Easy Shoe Rack for Under $25

In this Instructable I'll demonstrate how to make a shoe rack for under $25 out of wooden crates commonly found at big box stores (prices vary from about $4 to $10). While I chose to use this set of shelves as a shoe rack, it could be used for many other purposes.

Materials:

x4 Wooden Crates

Scrap Wood (I was lucky to find some boards in a scrap wood bin that matched the depth of the crates)

Wood Screws

Wood Glue

Stain (Optional)

Polyurethane (Optional)

Tools:

Saw (I used a circular saw)

Power Drill

Sander (Optional)

Clamps

Step 1: Attaching the Crates

Once the crates were in the desired configuration I attached them together with wood screws. After assembling the two halves I joined them together with wood glue and clamps (not pictured - sorry) and where the crate's wood is thickest (the side of the crates) using wood screws.

Step 2: Adding Shelves

As I said in the intro, I lucked out and found some scrap wood that fit the depth of the crates perfectly. I checked around some big box stores and purchased four scrap boards for less than a dollar a piece.

I cut the boards to the appropriate length so they fit in the crates (6 small shelves and 1 long shelf) then glued and screwed them in place after marking the crates into three equal compartments.

Step 3: Finishing

While the shoe rack looked nice with plain wood I decided to add a dark stain. After sanding I applied the stain to the rack making sure to get every nook and cranny (in between the slats is especially hard to get so I resorted to using a cotton swab).

After letting the stain dry and applying a couple coats of polyurethane the shoe rack was ready for its new home (and more than a few pairs of shoes!)

Hope you enjoyed the Instructable, thanks for reading!

Comments

[SusanH75]

Clever. The staining gives it class

[Royell]

How convenient; my wife and I are moving to a new place, and were just discussing a shoe rack purchase.

[BirgitJansen]

That's how I made our extra tall nightstands, two of those crates on top of each other with an extra shelf inside. To cover the hole from the handles I glued those peal and stick tiles on it, makes dusting/cleaning easy, too and looks really nice. Nice job! :-)

[parisusa]

I like the look of crates. I learned that spraying water on raw wood helps before painting them. Don't know about staining. I like that you stained them and added extra shelves.

[Lorddrake]

the stain brought it from a "just a diy project" to finished furniture. nicely done