5 Reasons Floating Shelves Can Be Just the Right Solution

I had two Designed in a Click consultations this past month where I recommended floating shelves. In these situations, I felt like they were just the right solution and I’m here to share why.

While I don’t do floating shelves all the time, I do like them as an option to a typical bookcase or to help break up lots of built-in cabinetry. It certainly depends on the client needs, the spatial relationships and the style of the project.

I also consider these advantages, below, that floating shelves do offer and you might want to also, if you are installing new built-ins anywhere in your home.

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Design Advantages of Floating Shelves

1. They have a lighter and more open feeling.

2. Full cabinets instead of open, floating shelving can actually encroach on the size of the room, making it feel slightly smaller.

3. They make the shelving width more narrow overall than a shelf that runs the full width of a bookcase, if they are floating away from the edge. Longer horizontal shelves might be great for storing lots of books, but it can be a bit monotonous and tend to look a little boring.

4. They bring focus to the back wall of that space which is nice if special tile, wallcovering or contrasting paint is used.

5. It can be a good way introduce just a touch of wood in a space full of painted finishes.

Kitchen Built-ins with floating shelves

In this kitchen/breakfast room, the client asked how to arrange the shelves. They were keeping the base cabinets and were doing two new 18” wide cabinet to the ceiling on each side of this opening.

Under construction - the kitchen with lower built-ins to remain and new cabinets with shelving above. | carlaaston.com

With the ceiling at 8’ high, putting shelves that ran the length of this opening would have felt a little typical, horizontal and monotonous.

They were going to do tile on the wall behind, so I proposed floating shelves so they could really have more impact with the tile and the space would feel light and more interesting.

Kitchen / Breakfast room showing how open shelving and closed can work above existing cabinetry. carlaaston.com

Sharing a few links with where you buy floating shelves and those invisible steel brackets too. Etsy is a great place for a pre-made, ready-to-hang shelf.

Floating shelves in niches on long living room wall

In this Designed in a Click Q&A, the homeowner wanted her fireplace generally designed so her contractor could take over with the details.

This was a long, wide wall, and although the ceiling vaults up in this space, along this wall it is 8’-0” high at the back of the niches and 9’-0” high at the fireplace section that juts out.

She wants storage for toys and games and wants to put picture frames, books and accessories on the shelves, but this is a new addition so she hasn’t had this storage before.

I gave her two options, one that is more typical and maximizes storage and the other, that included open shelving that I love a lot more. The more typical one was Option 2.

In Option 1, I framed around the niched areas on each wide with 6” of sheetrock, top and sides, to help get rid of the horizontal look. I wanted a little separation visually, to set off the inset spaces and the fireplace since we definitely had the length with that wall. The low ceiling sort of accentuates the horizontal vibe too.

I went only 32” high with the cabinetry, as 36” just looked too bottom heavy. I like the 2” floating shelves here, 9” away from each side. I think it looks intentionally designed and more modern looking.

Sketch showing fireplace wall with built-ins and floating shelves above. carlaaston.com

She could do a wallcovering on the back wall or not, it could look lighter with the color matching the walls. I like the cabinetry in a light oak, like she is doing in her new kitchen, to relate to that and bring a wood element into this space.

The fp is a smaller size, 36” but has a black honed granite surround to make it look larger. Then a mitered edge chunky wood moulding mantel finishes off the fp.

She asked about putting accent lighting over here, and I told her unless she just wants them, she doesn’t need to do that. Oftentimes, people don’t turn them on and since she doesn’t have much height on that wall, I think she could get away with not having any. It’s really just whatever she prefers.

Which shelving look do you prefer?

Here was the second option I presented to her, a more typical cabinet built-in. It does have more storage, but it just feels typical to me. I prefer Option 1. It looks more unique and up to date.

Built-in wall of bookcases, a more typical builder-grade scenario. carlaaston.com

Examples of floating shelves from some of my projects

A home office bookshelf styling with floating shelves | carlaaston.com

A remodel with floating shelves in lieu of tall bookcases that were removed. So much lighter and more modern feeling. | carlaaston.com

Putting a full cabinet here between this wide kitchen window and the sliding glass doors would have felt just too heavy. The homeowner had some lovely colored glass to display and they had some beautiful Zellige tile on the backsplash as the backdrop.

See more details about projects with floating shelves, below.