Shoe Rack for Small Spaces

I have a small entryway, and a rabbit. The end result is that, while shoes need to be up off the floor, none of the wall-mounted or enclosed racks that I could find would actually fit winter boots and allow the door to open.

Enter: Wall mounted file folder slots for your shoes!

I've been using this regularly for about 6 months, and I find it quite handy for all varieties of footwear.

The core of this project is a set of Kvissle folder slots (for the footwear), and steel strapping (to hold it all together).

Materials list:

Kvissle folder slots - Ikea

Steel strapping - hardware store plumbing section

Metal spray paint

Pieces of Shammy, or some other absorbent material

Fabric for the back of the unit (not shown, something which will not bleed dye when wet)

Twenty #8 machine bolts (about 1/2" long) and nuts (optional: washers)

Safety pins or stick-on Velcro

Tools:

Screw driver

Pliers

Tin snips (or wire cutters in a pinch)

Measuring tape

1. Decide where you want the shoes to hang. I did mine in two columns, staggering the slots. You could do it in other arrangements as well.
2. Lay out the slots on the floor in the pattern you've chosen. Test a couple of shoes to make sure there's enough space between slots.
3. Measure how long the strapping will need to be to hang the slots on. Add a distance of your choosing above that to attach the strapping to the wall. If you're staggering the slots, one piece of strapping will be shorter.

Cut your strapping to the lengths you've decided on, and spray paint them if you like. Let dry.

You'll probably have trouble flattening the strapping. Don't worry about that right now.

Lay out the slots in your chosen pattern, solid side down.

You have a few choices of holes, but I found that the very top and second from the bottom worked best.

1. Line up a piece of strapping with the bottom of your lowest Kvissle slot.
2. Move things around a bit to line up a strapping hole with the top hole of the slot. Fold the tab back through the hole in the strapping.
3. Insert a bolt, head up (the side that will rest against the wall). Add the washer if you choose, and tighten on a nut.
4. Line up the lower hole with another hole in the strapping and repeat.
5. Carry on with all your slots and pieces of strapping.
6. Hold your slots and strapping up against your wall to double check that it's what you were going for (a friend may be required).

Your strapping will still probably make things curvy. Don't worry about this too much, as the weight of shoes will help with this later.

This is where the shammy, fabric, safety pins, and stick-on Velcro come into play. If you expect to get water, mud, or snow on your footwear, you probably want some way of keeping your wall and floor dry and clean.

1. Add a few strips of Velcro inside the slot and attach the shammy to form an absorbent bottom. This can be removed and washed easily.
2. Safety pin the larger piece of fabric to the holes in the strapping. Fold the edges over as you pin them for a more finished look. Real over-achievers can break out the sewing machine and do some pretty edges.

The shammy at the bottom handles most of the water and dirt, but if it's seeing heavy use, you will want to pull it out to dry or wash. The safety pins make the larger piece of fabric easy to remove and wash if it ever becomes dirty.

With help from a friend, decide where your hanging points will need to be on the wall. Use appropriate hardware at the top of each piece of strapping to hang it. There are many convenient holes to put screws or nails through.

Mine is not fastened at the bottom. This allows larger shoes or boots to push away from the wall somewhat, and fit. When they're removed, the rack just hangs back against the wall on its own.

As usual, Oreo gets the credit as the inspiration for this project. Without the silent shoelace bandit, I would never have bothered.