DIY Wall Mounted Shelves with Fold Away Drying Rack - HW|Designs

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Apparently, it snows a lot in Colorado... and I couldn't stand all the wet, snowy clothes getting draped all over my living room in an effort to warm them by the woodstove. So I made a fold out drying rack that also doubles as wall shelves during our snowless months!

Hope you enjoy!

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Music Credits:

I Remember Well
Cody Francis
https://player.epidemicsound.com/

Bangerter Way
Cody Francis
https://player.epidemicsound.com/

Toward Home
Cody Francis
https://player.epidemicsound.com/

*Transcript of Voiceover*
With feet of it outside, I needed a warm place by the fire to hang my snow covered gear.

How to make our how I made, this fold away drying rack that doubles as wall shelving for those snowless seasons of the year.

Let’s get into it

I started by roughing out the dimensions of the frames from rough sawn walnut

Then, at the table saw, trimmed out the inner and outer frame pieces

Before jointing and planing them square

Then, I turned to ripping 4 equal pieces for the rack spindles

And cut those down to 20”

Cranking the table saw to 45 degrees and using a simple jig, I trimmed the 90 degree corners off the spindles to create more dynamic edges

Then, with the lathe, I honed a half inch tenon on either end of each spindle that I’d sink into a mortise of the interior frame.

Speaking of, on one end of two roughly 1” x 1” pieces, I cut a mitered corner so the rack would be able to swing away from the outer frame

Then, after clamping the interior frame pieces together to expose the mirroring faces, I used a knife and square to mark the height for each spindle

And drilled the mortises

With the pieces of the bottom frame roughed out, I turned to the upper shelves

I squared them

Trimmed them down to size, and gave them a finishing level sand down before measuring and marking the lap joint recesses for their interior frame

Then, using the table saw cranked to a height of a ¼” I cut the half lap joints for each shelf in either interior frame

Before using a chisel to refine the recesses

With those cut, I turned to the mirroring lap joints in the shelf panels themselves
Then to mirror the spindles, I again beveled the edges on three sides of the shelves to add an interesting detail and catch the light in a more dynamic way.

Then, again, used the chisel to refine the lap joints

With the interior shelves and frames roughed in, I used a compass to mark a rounded over end to one side of all four outer frame pieces

And used the bandsaw to cut those out.

With all the pieces ready, it was time for a sandown.

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I finished off sanding with a quick, high grit wet sand

Then it was time to glue!

To finish off the glue up of the upper shelves, as well as make the pegs that will hold the lower rack in place, I took a 5th spindle to the lathe , and turned enough for 6 pin dowels, and 4 detailed pegs

Then used the bandsaw to cut them each out.

To tidy up the pegs, I added a quick chamfer on detailed ends

Then added the structure enhancing dowel pins through either end of the top and bottom shelves through the frames

After that, I drilled the mortises for the pair of detailed pegs responsible for holding the rack in when not in use, all the way through the outer frame, and a ¼” through interior rack

the final two detail pegs were glued as a secondary reinforcement for the lower rack to rest against when fully extended

And last two dowels were glued into place, and trimmed to sit flush to the outer frame face

The last cuts were for the 6 keyholes from which the shelves and rack would hang, two for the upper shelves, and 4 for the lower rack

Time for finish! I used a few coats of a water based polyurethane

Once that dried, I added these brass lid stay hinges to be the main support for the rack when in use

Then it was time to get to the business of installing.

I used a level and measuring tape to mark the placement for the screws that rest in the the keyhole recesses.

Then sunk the 6 needed drywall anchors and screws.

And mounted the two pieces.

To help ensure water protection, I add a layer of walrus wax.

With snowless months factored in, I wanted to make this rack made sense year round - it gets the perfect amount of sun to be the main hub for all the plants I’m desperately trying not to kill.

And that’s a wrap

Until next time!