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    Home » Christmas » DIY Wooden Christmas Tree Shelf

    DIY Wooden Christmas Tree Shelf

    November 30, 2020 by Shara, Woodshop Diaries

    In this post, I will show you how to build this adorable DIY Wooden Christmas Tree Shelf!

    DIY wooden christmas tree shelf stackable--set up next to Christmas tree to display holiday decor

    What’s so cool about this design is that, while it’s obviously, super cute to decorate for the holidays, it’s also easy to take apart and store away since the pieces all fit inside each other.

    Stackable wooden Christmas tree pieces nested within themselves

    Now, as much as I’d love to take credit for this idea, it was actually sent to me by a friend who had seen them online.

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    But, just about everywhere I’ve seen them online, they’re sold out! Plus, the sizing on the shelves I’d seen online made them almost too small to display much of anything on.

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    So, I decided to make my own version (a little bigger) and I’m sharing the details with you here so you can make your own.

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    If you’re ready to get building, let’s go 🙂

    This posts contains affiliate links. See policies for details.

    For this DIY Wooden Christmas Tree Shelf, You Will Need:

    • (5) 1″ square dowels (36″ long)
    • (2) ¾″ square dowels (36″ long)
    • ¾″ plywood or 1x boards glued up into panels
    • Small round dowel rod (⅜″ or smaller…this is optional)
    • Wood Glue
    • 2″ wood screws
    • Miter Saw
    • Nail Gun
    • Drill
    • Jig saw (optional)

    NOTE: You can make your own square dowels if you have a table saw–or you can purchase them from the big box store (links above). You can make 1″ square dowels from 2x material and ¾″ square dowels from 1x material.

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    ANOTHER NOTE: The bottom panels of each section can be cut from ¾″ plywood OR you can glue and trim down solid 1x boards to create your own panels. The top panel is 8″ square, the middle is 11″ square and the bottom is 14″ square.

    Christmas tree bottom panel measurement diagram

    The overall height of this stackable wooden Christmas tree is about 41 ½″ WITHOUT the star.

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    LAST NOTE: This nesting tree shelf is made of three sections. Each section has some angle cuts–all the angles on the bottom section are 9 degrees, all the angles on the middle section are 12 degrees, and all the angles on the top section are 15 degrees.

    Three sections to make up stackable Christmas tree shelf

    RELATED: Check out these other popular seasonal projects!

    Step 1: Cut and Assemble Bottom Section Frame of Tree Shelf

    The four corner posts are made from 1″ square dowels (pink in the image below) and the top frame pieces and the “feet” are ¾″ square dowels (yellow in the image below).

    Color coded diagram to show pieces of Christmas tree shelf--pink 1" square dowels, yellow ¾" square dowels, blue ¾" panels

    The bottom panel can be cut from ¾″ plywood OR 1x material glued up and trimmed down to the size needed (blue in the image above).

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    I started with the 1″ square corner posts. I set up my miter saw to cut a 9 degree miter AND a 9 degree bevel (this is a compound angle). I trimmed the end of the square dowel to get my angle, then just slid the piece down (without flipping it in any direction) and cut to length.

    miter saw set up to cut compound angles for corner posts of wooden Christmas tree

    The cuts need to be made in the same direction. These bottom tree shelf corner posts need to be about 16 ⅜″ long.

    bottom section corner post diagram

    Then, I adjusted my BEVEL (the head tilt) back to 0 degrees, left my miter angle at 9 degrees, and cut four pieces of ¾″ dowel like shown 7 ⅛″ long with mitered ends not parallel.

    bottom section frame piece diagram

    Once the four posts and the four top frame pieces were cut, I glued and brad nailed two top pieces between two posts like shown.

    bottom wooden tree frame pieces glued and nailed together

    Then, I glued and nailed the other two top pieces between them. Now, MATHEMATICALLY, these top pieces should have been compound angle cuts on the end, but just mitering them 9 degrees is close enough, so there may be some small gaps, but nothing MAJOR.

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    I’m just trying to keep this as simple as possible for you by minimizing the amount of compound angles 🙂 Sometimes “close enough” is okay.

    Bottom Wooden Christmas tree frame assembled

    Step 2: Attach Bottom Tree Shelf Panel

    The bottom panels of all three of these sections can be cut from ¾″ plywood, or glued up 1x boards or project panels. I glued up solid boards for mine.

