In all seriousness, I have been dreaming of having my own shoe wall (really just shelves of shoes on a wall) for as long as I can remember. Not only is it great for organizing shoes, it’s a decorative way to do it. Here are three reasons you need a shoe wall and a short description about how I made mine!
1. Super easy to pick out shoes.
Each morning, I quickly scan my shoe wall and figure out what I want to wear for the day. I have my shoes organized with boots on the bottom, work shoes and pumps together, open toe and casual shoes in a group, sandals on the floor, and sneakers at the top. Having my shoes organized this way helps me when I’m looking for a pair to wear for a specific occasion.
2. I can see all of my shoes, so I use all of them.
I used to have over 100 pairs of shoes. I had so many shoes that I’d NEVER EVEN WORN. This was mostly because my shoes were unorganized and some were hidden so I’d forget about them. I decided to donate quite a few shoes and pare down my closet to a manageable level. Now, I actually wear the shoes I have and when I go shoe shopping, I know where the holes in my closet are and where I need to spend my money.
For example, I have four pairs of black pumps. In my defense, they’re all a little different. Some are sling backs, some are cutaway, some are patent leather, some have soft, natural leather, etc. Beyond all that, I wear black pumps rather frequently and I need a few pairs to avoid wearing one to death and shortening its lifespan. One of the great parts about having my shoes on a wall is that I can easily look at my shoes and remember to stay away from black pumps the next time I go shoe shopping since I have enough. Instead, I’ll try to find a chunky-heel loafer or a pair with a subtle pattern. Burgundy velvet, anyone?
3. It keeps my room and closet organized.
At the end of a long day, the last thing I want to do is clean my apartment. I don’t want to have to reorganize a complicated shoe array or figure out how to squeeze my shoes into a cramped shoe organizer. Instead, I pull my shoes off at the door and throw them (sometimes literally throw them depending on the day) into their designated space on my shoe wall. No thinking. No decision making. No stress.
How to make your own:
Tools: hammer, drill, level, tape measure, pencil, patience (x2).
I found these shelves at IKEA for only $20 each! I don’t think they came with screws and wall anchors, but you can get a pack of 50 from Home Depot for $11. I bought a few shorter shelves, too, so I could store some of my purses right beside my shoes.
Once you have all of your tools, you can start measuring where you want your shelves and how far apart you want each shelf. I started with the bottom shelf, screwed in the anchors, then measured the other shelves from there. My lowest shelf is farther away from the others so I can fit my tall boots at the bottom. There is about a foot and a half between the lowest shelf and the one that is second from the bottom. The other shelves have about one foot of space between them.
Building the shoe wall may take two to three hours. It took me a couple of days because I accidentally broke my drill while I was building the wall in the middle of the night and had to buy a new one the next day…. because building a shoe wall in the middle of the night is completely normal.
Send me a message if you’re building your own shoe wall and you have questions about how I made mine! Best of luck to you working women.
Floating back to shoe wall heaven,
