Welcome 2021 with year-end savings - see the deals here

Remodelaholic

DIY tutorials, Woodworking plans and more.

FREE BONUS: Kitchen Organization Boot Camp
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About US
    • Contributors
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    • Disclosure and Advertising
    • Contact Us
  • Shop
  • Project Ideas
    • Our Houses
      • Birch House (current projects)
      • Canyon House
      • Park House
      • Downing House
      • Logan House
    • DIY Project Plans
    • All projects
    • Barn Door Baby Gate
    • Dutch Door
    • Framing A Wall Mounted TV
    • Indoor Playhouse
    • Beach Themed Living Room Design
    • Chicken Coop Building!
    • Computer Desk
    • Computer Desk Plans
    • Custom Newel Posts and Stair Remodel
    • Family Room Sneak Peek
    • Headboard Tutorial
    • Living Room Progress
    • Mood Boards
    • Scrabbled Family Names
    • Pets
  • Design By Room
    • Bathrooms
    • Landscape
    • Kids Bedrooms
    • Kitchen
    • Living Rooms
    • Laundry Rooms
    • Master Bedrooms
    • Mood Boards
    • Office
  • Holiday
    • Christmas
    • Halloween
    • Patriotic
    • Easter
    • Fall
    • Saint Patrick’s Day
    • Thanksgiving
    • Spring
    • Valentines Day
    • Winter
  • Crafts
    • Printable
    • Art
    • Paper Crafts
    • Kids
    • Fabric Crafts
    • Decorate
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Beef
    • Beverages
    • Breakfast
    • Chicken
    • Desserts
    • Dinner
    • Fruit
    • Healthy
    • Holiday
    • Lunch
    • Main Dishes
    • Salads
    • Sandwiches
    • Sauces
    • Seafood
    • Side Dishes
    • Soup
    • Vegetables
  • Videos

How to Build a Vintage Mail Sorter DIY Shoe Cubby Shelf

Written by Amy Baesler

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
Diy Shoe Cubby For Small Entry Or Mudroom, Inspired By Vintage Mail Sorter, Beginner Woodworking Plans Remodelaholic
Vintage Mail Sorter DIY Shoe Cubby And Entryway Organizer, Easy Woodworking Plans On Remodelaholic
DIY Entryway Organizer Shoe Cubby Shelf Inspired By A Vintage Post Office Mail Sorter, Remodelaholic
Wooden Vintage Post Office Mail Sorter Into Entryway Organizer Shoe Cubby Shelf, Remodelaholic

Build a tall narrow DIY shoe cubby shelf, inspired by a vintage wood mail sorter! Detailed woodworking plans make this a great beginner project you can finish in a weekend. 

Add storage cubbies to every room and build a toy organizer cubby shelf, entryway shelf with cubbies, and a wall cubby shelf, too. 

Tall Narrow Diy Shoe Cubby Shelf Woodworking Plans, Remodelaholic

Vintage Mail Sorter Shoe Cubby

Get the woodworking plans here

This post contains affiliate links. See our full disclosure policy here. 

Hi guys, I’m Sara from Sincerely, Sara D. I am overjoyed to be here with you all today on Remodelaholic!

Although I believe I’m a misplaced southern girl (I love the sun and heat), I was born, raised and (still) live in the midwest.  I’m mom to three cute kids, and a wife to an amazing man who puts up with my never ending projects and ideas.

I blog about my DIY home decor endeavors, and I will paint anything.  My painted faucets tutorial is one of my most popular posts along with my tutorial for perfect chalkboard lettering.

vintage mail sorter turned diy shoe cubby to store shoes and organize items in an entry hallway

We moved into our current home a couple years ago, and one of the first areas I tackled was our mudroom. It’s a long, narrow space, and it’s our family’s main entrance into our home since it’s right off the garage.

Our kids are pretty good at remembering to remove their shoes when they enter the house, but that can leave an ugly pile of shoes by the doorway.

