Upcycled Shelves

Following on from my DIY display shelves tutorial, I have put another old box file to good use.

I rescued this one from a bin, and as I only had one I decided to do something a little different with it.

The lid was already broken off, so I neatened the edges and removed the fittings with a flat screwdriver as before. I then taped over the holes that remained.

I cut the lid to make three separate long pieces - two to create the middle section, and one to strengthen the left side where the lid had been. These were then glued together and taped into place. The pieces had to be measured carefully so that they sit flush when fitted in.

To create further shelves, I used pieces from another box file lid that I had left over from the last project, and cut them to fit. I cut out eight pieces, doubled them up for strength and taped them firmly into position. I measured the spaces between them carefully so that each 'square' space was the same size.

I covered the back and sides with one piece of white wood-effect sticky-back plastic, then used smaller pieces to cover the shelves and the inside. The whole structure was now strong, solid and secure.

I could have kept it looking like this, but I decided to add some colour with a square of patterned paper inside each space. These can easily be removed or covered over if I ever want a different look. 

Hopefully you have been inspired to create something similar yourself...