by laying the boards out and using some random cords to try and figure out where I would be drilling the holes. The overall length of the boards is just a touch shorter than the desk. I cut smaller boards for the ends.

After I had the boards cut, I lined them up and clamped them together, making sure the ends were lined up. I drilled four holed on each side of the long boards and four holes – one in each corner – of the shorter boards.

I love love love the look of live edge furniture, but alas, I don’t have the tools or equipment to cut trees down like that. However, I found THIS post by Bee over at Windgate Lane and I immediately knew that I wanted to try it. Her technique was so simple and easy, anyone could do it!

The only thing I did differently that Bee was I used two different colors of stain to make the live edge stand out a little more. I used Minwax Polyshades in both Golden Oak and Espresso. First, I put on the golden oak on both the top and bottom. I didn’t’ worry about it bleeding over at all, you will get a better, more natural look if you don’t worry about the stain bleed. Then, I used the espresso on the beat up sides. That’s it. Two coats and since I used Polyshades, I didn’t feel the need to use any more Polycrylic.

Now it’s time to hang. First, I installed drywall anchors and then installed d-rings to loop the wire through.

I hung them and used the little wire clamps underneath the boards. I got them all in the area I wanted them, and then worked on leveling them all off starting with the top board.