Luckily we hadn’t lived in our home long before I randomly came across an old post office mail sorter. It was love at first site at a local antique mall and a steal for $80!  I had to have it and was crossing my fingers it would be the right size for my kids’ shoes.

Narrow entryway storage, vintage mail sorter turned shoe cubby, Sincerely Sara D on @Remodelaholic

The guy I bought it from was gracious enough to drive it home to me, but I had a lot of explaining to my husband when I drove up the driveway with a panel van sporting the words “mystery machine” in tow.

He watched as the muddy, wasp infested mail sorter was unloaded – not quite seeing my vision.  However, a little elbow grease, and the piece was cleaned up and a perfect fit in our space.

With three kids, we’re always running off somewhere – school, sports, piano or church. A DIY chalkboard calendar was a great finishing piece for this space to keep us going in the right direction and the perfect companion to the mail sorter.  Two years later, and we’re still loving and using the mail sorter turned shoe cubby!

When Remodelaholic asked if they could create plans so you could build one, too, I was happy to share dimensions.

I also suggested that the cubbies would fit shoes better (especially larger kid and adult shoes) if they were a little bit deeper and a little bit wider than the original mail sorter shelves.

DIY Shoe Cubby Overall Dimensions

Get the printable shoe cubby plans HERE

How to Build a DIY Shoe Cubby Organizer

We asked Amy from Hertoolbelt to draw up some modified plans to build a vintage shoe sorter shoe cubby shelf like Sara’s.

The 12-page woodworking plan is beginner-friendly and ready to build in a weekend! The complete plan includes detailed diagrams and dimensions, and assembly instructions.

Shoe Cubby Dimensions

This tall shoe cubby can be easily adjusted to fit your space (like Kristi did below). The plans include detailed measurements to build a mail sorter cubby featuring 35 cubbies:

  • Overall dimensions: 55” W x 48” H x 11 ¼” D (9 ¼” at the base)
  • Individual cubby dimensions (interior): 7” W x 6” H x 9 ¼” D

 

Materials

This tall shoe cubby is built using 1×10, 1×12, and 1×3 boards, plus 1 1/4″-2 1/4″ trim molding.

If you have a narrow hallway or entryway, you can conserve a few inches of space by using 1×8 and 1×10 boards instead.

You’ll also need

  • 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws
  • 1 1/4″ – 1 1/2″ brad nails
  • wood glue
  • sandpaper
  • wood filler – optional
  • stain
  • polyurethane/top coat

Tools

You could make this shelf using just a hand saw and miter box with screws and glue/nails for assembly… but for joint strength and ease of cutting and accuracy (plus saving time!) we recommend these tools: 

  • Compound Miter Saw 
  • Jig Saw (or small hand saw)
  • Brad Nailer
  • Table Saw (optional)
  • Rafter Square
  • Kreg Jig (pocket hole jig)
  • Tape Measure
  • Pencil

Get the complete shoe cubby woodworking plans here.

 

Inspired by a vintage mail sorter, this DIY shoe cubby is the perfect piece of furniture to help you wrangle shoes. Free plans.

Reader-Built Mail Sorter Shoe Cubby Shelves

We love seeing readers use our plans to create great storage solutions and beautiful furniture for their homes!

If you’ve built something using our plans or inspired by something you’ve seen here on Remodelaholic, send us a brag post here. 

Dan’s Shoe Cubby

Our reader, Dan, used our plans to build a shoe cubby for his daughter. Turned out great! (January 2017)

Shoe Cubby, Mail Sorter Style, Reader Update On @Remodelahoilc

Here’s what Dan had to say:

I built the shoe cubby for my daughter’s house and she loves it in her redecorated entry way.  I used Kreg pocket screws and biscuits to join the shelves and partitions.  She stained the pine with white stain and 5 coats of polyurethane.

What a great gift, Dan. No wonder your daughter loves it! Thanks for sharing.

Kristi’s Narrow Shoe Cubby Organizer

Kristi was so inspired by Sara’s shoe organizer, that she headed to Home Depot for supplies and made her own!

