I’m still working on finishing the pantry remodel. I would have been done if I worked on one project at a time. Not me…I keep getting distracted by the next pretty, shiny project! So I’m working on the pantry, the front porch and my son A.J.’s room all at the same time! But today, it’s simple cabinet shelves for the pantry.
I am really ready to put food in the pantry cabinets and out of their various temporary homes – making meals while the pantry is torn apart has really been chaotic. So it is time for shelves. I am making simple cabinet shelves with ¾ inch thick plywood. I know some people really like the look of the unfinished plywood edges… and I admit it does have an industrial flair. But I prefer my shelves to have finished edges. Finishing plywood edges is simple, quick and easy…my favorite kind of project.
These shelves will be edge banned. Edge banding is thin strips of real wood veneer that have a layer of adhesive that is activated when heat is applied – hence the iron!
Materials you need:
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- Plywood shelves cut to size (When cutting your plywood allow for the thickness of your edge banding – mine was 1/8)
- Edge banding (It comes in different woods, choose the edge banding that is the closest to the plywood you are using…I had birch plywood so I used birch edge banding)
- Electric iron (I have an old iron that is only for woodworking purposes)
- Utility knife or edge band trimmer (I used a utility knife but you can pick up an edge band trimmer at your nearest big box store)
What to Do
- Place the edge banding just a little past one end of the plywood edge. Use your iron to adhere it to the plywood.
- Run the edge banding along the plywood to the opposite end, ironing as you go along. Trim the edge banding a little past the end.
- Go back over the edge banding with the iron to make sure the edge banding is securely attached to the plywood. Some people use a smooth block of wood to rub over the edge banding while it’s still warm. I skip this step and I’ve never had a problem with the edge banding separating.
- The edge banding is wider than the plywood – so use either the utility knife or the edge banding trimmer to trim the excess.
- Trim the excess off each end.
- Use a sanding block to smooth the edges.
You can edge band all four sides or just choose to do the side that is visible.
That’s it! You have a shelf that looks professional and wasn’t very hard to do.
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