Furniture shelves, shape, size and material of manufacture, the nuances of choice

Creating comfort in an apartment is an art that requires attention to many details: a beautiful repair, good lighting, a well-thought-out interior. In each house, comfortable, roomy furniture shelves decorating the home are used for accessories, dishes, figurines, collections, books. They are irreplaceable: they store cute little things that are difficult to do without. There are different in form, functions, design, purpose, but each performs the task assigned to it. They acquire great importance in small-sized apartments.

Varieties

Furniture shelf is considered a primitive piece of furniture. But do not write it off. There is a classification of this functional furniture, reflecting the direction of its use in everyday life. The following varieties exist:

according to the material of manufacture;
position in the space of the room;
arrangement among furniture;
constructive execution;
functionality.

According to the material of manufacture:

wooden;
from glass;
plastic;
shelves made of metal.

Wooden

Metal

Plastic

Glass

By location in the living space, the following types are distinguished:

corner shelves;
hanging shelves that are mounted on chains to the ceiling;
furniture wall mounted on fasteners.

According to the location between the shelves, there are the following options:

composition from a group of shelves;
single, separately located on the wall furniture shelf.

There are a number of types of furniture for execution and design:

combined shelves consisting of horizontal and vertical walls. They may include drawers;
multi-tiered - have walls located horizontally;
with the presence of the rear walls;
with the upper horizontal wall, which is a type of wall cabinets without doors;
furniture shelf with side walls for support;
console is a variant of shelves with one horizontal plane.

Furniture according to its functions and purpose is divided into several types:

universal racks, photos of which are collected in a selection;
to the bathroom;
narrow kitchen cabinet-like;
in the hallway;
bookshelves.

There are varieties of shelves based on the materials of their manufacture. Its choice depends on the functions, purpose, location of the shelf.

Materials of manufacture

The materials that are used for shelves are various, they are presented:

veneer;
lumber;
furniture board;
plywood;
MDF;
Chipboard.

A veneer is a sheet of very thin wood (3 mm), obtained by cutting from the surface of a tree. Varieties of veneer:

oak;
gabon;
bibolo;
wenge;
a nut;
beech;
Cherries
maple;
birch trees.

The use of veneer for the production of shelves pursues two goals: a significant reduction in the cost of production and the creation of exclusive samples trimmed with elite varieties of veneer from various species of wood.

The material associated with the word “furniture” is represented by wood, which comes in the form of boards and bars. This is lumber, the life of the furniture depends on their quality. It is influenced by many reasons:

ecology;
age;
cutting time.

Cracks, knots break the strength of the board. The cost of such low-grade material is much lower than selected wood. To obtain high quality lumber, good environmental conditions for tree growth are important. Environmental pollution factors, the presence of toxic effects do not allow full wood to grow. Therefore, solid wood is very expensive, and furniture is exclusive samples.

Speaking of wooden furniture, there are two main varieties of it:

"wooden furniture" is a name denoting all its varieties (boards from pressed sawdust, shavings);
veneer masks materials under it;
solid wood furniture.

The wood is replaced by a furniture panel, which represents glued planed wooden blocks trimmed with veneer. The furniture has a beautiful appearance, excellent quality, winning at affordable prices. For the manufacture of wooden structures using different in thickness and size of the bars of trees:

birch trees;
beech;
oak.

The shield is widespread in the manufacture of furniture, due to the identity of the array, strength, environmental friendliness. Its service life can be compared with wood products. Like a tree, it is easily restored and restored.

The traditional wood material is plywood, samples of which were known to the ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks. The products are made of three sheets using urea resin for bonding. The best wood for plywood veneer is considered birch. The strength of the material is compared with wood. It has an impressive service life (from five to one hundred years). It is no coincidence that models of the last century made of plywood, becoming a rarity, are still appreciated.

For interiors, plywood is a favorite material, the reason for this was the low cost, reliability in operation. It is a material for the manufacture of shelves for various purposes:

for home libraries;
children's rooms;
kitchens.

Plywood has good design abilities: it can preserve the natural color of birch, it can also be painted.

MDF is a type of wood material. This is a fibrous wood board. It consists of chips that are bonded with urea resin. The material is considered close to wood for environmental friendliness and strength. This is the reason for its popularity. The material is moisture resistant, used to make shelves in the bathroom. Such material can be:

veneered with plastic, veneer, film;
give it a variety of forms;
diversify with shades and effects (gloss, metallic, mother of pearl).

The materials from which furniture shelves are made include wood-based panels or chipboards, which are related to modern materials. It is made from shavings and sawdust. The technical characteristics of the material include:

strength;
moisture resistance;
preservation of size, color and shape in heated rooms. Subject to operating rules, shelves can last up to 10 years.

It is much weaker than other wood materials, so during operation it is necessary to take into account this nuance and not give it a load for which it is not designed. None of the substitutes for solid wood can compare with it in quality and durability. But not all people buy furniture in order to pass it on by inheritance. Therefore, shelves from any wood material will find their owner.

