Floating shelves

 

My daughter recently moved into a new home, so I will no longer have access to her old apartment where she introduced a number of great storage ideas. I had a last opportunity to photograph these storage solutions, which included wardrobes in the bedroom, kitchen fittings and a bathroom refurbishment. These all followed a minimalist aesthetic, as she did not want the storage to be the focus in any of the rooms. The most minimal of all is in the bathroom - a floating shelf above the toilet with a plain white finish that blends in with all the other fittings in the room and indeed in the whole apartment. The shelf was used to display an air diffuser and some scented candles - essential for those long, relaxing baths at the end of a busy day. 

A floating shelf in the bathroom

As this bathroom is very narrow, all the fittings that she introduced are "floating" to enhance the sense of space and improve the functionality of the room. Parallel to the bath on the opposite wall, she found some slatted shelves that include towel rails and wooden pegs for more towels. She sourced some simple fabric-covered storage boxes to live on the shelves for storing spare bath products and toilet paper, out of sight but convenient.

Towel rails with a slatted shelf above

Even the vanity cupboard is floating, allowing a space below for the cat's litter tray. This also makes it much easier to clean the floor. The simple clean lines of each of the fittings gives a harmonious feel to the room which is enhanced by the use of white tiles to walls and floor, contrasting with the painted walls in two shades of green.

The vanity cupboard is also raised off the floor

Moving to her new house, the guest room already has floating shelves, in natural wood that blends in with the built-in desk and cupboards. Some of the shelves will be used for books (carefully selected so that the guests will have an interesting choice of something to read) and some will display treasures from her travels. Because the shelves are floating, it makes for maximum flexibility in furnishing the room.

Existing shelves in the guest room

She is so in love with floating shelves, that she is planning for some for her study, prompting me to do some internet searches for what is on offer. Her bookcase in this room is painted white, so the idea is to match in with white shelves on the opposite wall. This also ties in with her desk, which has white painted legs and drawer. 

We still need to visit all the stores that we found on the internet, as quality can vary considerably - for something as permanent as fitted shelves, it is not a good idea to simply order online. We also need to finalise the design, now that we have an idea of the range of sizes available. One way of doing this is to use masking tape to mark out the height, width and position of each shelf, allowing us to visualise the layout exactly. Because floating shelves are so minimalist in their detailing, it is quite critical to get their placement right - so easy for them to look like they are quite arbitrary and disjointed. Successful layouts line up with other fittings in a room, such as window frames or existing cupboards, or line up with each other if you are planning for more than one on a wall.

There is a wide range of floating shelves on offer, varying in size from 450mm wide through to 1200mm for DIY installation. There are also various options in terms of finishes, but most are either natural wood (solid wood or veneer) or ready painted. The prices are also quite varied, from under R150 through to several hundred, and are available from all the building supply outlets. 

The shelves are quite easy to install if you have a power drill and a spirit level - the shelves are supplied with all the hardware you need. It is important to measure carefully and use a soft pencil or masking tape to mark before you start drilling. Getting the shelf exactly horizontal is critical for floating shelves, both visually and practically as you don't want books and ornaments sliding off the end!