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    I predrilled and drove a 2″ wood screw on each corner into the four posts.

    Bottom panel screwed into corner posts of bottom tree section frame

    To finish it off, I cut four ¾″ long ¾″ square dowel pieces and just applied a little wood glue, and stuck them onto the bottom of each corner.

    Feet glued onto bottom of stackable wooden Christmas tree sections

    I set it aside to dry then began the middle section.

    Step 3: Cut and Assemble Middle Frame of Christmas Tree Shelf

    Cut and assemble the middle section the same way as the bottom in step 1 except instead of using 9 degrees, make it 12 degrees for all the miters and bevels.

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    Miter AND bevel the ends of the 1″ square corner posts 12 degrees and cut 13″ long.

    Middle nesting tree shelf corner post diagram

    And just miter (no bevel) the ¾″ square dowel top pieces 12 degrees and cut 3 ⅞″ long.

    Diagram of middle tree frame top pieces

    Assemble two pieces like shown using wood glue and brad nails.

    Middle wooden Christmas tree sections glued and nailed together

    Then, glue and nail the other two top pieces between them.

    Middle wooden Christmas tree frame assembled

    Now, again, MATHEMATICALLY, these top pieces should have been compound angles cuts on the end, but just mitering them 12 degrees is close enough, so there may be some small gaps, but nothing MAJOR.

    Step 4: Attach Middle Tree Shelf Panel

    Cut a ¾″ plywood piece or glue up a ¾″ thick solid panel 11″ square and use 2″ wood screws to attach onto the bottom of the corner posts just like step 2.

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    Glue ¾″ square cubes onto the bottom corners just like the bottom section.

    Step 5: Assemble Top Section of Stackable Tree Shelf

    The top section is made a little different. This time, I cut four 1″ square dowel corner posts with a bevel AND miter of 15 degrees and 10″ long.

    Top section wooden christmas tree corner posts

    I used 2″ wood screws to attach these posts into the corner of the bottom 8″ square panel.

    Bottom panel screwed to corner posts of top tree section

    Then, I cut a 3″ square, ¾″ thick piece (you can use plywood or solid wood) and screwed it into the top of the posts.

    3d Color coded diagram of top section of tree shelf--corner posts pink and top and bottom panels blue

    Lastly, I glued ¾″ cubes on the bottom corners.

    Step 6: Add a Tree Topper (OPTIONAL)

    If desired, use a jig saw to cut a star shape.

    star tree topper cut out with jig saw

    Then, grab a ⅜″ round dowel and use a ⅜″ drill bit to drill a hole into the top square (don’t drill all the way through) and into the bottom of the star.

    Holes drilled for dowel rod to attach star to top of stackable Christmas tree shelf

    NOTE: you can use whatever size dowel you want, just match the drill bit size to the dowel size to drill the holes.

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    Cut the dowel however long you want and glue it into the hole in the star, but don’t glue it into the top piece of the shelf. You need this to be removeable for when you take it apart to store it. Just stick into the hole, but don’t add glue.

    Star and dowel stuck into top section of shelf

    Step 7: Finish DIY Wooden Christmas Tree Shelf

    At this point, it’s ready for finish, so you can paint or stain as desired!

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    Since I was using walnut for this, I chose to simply apply a clear coat and used Walrus Oil Furniture Finish to protect and deepen the natural wood color.

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    I love that this DIY wooden Christmas tree shelf is easy to break down and it nests within itself so it’s easy to store away after the season is over.

    Stackable Christmas tree shelf set up next to Christmas tree with decor sitting on it

    So that means it’s also easy to set up when the season rolls around again. Simply stack on each other and add the star on top for a great way to display some of your favorite holiday decor.

    Close up of DIY Christmas tree shelf from above looking down

    Although there are a few angles on this project, it’s a fairly simple design and you can even use the pieces individually as little lanterns during the off season if you wanted!

    Stackable Christmas Tree shelf broken down in pieces

    But, personally, I like it best for its intended purpose as a cute little Christmas tree shelf 🙂

    RELATED: Check out this list of 25+ easy handmade Christmas gifts you can make this weekend!

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    So if you enjoyed this project and want to save it for later, I’d love if you’d pin this!

    Collage image of stackable Christmas tree shelf stacked together and nesting

    And if you want to follow along on all the latest projects and plans, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter below so you don’t miss out 🙂

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    Until next time, friends, Merry Christmas AND happy building 🙂

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