
Tired of messy shoe piles? Get organized with this free shoe rack plans PDF. Build a stylish and functional shoe storage solution with ease.
This DIY shoe rack is an easy build and great for beginner woodworkers. You can even customize the height, width or depth to perfectly fit your needs.
If you build it as designed it can fit up to 12 pair of large shoes. Each shelf can hold 3 pair and you can also fit 3 pair under the bottom shelf.
DIY Shoe Rack Plans PDF
Free PDF plans contain:
- List of tools required
- List of materials required
- Lumber cut list
- Step by step build process
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How to Make a DIY Wood Shoe Rack

Tools
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Tape Measure
Pencil
Ear Protection
Eye Protection
Dust Mask
Materials
QTY 1 – 1×12 x 8′ board
QTY 2 – 2×2 x 8′ boards
Wood glue
QTY 24 – 2″ pocket screws
Brad Nails
Below is a photo of the materials that we used to make TWO shoe racks. We had some leftover 2×2 balusters from the stairs at our old house so we thought we’d use those up on this project. That said, the directions and build plans use standard 2×2 boards.
The build only uses a single 1×12 and two 2×2 x 8′ boards so it is a very inexpensive build if you’re using soft wood like pine.

Cut List

Here is a picture of the boards cut to length. The 1×12 boards that you see below were run through the table saw and split into thirds as shown in the cut list. If your table saw has an 1/8″ blade the 1×12 cut into thirds will result in three 3 – 3/4″ boards. If your blade is a different size just adjust the spacing in between the boards and you’ll be just fine.

Step 1 – Drill pocket holes
Use a pocket hole jig to drill 2 pocket holes into each side of all 10-3/4″ 2×2 shelf boards.


Step 2 – Attach the first leg
Attach 3 of the 10-1/4″ 2×2 shelf boards to one 23-1/4″ leg using wood glue and pocket screws. Each shelf board should be spaced 6-1/4″ apart.
Repeat this step to make the other side support.


Step 3- Attach the other leg
Attach another 23 -1/4″ 2×2 leg to the other side of the 2×2 shelf boards using wood glue and pocket screws. Again, the shelf boards should be spaced 6-1/4″ apart.
Repeat this step to make the other side support.

Step 4 – Attach the shelf boards
Use 3 of the ripped down 3-1/4″ boards that you got from the 1×12 board to make each shelf. Align the front and back boards with the edges of the legs. The center board should be centered on the side support which will leave 1-1/4″ between each of the shelf boards. Attach them to the side support that you constructed in step 3 using wood glue and brad nails.

Step 5 – Continue attaching shelf boards
Repeat the process in step 4 to attach the middle and bottom shelf boards.


Step 6 – Attach the other side support
Align the other side support with the shelf boards and attach it using wood glue and brad nails.


Step 7 – Sand and Finish
Fill the nail holes with wood filler and then sand using 120 grit followed by 220 grit. After the piece is sanded, blow off the loose sawdust with an air compressor or wipe it off using a rag.



Then apply whatever finish you want! We went with a simple black spray paint. You could brush on paint or even stain if that’s what you prefer.


Before & After Photos
My husband is a runner and has accumulated many running shoes over the years as he’s trained for half marathons. I’ve been wanting to organize them and create a display for them. He has a lot of shoes!

Below is the finished shoe rack. For reference, all shoes shown are men’s size 12. You can fit 3 per shelf and even store them on the floor below the bottom shelf so in total you can fit 12 pair!



As mentioned previously, we built two shoe racks for our closet. Here is what they look like next to each other. This closet has sliding doors so this is the best picture I could get since you can’t open both sides at one time.

Now my husband’s shoe collection is organized and I’m happy. We should have made shoe racks a long time ago.
More Free Woodworking Build Plans
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