DIY: How to Make a Swinging Bookshelf
Make a swinging bookshelf with balsa wood sheets. This is a clever way to display and organize your kids books and toys!
I had been looking for a small bookshelf for the walls, or a system to organize our baby's books in many stores and couldn't find anything I loved. I knew I wanted to display our favorite picture books and some artwork, since they are so colorful and interesting. I also didn't want to use more than two nails to install this bookshelf system, since we are renters and we want to protect the walls as much as possible.
Then I had this idea of making my own modern and fun swinging bookshelf that could also hold some mini toys and stuffed animals. It wasn’t too hard to create and it turned out so neat!
MATERIALS:
How to Make a Swinging Bookshelf:
Cut the plywood or balsa wood in sheets of about 60 cm x 10 cm. I was looking for wood that I could manipulate and cut in skinny sheets without the need of complicated tools, and since regular wood and plywood are too hard to cut, I decided to use balsa wood sheets instead of plywood. I had to glue two balsa wood sheets together to make them studier and stronger.
Glue another piece of plywood or balsa wood of about 60 cm x 4 cm behind the 60 cm x 10 cm sheet. Let them dry for a day. It should look like the letter L if you look at them from the sides.
Drill 4 holes in the sides of the balsa wood sheets, one hole in each corner. The holes should be big enough for the rope to go through it.
Cut 4 long pieces of rope, each one should measure about 1 meter long. Insert one pieces of rope at the bottom of one of your balsa wood sheets and make a knot at the bottom. Leave a space of approximately 30 com and make a new knot and add the second piece of balsa wood at the top. Do the same in all the holes of your swinging bookshelf, until your bookshelf looks something like the picture below.
Gather all the rope pieces at the end and made a big knot in the center. This is how you will be able to hang your swinging bookshelf in your walls.
You can add some of your favorite picture books for display in your new bookshelf, add some prints, art pieces and some of your kid’s favorite stuffed animals too. This design is so simple that it looks clean and modern in the walls!
