How To Add Shelves To A Dresser- Quick and Easy

How To Add Shelves To A Dresser – Before

Supplies List

• Old broken down JANKY dresser (my fave!)
• Tape Measure 
• 1/8 inch Birch Plywood
• Carpenter’s Pencil
• Circular Saw
• Framing Square
• Sanding Blocks (to smooth the wood edges of the shelves)
• Wood Glue
• Finishing Nails (to secure the wood shelves after gluing in place)
• Nail Punch (countersink tool for nails)
• Wood Filler (for nail holes in wood)

This dresser was a hot mess for the record, and I knew it would be a challenge. I did a fair amount of work on this dresser before this point of the makeover. But if you want to get a better visual of how it looked when I picked it up, CLICK HERE to see the nightmare repairs I got into before adding shelves to this dresser.

Firstly, you need to know the older dressers are better for this modification of adding shelves since there are no slides to remove; it’s wood on wood—the perfect base for a DIY shelf. Measure the inside of the space from front to back and side to side… Be mindful of where the shelf will start and stop and be flush with the dresser front.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

So as the saying goes, “measure twice and cut once.” These words of wisdom ring loud inside my head every time I pull out my tape measure. It was a common phrase I heard a lot with a family of handymen when I was growing up. Sometimes, head nodding would accompany those words as I watched my older brother with a saw in his hand. I knew exactly what that meant. It meant wasting time and material. So double-check your measurements before you cut the plywood for the shelves in your dresser.

Tips For Straight Cuts

You’ll want a straight line to guide your saw, so be sure to use a framing square or another straight edge to mark your plywood before cutting. Do you know how I always say perfectionism is overrated? Well, this isn’t one of those times. Adding shelves to a dresser takes a bit of precision, and you want those straight edges, especially across the front of the dresser, because nothing stands out more than a crooked cut.

The Right Tool For The Job

Now for the cut! I like to use a circular saw with a laser guide. I don’t have a large table saw, so this works for me. A steady hand is also a great tool when you’re adding shelves to a dresser.

Securing The Plywood Shelves In The Dresser

After cutting and sanding the raw wood edges, insert the plywood pieces into the slots inside the wood drawer openings. This can be a bit tricky to fit sometimes, so it may take a little finesse. Working with these tight spaces can be a challenge but well worth the extra fuss. Add wood glue, finish nails, and finally countersink the nails into the wood and fill the holes with a wood filler.