When we last left off on the pantry project, I had taken all of the items out and removed all of the decor.
Now it’s time to make real progress. Remember, my goal is to finish this project by the end of June which is also the end of the 2nd quarter. Time to get building! My first order of business is to measure for shelf supports and the shelves themselves.
I started by measuring the length for the back supports and then the depth for the side supports. On the photo on the right, you can see all of my wood supports lined up ready to be nailed in to the wall. You can also see if both photos that I installed a back support. What you can’t see on my wall markings is that I also marked where the studs are located on the back wall and on each side wall.
You can see here that I added the supports for the bottom shelf and the top shelf. I then dry fit the wood shelf to make sure everything worked as it should.
It was at this time that I realized that top shelf was too close to the upper most shelf. There was no way I was going to be able to secure the shelf!
So I ripped out the back and side shelf supports and moved on with the reminder supports. I was very happy with how everything turned out as the measuring and leveling were very anxiety provoking for me. But, this time it actually worked out. And, I made the executive decision to acquire a new power tool. This project would not have been possible without! I purchased a cordless finish nailer. It shoots the nails through the supports and into the wall. It was great! The tool is a little heavy but pretty easy to work with. I chose the Ryobi one because I also have a Ryobi cordless drill and they can share the battery.
I got some basic pine and had it cut down to size for me. The depth is 16″ and I was happy to find it at Lowes. I then just had them cut it down to length at 39″. I have some left over wood that I’m certain will be used in another project at some point.
The supports are up and it’s time to paint. I intentionally wanted to install the supports first because I wanted them to blend into the wall. I learned from taking down the decor that you really can’t see it when the food and other items are filling the pantry!
I chose a deep, dark color-Champlain Blue from Behr. I will admit that I was little scared when I first put it up but I’ve come to really like it.
This is indeed quite scary but it is only the first coat! I’ve never met a dark paint that didn’t require at least 2 coats. And I really like how the shelf supports blend into the wall. They’ll be covered by shelves so it’s not that big of a deal but I’m glad it worked out this way.
That’s it for Part 2 of the pantry project. Next up will be the final installment and the finished project!!
