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Wire Shelf Pantry Makeover

February 17, 2022 By Chelsea Lipford Wolf 5 Comments

Update the basic wire shelf in your pantry by covering it with plywood! Just a few materials and a few hours of your time and the headache you have every time you use your pantry will disappear!

Improve Function of Wire Shelf Pantry

One of my sisters, Emily, recently purchased her first house, a sweet little townhouse! When I asked her what projects she needed done, she immediately said she wanted to get rid of the wire shelving in her pantry closet.

Simple White Wire Pantry Shelves

She’s a registered dietician, so naturally, she has a pantry that is fully stocked with all the goods.

We all know groceries come in all shapes, sizes, and packaging, and sometimes they don’t sit well on the wire shelves. She tried to add some organization and function with baskets and even repurposed an old shoe rack to add some extra storage on the floor.

Instant Pot Sitting on Floor of Pantry

Still, the pantry was just not working and foods would not always stay where they were placed. So for Christmas, I gifted her a pantry makeover!

Materials

  • 1/2″ plywood project panels*(1 for every 2 shelves)
  • 1×3 wood*
  • primer*/paint
  • nail gun*/nails
  • wood putty*
  • painter’s caulk

To add additional shelving, you’ll also want to pick up some 1x2s*!

Make Your Cuts

First, I measured the wire shelves to get the dimensions for the plywood. These were just under 36″ long and about 12″ deep. So I ripped each of my plywood panels in half lengthwise and cut the boards at 35-5/8″ long.

To keep this project budget-friendly and quick, I left the wire shelving in place. They’re already attached to the studs, so they are super sturdy and not going anywhere! Plus have you seen the price of wood?!🤯 No sense in ripping them out only to replace them with wood supports.

The only downside to leaving the shelving in place is that the brackets at the front of the shelf stick out from the wall almost a half inch on each side. So you’ll need to take a second measurement to determine how long to cut your 1×3 face pieces.

1x3 Front of Shelf Edge Cut Short for Wire Bracket

Assemble Shelves

Now for the easy part! Set the cut plywood pieces on top of the wire shelf, then nail the 1×3 to the front, flush with the top of the plywood and between the wire shelf brackets sticking out from the wall. This covers the raw edge of the plywood and the bottom part of the wire. Double-win!

Cover Wire Shelves with Plywood

Plus it makes the shelves look like they were built into the pantry and like they’ve been there all along!👏🏻

We primed and painted before we assembled which was actually the longest part of this project…waiting for paint to dry!

In addition to covering her existing wire shelves, I added a new shelf on top and one on the bottom so she could eliminate the shoe rack.😃 This is simple to do by cutting a 1×2 the length of the shelf board, leveling and attaching to the studs along the back wall. Then cut 2 more 1x2s the width of the shelf board minus the thickness of the long 1×2. Mine were cut at 11-1/4″. These are your cleats.

Attach them to the studs as best you can and set the plywood shelf on top. Cover the edge with 1×3 just like the other shelves and it seamlessly blends in!

There is still enough space above the top shelf to store bigger items like the Instant Pot she also got for Christmas! And now there’s more room for Lucy to hide in Aunt Emmy’s pantry.😇

Lucy Sitting in Finished Pantry

Wire Pantry Closet Before Updates Makeover

Improve Function of Wire Shelf Pantry

*Click here to sign up for my newsletter and receive FREE Printable Pantry Labels to further enhance your own pantry!*

Thanks for Checking In! ~Chelsea

*This post contains affiliate links. I will earn a small commission from your purchase without increasing the price for you!*

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Comments

  1. Marjorie Carter says

    February 24, 2022 at 11:44 pm

    How clever to save the wire shelving. Another great idea, Chelsea.

    Reply
    • Chelsea Lipford Wolf says

      March 8, 2022 at 2:44 pm

      Thanks Marjorie! ~Chelsea

      Reply
  2. Helen Seymour says

    April 6, 2022 at 11:20 am

    Great idea for wire shelves. How I hate wire shelves. TY Chelsea!

    Reply
    • Chelsea Lipford Wolf says

      April 6, 2022 at 11:24 am

      Thanks for reading, Helen! ~Chelsea

      Reply
  3. Keith Johnson says

    April 16, 2022 at 11:28 am

    I loved your latest episode. remodeling the laundry room. This episode made my hair stand on end, when you were cutting lumber with the miter saw (in a cloud of dust) Please. use a dust mask. A lot of primed or composite material lumber can be very toxic. Other than that, it was a great show. Thank you. Keep up the good work.

    Reply

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FINALLY painted this eyesore of a wall and finishe FINALLY painted this eyesore of a wall and finished just before dark last night!🙌🏻 My husband and I decided instead of starting a new project (ahem a baby nursery) we should finish the projects we’ve already started. Since baby is due in the summer, it will be so nice to have our backyard up to par so we can rest and relax out there during recovery. ☺️
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We started this project back in October by stripping and scraping the many layers of paint so we could waterproof the bricks and paint the wall to match the house. But the house was painted exactly a year ago. So it was way past time to knock this huge item of the time-do list. And it feels like such a relief to not have to walk by the unfinished-ness every time we come home now!
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Next up we’ll slowly tackle patching hardwood floors and finish painting and replacing our interior doors that are taking up room in our garage.👏🏻
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