Wood Block Wall Hanging/shelf

Every woodworker accumulates pieces of wood too short for many other projects. I saw this wall hanging/shelf somewhere and used some of my pallet boards to make it.

TOOLS NEEDED

Table saw

Disc sander

Drill and bits

Screwdriver

MATERIALS NEEDED

Plywood or hardboard at least 1/4" thick (mine is 20-1/2" x 8")

Pallet boards or scrap wood (my boards are 1-1/8" thick)

Wood glue

Sawtooth picture hanger and screws

1) Based on the size of the blocks you will use and the size of your plywood backer, calculate how many blocks you will need. Using boards the same width and thickness, cut the pieces to various lengths from 1/2" to 1-1/2" long. Cut three or four to 4-5" long. These will be the shelves, if you want them. I used three pieces of wood of slightly different colors for variation in my hanging. The first picture is my block supply.

2) On each block, decide which cut end will be exposed and lightly sand off all four edges of that surface.

3) To determine your block pattern on the backer you can either do a dry run with no glue or just apply the glue and start placing blocks. I started dry and once I felt sure of what I was doing I started gluing the blocks in place. The second picture shows how meticulous I was when gluing. Press each block firmly against the backer to help insure a good glue connection.

4) When the glue is completely dry, determine the balance point and mark it for hanging. Position the sawtooth picture hanger at the balance point and drill shallow holes for the screws that will secure the hanger to the back of your hanging. Screw the hanger into position.

5) Sign and date your project.

6) Find a good place to hang your project and add some small objects to the shelves, if you opted to include them.