How to Make a Wood DIY Mountain Shelf

Looking to add a touch of rustic charm to your home decor? This DIY mountain shelf is the perfect project to bring the beauty of the outdoors inside. Crafted from simple pine boards, this shelf not only offers functional storage but also serves as a striking geometric accent piece.

This project was inspired by our participation in the Handcrafted Society (HS) Blog Hop.

If you’re new here and wondering what HS is, let me explain.

We’re a group of bloggers who love to craft and challenge each other to create something using a specific theme or craft medium.

We gather on the second Tuesday of each month, and our challenge for June is to create something featuring geometric patterns.

Crafting with a Geometric Pattern

Drawing from the natural look of mountain peaks, we designed triangle-shaped shelves that echo the landscapes our son cherished during his college years.

You see, six years ago, our son headed off to college in Montana, and he fell in love with the rugged beauty of the mountains and the cozy, rustic charm of wood cabins.

So, when we moved into this house, we decorated his bedroom with a rustic vibe.

Here’s a peek into his cozy room!

Now he’s living in New York, working towards his Ph.D., but he comes back home to visit whenever he can.

We wanted to bring a piece of that Montana beauty into his bedroom.

So, we rolled up our sleeves and built a DIY mountain shelf!

Not only does it serve as a functional piece for displaying his favorite mementos, but it also adds a handcrafted touch that we hope will remind him of his adventures out west.

We’re excited to show you how we created this fabulous DIY mountain shelf, and then you can hop over and check out what our friends have made using geometric patterns!

Gather Materials

Gather the following materials to complete this project:

• Miter saw (chop saw) or miter box and hand saw
• 1x4x8 pine boards (furring strips or plain boards are more rustic)
• Sandpaper
• Wood glue
• Brad nailer and nails
• Stain- Minwax Wood Finish Penetrating Stain in Special Walnut
• Foam brush
• Rags

Steps to make a DIY mountain shelf

Now the fun begins! Follow these steps to craft your mountain-inspired shelf:

Planning and Design

Before making any cuts, Rich used Tinkercad, a free, browser-based 3D modeling tool, to design our mountain shelf.

This allowed him to visualize the geometric patterns and determine the dimensions needed for each piece.

Tinkercad made it easy to experiment with different configurations, ensuring that our final design is both functional and visually appealing.

Here is the design he created!

Below are the measurements of our boards. Measurements are taken from the tip to the tip of the angled cut edges.

Yellow – 13 1/8 in.
Dark Green – 7 1/8 in.
Light Blue – 6 1/2 in.
Orange – 13 3/4 in.

Purple – 13 1/4 in.
Dark Blue – 21 1/2 in.
Light Green – 13 1/8 in.
Grey – 19 3/4 in.
Red – 40 in.

Cutting the Wood

• Set the miter saw to a 30-degree angle for the mountain peaks.

• For the first group of boards (Yellow, Dark Green, Light Blue, and Orange), cut the angle in the same direction on each end.
• Cut the pine boards according to the design measurements.
• Label each piece.

• Set the miter saw to a 30-degree angle for the mountain peaks.
• For the second group of boards (Purple, Blue, Light Green, Grey, and Red), cut the angle in one direction first.
• Then set the miter saw to 30 degrees in the other direction.
• Cut the angle on the opposite end of the pine boards according to the design measurements.
• Label each piece.

Assembling the Shelf

• Lay out all pieces on a flat surface to visualize the final structure.
• Apply wood glue to the joints and secure with brad nails or screws.
• Start by putting the mountain peaks together separately.

• Then, start with the left end and fasten the mountains to the long bottom board (Red in my design), one at a time.
• Using clamps may be challenging due to the angles, so we recommend applying glue and then securing it with brad nails.
• Always dry fit before applying glue and brad nails
• Ensure all angles align correctly to form the mountain peaks.
• Because these are rough boards, you may need to adjust here or there by 1/16 or 1/8 inch.
• Sand the entire shelf to smooth out any rough edges.

And here is the finished shelf!

Staining Your DIY Mountain Shelf

Staining your DIY mountain shelf enhances its natural beauty.

To finish the shelf, we applied a walnut wood stain; however, you can also paint if that’s your preference.

Here are the steps we used:

• Stir the stain.
• Use a foam brush and apply the stain in the direction of the grain.
• I let the stain sit for 15 minutes.
• Next, I wiped off the excess stain with a rag cut from an old t-shirt.
• Let the shelf dry completely.
• I wanted the shelf to be darker, so I repeated the steps one more time.

And here’s the stained shelf hanging in his room!

Isn’t it fabulous!

We’re looking forward to surprising our son with it when he comes home to visit this summer!

Now let’s add the finishing touches to the shelf!

Styling Your DIY Mountain Shelf

Styling our DIY mountain shelf was such a fun part of the project.

We wanted it to reflect our son’s passion for paleontology, so we displayed some of his fossil finds on the shelf.

The highlight, though, is a 3D-printed dinosaur skull that his dad made for him. It’s a unique piece that adds a personal touch.

To add a touch of greenery, we incorporated three faux potted succulents we purchased at IKEA.

In Conclusion

We’re thrilled with how this project turned out!

It was a joy to create something that not only serves a practical purpose but also tells a story close to our hearts.

We hope you’re inspired to craft your own version; if you do, we’d love to hear about it!

If you enjoy the blog, please sign up for our email list to stay up-to-date with our latest posts.

Don’t forget, this project is part of the June Handcrafted Society blog hop, where each participant was challenged to create something inspired by geometric patterns.

There are other creative ideas to explore, so be sure to scroll to the bottom of this post and visit the other blogs to see their unique takes on this theme.

Blessings, Donna and Rich

Pin It For Later

Don’t forget to pin the image below to one of your Pinterest boards (hover over the picture and click the red Pin button in the top left corner).

More DIY Inspiration

If you enjoyed seeing this project, we have more DIYs using wood you might like to see:

• Unique Wall Hooks Made From Wood Molding
• DIY Towel Rack Made From Scrap Wood
• Scrap Wood Turned Into a Beautiful DIY Tray
• Repurpose a Wood Sign Into Amazing Art
• DIY Wood Christmas Tree Set

The Handcrafted Society

My talented blogging friends have come up with some of the most creative ways to incorporate geometric patterns, and I know you’ll be inspired.

Click on the blog name or image to hop over to each post.