Introduction: Fixing Wobbly Shelves

About: I am a Maker and Artist who experiments with a variety of mediums and projects. I also try to repurpose and repair as much as I can. Check out my instagram page @mitzsea_makes.

For my home I have these pine shelves I got from Ikea. They are nice, inexpensive décor options but they are a bit wobbly because they only come with one cross support.

I came up with a quick and simple way to fix these shelves with paracord.

Supplies

  • Some wobbly shelves.
  • Spool of Paracord in any desired colour.
  • Upholstery Stapler
  • 0.5 inch (12 mm) staples

Step 1: Adding the New Cross Supports

  1. Take the end of the paracord and staple it to one corner of the shelf (see image).
  2. Pull off enough length of cord and stretch it to the opposite corner (see image). Pull it tight.
  3. With tension on the cord, staple down the other end.
  4. Then cut the cord.
  5. Finish the cross by stapling another strand of paracord on the other corner of the shelf.
  6. Take that second cord and wrap it around the first cord (see image). Pull it tight.
  7. Pull hard and staple the end down to the opposite corner.
  8. Follow the above steps on all areas of the shelves that need cross supports.

Notes: It is important to put tension on the cords for proper cross support.

This can be applied to other shelves, the shelves presented here are just an example of application.

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