Save because you can!
If you’re on social media you’ve probably seen the drool-worthy setups with all the bells and whistles and wanted one for yourself. Anyway, until you realize that you can’t afford to power on your PC if you buy it. You can probably afford SOME of it, but how cool is the newest Herman Miller chair if your desk is a tree stump from the garden? And let’s be honest. A desk shelf or monitor stand is not an absolute essential for your setup. Especially not considering the popular ones cost the same as your monitor. Saving in the right places will give you room to get a proper setup.
For a single monitor, you can make the white one from IKEA at a total cost of 13 USD / 11.5 EUR!
All you need is an automatic screwdriver and a trip to the local store.
When you are done you can level up your desk shelf to give it more finish, which you can read about in my “How to Make Your DIY Desk Shelf Look Pro”.
Please note that I may get a small commission from links at absolutely no extra cost to you.
DIY desk shelf – specifications
DIY dual desk shelf and monitor stand – recipe
Ingredients:
- Wood shelf, approx dimensions 47x10x0.7 inches / 120x25x1.8 cm.
- 4 bookcase feet or doorstoppers with screws no longer than 0.7 inches / 1.8 cm.
Steps:
- Go to the store and buy your preferred material and finish.
- Attach the legs to each corner of the shelf with an automatic screwdriver.
- Let it rest for a minute, observing your new creation.
- Serve with garnish.
Elaborated in the following.
The wood top
Essentially, you’re just buying a piece of wood. Any store that sells shelves (or maybe just wood) will do – interior shops, DIY markets, hardware stores, etc. You’re not limited to a “desk shelf” but can choose any wood shelf. The beauty of this is that you can get the size and look that you want because the choice of regular shelves is much bigger. You’re not limited to bamboo or walnut that many of the premade shelves come in. The two examples I made are from oak and particle board.
Dimensions
You should go for the thinnest size you can find. Both the thickness of the wood top and the legs will add to the height. If your shelf is too high, it will be uncomfortable for your neck as you will be looking up.
The thinnest I could find was around 0.7 inches / 1.8 cm thick.
The depth depends on the size of your desk and your preference. If you want to place your monitor on top, you should make sure that it can accommodate your monitor stand.
My shelves are around 8-12 inches / 20-30 cm in depth.
For dual monitors or ultrawide, the appropriate length is around 47 inches / 120 cm.
As you can see, this translates to 2 IKEA Burhult shelves. For a single monitor, you just go for approximately half or 1 IKEA shelf.
Check out the selection of shelves on Amazon.
The legs
Again, you have many choices. IKEA or Amazon is a good place to start but there are plenty of other places. You can look for bookcase feet, doorstoppers, or really anything that screws into wood with an even base.
You should, however, find something that is no more than 4 inches / 10 cm in height, so you have some leeway to move your monitor down.
You need 4 legs as standard or 5 legs if you have to extend two shelves to get your desired length.
Check out selection of legs on Amazon.
This is where the screwdriver comes in
You simply just screw the legs into the wood. You need to use some force in the beginning.
Make sure that the screws you use are smaller than the thickness of your wood top or they will pop out on the other side :).
The final result
Don’t hesitate to send me pictures when you finish yours!
A reader sent me his desk shelf. Great work!
This series consists of several posts that you should also check out!
This Is the Ideal Clean White Gaming Setup Equally Suited to Work
How to Build an Easy DIY Desk Shelf and Monitor Stand in 5 Minutes!
The Secret to Designing an Aesthetic Desk Setup
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