From Kristi: We used 1×8’s for the cubbies and sides, a 1×10 for the top piece, a 1×2 under the top piece and a piece of decorative trim in front of that under the top lip!
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
I had to make mine fit between two doors, so it’s not exactly as Sara’s is.  Mine is 49.5″ wide and tall, and the cubbies are 6 5/8″ wide and 5 3/8″ tall (give or take a 16th here and there because we’re not perfect!) 
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
We cut out the back at the bottom so it would fit flush with the wall over the baseboards and then mounted it to the wall into studs because it’s so narrow that it could easily fall if bumped.
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
 how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic
We absolutely LOVE the shoe cubby and my girls are so thankful that they don’t have to carry their shoes to their bedroom closets anymore!  (Where they always ended up in a pile anyway!)
how to build a vintage style mail sorter to organize shoes @Remodelaholic

Get the printable plans to build a tall shoe cubby shelf
 

Check out more building plans from Hertoolbelt

DIY Shoe-shelf bench console table with scroll legs sq DIY kid step stool for bathroom

Shoe Shelf Bench // Scroll Console Table // Kid’s Step Stool

More shoe storage ideas:

  • Build a rotating shoe rack
  • Easy entryway storage bench
  • DIY wood shoe storage ladder
  • Build a shoe cubby bench
  • 10 more ways to store and organize shoes

Build your own vintage mail sorter shoe cubby organizer, inspired by a thrifted piece, with free building plans on Remodelaholic.com

Published 21 Dec 2015 // Updated 07 Jan 2021

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
Remodelaholic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Please see our full disclosure here.

Published: December 21, 2015Filed Under: DIY Project Plans, Furniture Building Projects and Plans, Guest Bloggers, Sketches/Renderings, Tutorials Tagged: building plans, Clean' n Organized, creative storage, entryway, Holiday Guest Series, mudroom, Mudrooms, Organization, organized spaces, Organizing, shoes, Storage, storage solutions, woodworking plans

About Amy Baesler

Amy is the tool lover at Hertoolbelt. On Hertoolbelt, Amy shares DIY furniture plans, handyman tutorials, and craft patterns. She has two pint sized 'helpers' that help fix things around the house and build fun projects.


free email bonus

Kitchen Organization Boot Camp

Is your kitchen a zen paradise? It can be. I'll show you how.

Previous Post
Inspiration File: Historic and Exclusive New Mexico Home
Next Post
Beautiful Tiled Fireplace and Mantel Update

Comments

  1. Sara Davis says

    December 21, 2015 at 7:05 am

    This is so exciting! Thank you Remodelaholic for sharing and organizing the plans for the DIY vintage mail sorter shoe cubby. I wish I had Kristi and Amy’s skills! The plans look fabulous. Way to go, ladies!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      December 21, 2015 at 9:24 am

      Thanks so much for letting us share, Sara!

      Reply
  2. Rolene says

    December 22, 2015 at 7:49 am

    I store a lot of jewelry supplies in plastic shoe boxes. I have been looking for some way to organized those boxes with easy access and this would be perfect!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      December 22, 2015 at 8:48 pm

      Ooh, that would be perfect!

      Reply
  3. Patti says

    December 22, 2015 at 8:14 am

    I was so excited when I realized there were actual plans and not just a repurposing of something most of us will never be able to find! I do have a glitch though. Most of these cute projects are not usable in my home. I have baseboard heat and no one ever takes that into consideration when making these projects. Maybe you ladies will keep that in mind and come up with a solution. I’m sure others have baseboard heaters too!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      December 23, 2015 at 9:03 am

      Hi Patti,
      For this plan, I’d just suggest leaving the legs off and mounting the cubby on the wall above the heaters at an appropriate height (check your heater documentation for the info about that distance). You can use a cleat like we used on the headboard here: https://www.remodelaholic.com/head-of-the-board-headboard-tutorial/

      Hope that helps. Thanks for the comment!

