Can you help me find this large open shelving unit?

March 24, 2021 3:17 PM

Can anyone help me find this grid with shallow display shelves? Does it have a name?

I'm looking for this kind of shelving unit on the left side of the photo here. I've tried Googling along the lines of "open shelf grid display" and that kind of thing. I'm not at all handy or rich, so if I would need to custom build it, that's out. Any ideas for what I could search for?

posted by biscuits to Home & Garden (9 answers total)

It's a nice looking shelf! I tried some searches and couldn't come up with anything either. I will say that from the picture it looks like a grid of 2x4s fastened to the wall, so it wouldn't be the hardest or most expensive thing to get done but the devil is in the details.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 3:43 PM on March 24, 2021 [2 favorites]

Grid shadowbox, multi shadowbox, grid display, printer's tray (also letterpress tray), curio display.
posted by Lyn Never at 3:43 PM on March 24, 2021 [1 favorite]

Knickknack or miniatures shelf.
posted by Greg_Ace at 4:36 PM on March 24, 2021

If you open the image in a new window, and click on it, you can get a much bigger version. It looks like something like a window or letterpress tray repurposed for display. It's quite shallow - the shelves are probably only 2" deep?

Coffee mug shelves on Etsy

Looking at upcycled CD shelves led me to IKEA's Kallax storage.

Bunch of storage cubby options on AliExpress.

Amazon offers this up.
posted by See you tomorrow, saguaro at 4:42 PM on March 24, 2021

yeah I think knicknack may be a good term though that looks... bespoke I think? Here's something I found on Etsy that is close but smaller, and another one. Curio might be another good term. Here's another similar-but-smaller one. Here are people confirming what you've found, that they are hard to buy.
posted by jessamyn at 5:46 PM on March 24, 2021

Here's a similar design on Etsy, though I think this has smaller dimensions.
posted by stormyteal at 7:37 PM on March 24, 2021

Also try 'cubby' as a keyword!
posted by DSime at 7:38 PM on March 24, 2021

Shallow open-back cubbies? A possible (piecemeal) way to create the unit -- this "Interlocking Ledge Storage Cubby Floating Shelf" is 3'' H x 20.75'' W x 4'' D. You'd have to buy however many cubbies to make the grid. (Though 20.75 looks too large compared to the photo - those are maybe 10" or 12" square?)
posted by Iris Gambol at 9:27 PM on March 24, 2021

It also looks to me like a hand-made grid of nicely sanded and stained 2x4s. That would be quite easy for a woodworker to make, so would likely cost about what you would expect for purchasing from a store if you were to get a similar item custom-made locally. (Modulo the correct type of saw to make the notch cuts where the boards intersect, and space and time for the sanding and staining steps, you could make it yourself even. If there's a maker space near you, they might have the project space and the right type of saw?)
posted by eviemath at 6:12 AM on March 25, 2021