Shelves are a great accessory to include in a home as they could serve as the storage for books and other items. Not only but it also saves you money while maximizing your display space!
Yet, it won’t be easy to build it from scratch if you don’t even have the slightest idea of which ideal wood for bookshelves you should use. But the good news, though, is that there are several types of woods you could look into, such as:
1. Walnut
Walnut woods are compatible with individuals looking for a more serious appearance on their shelves as it doesn’t require either treatment or paint. However, it’s also worth noting that this material often comes with expensive costs and is typically unavailable in most hardware stores, so pre-ordering would be necessary.
Despite this, this wood’s offered grain and depth are sufficient to compensate for the effort and money spent in getting your hands on them.
The best thing about them is that they’re durable enough that loading heavy things on them wouldn’t do damage to the shelves’ nice appearance. Thus, you could usually take advantage of the hardwood’s unique yellowish-brown color in multiple hues visible on each board as an additional decor to your home and by mainly resorting to applying a finish so that it could blend well with its background.
Beyond that, it’s a common practice to create mantels for shelves using walnut wood, given that the rays of sunlight that penetrate the board easily highlight its light chocolate tones, making it appear richer in color than its peers.
On the other hand, if you’re into adding some personal touches to the design, walnut wood could accommodate this wish since it’s pretty much capable of handling any kind of saw the intricate carving procedures. A few experts even stated that this wood is trouble-free and much more manageable in installation costs.
Sadly, this also proved to be a challenge. The material is weighty, frequently at 38 pounds, making it difficult for the hardwood to be transported from one location to another and causing issues during the installation process for beginners.
More importantly, it has a high value of roughly $10 per foot, though these expenses could be cut off by using walnut-trimmed plywoods. Last but not least, furniture made from this material often sustains wood scratches and wears quickly, owing to its poor weather resistance. As a result, most builders won’t recommend leaving these items outdoors for long.
2. Pine
Compared to the Western Red Cedar, pine woods are often readily available in America. And it’s not surprising why since these woods are affordable and have a softer texture, that’ll make it a piece of cake for you to cut.
Secondly, it has a pleasant grain and takes on an exceptional finish, giving it a naturally attractive appearance. For this reason, pinewoods have become the renowned option for shelves that hold lighter stuff.
Fortunately, a shorter pinewood shelf could accommodate heavier items, so long as you use additional supports and thicker planks to increase its load-bearing capacity.
Moreover, it’s been preferred among inexperienced builders as pinewood could be painted with ease and suits any color palette or style. Aside from that, it also boasts a yellowish-white image commonly scored with brown knots for a more rustic feel.
Even though it’s good material on its own, pine is usually vulnerable to tearing and wearing over time. In this case, expect to encounter several scratches and dings, which could aggravate if children are frequently around.
3. Douglas Fir
If you prefer softwoods and are still not satisfied with pinewoods, why don’t you try looking into Douglas Fir? These wood boards are native to the Pacific Northwest and could be purchased all around the United States.
Despite its name, Douglas Fir isn’t technically known to be fir. Still, a relative to pinewoods, it shouldn’t come as a shock to you that they share numerous similarities with few distinctive qualities, including its Janka hardness of 660 and moderate resistance to other factors.
Nonetheless, it’ll be the initial recommendation of most woodworkers for light to medium-weight cabinets, DIYs, and bookshelves projects. Its versatility gave way to its popularity as a highly dependable wood and has established a reputation as a go-to material in the construction industry.
Even if it has an identical dark hardwood appearance to oak, you could still choose to paint it based on the color palette you picked. We guess you could say that it’s the beauty of hardwoods that you could enjoy at a much cheaper rate.
Final Words
Nonetheless, remember that these wood pieces may be costly for individuals living on the East Coast and it’s likely to deteriorate from insect infestations.
Overall, there isn’t a standard wood material that one could avail in building shelves from scratch. In fact, it’s relatively dependent on the size and worth of the project to the person in charge.
Hence, we advise you to diligently canvas the available woods in the stores and then compare its pros and cons before finally making a decision.
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