Twisted Wooden Bookshelves

When I first saw these bookshelves, they appeared impossible, like an M.C. Escher painting, or at the very least, they looked very difficult to build. While I wouldn’t consider this shelving set an easy project, with the right tools, it looks like a pretty accessible build. The shelves are made out of blonde wood, of which 2 sides are cut in “normal” straight lines and right angles. The third and fourth (also an anomaly) supporting sides are cut as matching curves, making the bookshelves appear to twist as they ascend.

It seems like the biggest build challenge would be getting the curves initially drawn and cut in a reasonable shape. Once those and the other pieces of wood are cut, assembling the shelves is a matter of gluing, then using an impressive number of clamps to allow everything to dry correctly. The shelving unit was then planed, stained, and laser-engraved with a cool looking custom logo on the bottom. I’d assume these shelves will look just as good with books on them, although I wonder how access will work on some of the curved areas.

For another very interesting bookshelf build, check out this RGB sound-reactive bookshelf that I featured here previously.

5 thoughts on “Twisted Wooden Bookshelves”

JamesM says:

January 8th, 2015 at 8:56 am

Very clever.

brucej says:

January 8th, 2015 at 11:48 am

Quite clever, and since ‘the right tools’ essentially means ‘a jigsaw’; they’re not all that difficult to build. 8-)

Cutting dadoes into all 4 sides for the shelves (before the curved parts are cut!) would also simplify construction by helping to align everything during glue-up.

This could be done on the large, uncut sheet of plywood used to create the four sides to make sure they all matched.

Cutting the shelves on a curve to match would also enhance the twisted illusion, I think, too.

Hmmm…must go measure my living room :-)