Cute (and cheap!) DIY bookshelves

As promised in my last post, here are the instructions for the super cute DIY bookshelves we have in the girls' garden bedroom! I am very thankful that we've raised little readers, these kids love books! Problem: We have so many, and when they want one they dig through the entire bookshelf, leaving it a mess...It always seemed to look like this: 

Okay, so maybe not THAT bad, but it sure felt like it...Anyway, I took to the internet, browsing through Pinterest for DIY bookshelf ideas, preferably to go on the wall so I could eliminate the bookshelf altogether! I found a ton of ideas; spice racks, gutters, fabric pockets, shutters, crates hung sideways on the wall...but IKEA is always sold out of those little spice racks and I didn't think they would hold enough books. I finally came across a woman who had used a wooden CD crate from Michaels, however, when I got to Michael's and picked up the crate, I didn't feel they would be sturdy enough for my girls' books/abuse children put on their things...the wood was very thin and seemed flimsy. So, I went with a sturdier crate,
Michael's Half Crate $6.99(I only paid $4.19 with a 40% off coupon and you get two shelves out of one crate.
(This pic shows two stacked on top of each other)

Cut this straight down that middle gap-right in half! You will have two shelves. I hesitate to say with what tool to cut with, because if you're anything like my best friend and I, you'll improvise with any tool that will cut-whether it's the proper tool or not!(That, and I don't really know my tools all that well(yet), so, we're just gonna say, "A power saw")

After cutting in half-spray paint or stain to your preferred color and allow to dry...

While you are painting/spraying-take small piece of wood like a paint stick/stir stick-it doesn't have to be thick(You know how I said I like to improvise? Yeah, I cut it with my husbands snips...Come to think of it, maybe you should just do as I say, not as I do!)  cut to size and paint/stain to match, I stapled these in place across the gap so books will not fall through.

Mount to the wall with 2 small "L" brackets-make sure you attach them to the sturdiest boards, not the thin panels!

When finished, you will have nice, sturdy shelves that hold a good number of books! Our girls love reading before bed, they go to bed about 30 minutes before their actual bedtime and read-so I wanted an option that could be reached from the top bunk as well! This has been the best addition to their room by far! It only took about an hour altogether

 We still have a lot more books than need to be out, so we chose the most popular books and put them on the shelves, and the rest we put in a nice tote downstairs! They can swap them out anytime, but so far they are still working on the books they picked out!

Let me know if you have any questions about the project, I will answer anything I can!