In addition to shelves made of wood, other materials are used. They rarely consist of one material, most often they are combined:

glass shelves are used in bathrooms. Glass is used for light shelves on which souvenirs are located in cupboards;
metal shelves are designed to store heavy items. They find use in the kitchen. They easily withstand dishes of any weight.

Mounting methods and necessary fittings

A serious question is the selection of fasteners for the types of shelves, since the aesthetic appearance, reliability and safety depend on this. The accessories have 2 elements:

mounting or holder;
limiter.

From the point of view of fastening shelves, the material of the product and the method of fastening are important. Mounting methods depend on the material of the shelves. They have varieties.

Mounting devices for rotating shelves is as follows:

the axis is set first;
the lower and upper structures are bolted to the cabinet;
then the shelf is bolted to the axis.

Retractable shelves are fastened with special fittings. It has the following elements:

guides;
Rollers moving on them.

Mounting devices, depending on the design, are of several types:

tandem boxes manufactured with shelves;
constructions embedded in devices;
mechanisms that are assembled before mounting.

To mount a sliding shelf, it is necessary to stock up with a drill, screwdriver, measuring and marking tools. The markup is carried out as follows:

guides are divided into two parts (one will be attached to the frame, the other to the shelf);
for them, calculations and markup are carried out;
drilling holes for fasteners;
installation of fasteners.

Having fixed all the elements, they are adjusted. Similarly, the installation of tandem boxes. Installation of mortise fastening devices:

mark up for holders;
check that the diameter of the holders and holes should be the same;
fasten the holders to the frame and shelf.

Mount holders at the corners of the structure. Models in which heavy things are supposed to be stored are best reinforced with 2 additional fasteners. Before mounting overhead fasteners (brackets), mark the points for the holes where the fittings are supposed to be installed. Then make them on the shelf. Drill holes with a drill. Screw the fasteners to the frame and shelf.

For glass hinged shelves, fasteners are installed in the same way. They are fastened with brackets, which are a type of overhead fasteners. They are used for glass shelves. Inside they have a rubber gasket that protects the glass.

An arm is a special type of fixture (mortise). It is used for shelves to be used for heavy loads. Fasteners for furniture made of chipboard are placed hidden mortise fasteners Install it inside the shelf. Fasteners can be selected correctly, provided that the material of the shelves and their location are known.

How beautiful to incorporate into the interior

Furniture shelf fits perfectly into various interiors, as it has different shapes, designs, sizes. It is aesthetic, functional, in harmony with other objects. It is important to know how to position it correctly so that it does not disturb harmony. There are methods that need to be guided by placing shelves in different rooms:

for a drawing room the group of rectangular shelves located above a fireplace or the TV will be advantageously looked;
not very bulky furniture shelves on the wall will look cozy above the sofa in the hall;
Place bookshelves in your study and children's room above your desk. You can put things necessary for work in them;
a narrow long furniture shelf can serve as a stand for paintings;
perfectly fit the shelves in the office space. They complement the cabinets in the hallway, in the kitchen, in the bathroom;
in the front rooms (hall, living room, bedroom), shelves dilute furniture compositions, acting as decor;
in any room you can install corner shelves, which will not only fill the space, but will also be very useful.

There are a lot of options for arranging shelves in the interior, and they are suitable for every interior.

Dressing

The priceless things are the functional shelves in every room. They fill the voids, enliven the interior with cute trinkets that create coziness. In the interior of the apartments, the shelves themselves perform the functions of decoration, decoration. There are many options for using furniture shelves. Here are some of them:

it is prestigious to have transformer shelves of original designs in the form of a decorative element;
among wooden furniture, glass or plastic compositions become light fresh breaths;
asymmetry can become a decorative element;
a series of shelves can stretch in a zigzag in the form of a snake;
with a creative imagination, any composition can be created from the shelves, including other elements of the interior decor: forms, colors, lighting, fabric.

Advanced designers, given the trends of time and fashion, offer a lot of options in which lonely hanging on the wall and complex compositions perform not only certain functions in the apartment, but make their interior irresistible.

What can be placed on them

Shelves do not have doors, so everything that is placed on them is on public display. It is necessary to arrange the contents so as not to violate the overall picture and the laws of the style of the interior. This is the art of home comfort, and the laws of art must be comprehended. On the pages of magazines, shelves with things look perfect. The bottom line is that on them all objects are located in a special way:

you need to arrange the contents of the shelves in several rows. Their mirror arrangement suggests that some things overlap in color, shape, you can make a combination of several identical or similar objects;
if there is not enough space on the shelves, use the rack by hanging a picture, photo, poster or mirror on the frame;
put several small figurines on a low stack of magazines or books. This technique underlines their significance;
use symmetry when arranging objects;
some departments may be empty;
folders can be used for magazines;
put the perfect order on the shelf;
heavy things are better to put lower;
it is better not to arrange objects by colors;
dilute the rows of books with vases, figurines;
Do not place books only vertically. Alternate them with horizontal stacks.

Shelves are important furniture for any home, comfortable and functional. They complement any interior, filling in the empty space, harmoniously blending into the headset. Shelves came into use, became familiar and indispensable. This is the reason for their popularity.