      Reply
  4. Kristi Hutton says

    December 22, 2015 at 8:47 am

    The plans turned out so well… I kinda want to build another one now! Thanks for including me in this awesome DIY!

    Reply
    • Cass says

      December 22, 2015 at 8:47 pm

      Thank you for your help, Kristi!!

      Reply
  5. Sarah says

    December 22, 2015 at 2:46 pm

    Thank you for the plans for this beautiful organizer. Do I spy that you also painted the electrical panel? I plan to start on this right away, and my panel is also right where it is going. It is such an eyesore! This should work great in our narrow hallway!

    Reply
  6. Sarah Horsfall says

    January 22, 2016 at 3:03 pm

    It looks gorgeous and perfect for what I want. It will be my first project but I’m really stuck on something. I don’t understand how to attach the dividers to the 2 1/4 ” top frame. Where and how to I put the brad nails in? I understand how to bang in the brad nails underneath as you have clearly marked this on the drawing. This also goes for all of the dividers at the top. Do I bang the brad nails in at an angle, going into the divider and up into the above shelf? Thanks for your help.

    Reply
    • Amy Baesler says

      January 22, 2016 at 10:27 pm

      Hi Sarah,
      On the top row of dividers, nail through the 2 1/4″ board into the dividers. On the rest of the dividers you can ‘toenail’ them in on an angle like you are talking about. Really, the top nails are to hold them in place until the glue dries.

      Reply
  7. Bob Baker says

    November 7, 2016 at 4:07 pm

    What are pocket hole screws

    Reply
  8. Chana P says

    November 16, 2016 at 4:27 am

    I love this. I am not a handy person, so I will probably hire someone to build this for me. Thank you for including plans! This will definitely lower the cost.

    Reply
    • Cass says

      November 17, 2016 at 2:32 pm

      We’d love to see pictures when it’s built! Thanks for the comment, Chana.

      Reply
  9. Amanda says

    December 30, 2016 at 8:38 am

    Do adult size shoes fit in these?

    Reply
  10. Rachel says

    January 10, 2017 at 11:40 am

    Hello,

    I love this plan and want to build this as I have been looking for a vintage mail sorter for my entryway. Problem is they are either too expensive or too tall or wide. I have one question, I would like to build this and finish like the original in picture. Do you have instructions with colors how to make it look like the original photo. It looks vintage and that is exactly what I want! Hope you can help!!!

    Reply
  11. Bob says

    November 10, 2017 at 6:18 am

    Would like to know if they would build me ONE? Just a little smaller size.

    Reply
    • Cass says

      November 14, 2017 at 5:22 pm

      Hi Bob,
      We don’t build these to sell, but there are talented woodworkers all around that do, and any of them can use our plans and make the modifications like you’d like.

      Reply
  12. Meghan says

    June 11, 2018 at 9:06 am

    What stain color was used for this shelf? Thank you!

    Reply
  13. Liz says

    July 12, 2018 at 8:15 am

    My husband and I just made this for our mudroom and we love it!! As written it would have been slightly too wide to fit so we made it only 6 cubbies across (and made the cubbies slightly wider). I think the photo that shows the pieces of wood and all the cuts you have an extra board in there! Just wanted to let you know.

    Reply
    • Cass says

      July 14, 2018 at 10:40 am

      Thanks for letting us know! We’ll double check everything again. We’d love to see a pic of what you built! You can email us at [email protected] or upload a pic here: https://www.remodelaholic.com/share-brag-post/

      Reply
  14. Jill Camargo says

    July 28, 2018 at 11:01 am

    Hello, I am just gathering supplies to start the shoe cubby I read through the instructions fully for the first time and on step 3 second sentence, and subsequent steps….”use wood glue and brad nails to secure the dividers into place”. From where? If the row of dividers is directly above you cannot nail down, at they put in at an angle? From where? Everything else looks great. Thanks.

    Reply
  15. Lisa says

    March 22, 2019 at 6:36 pm

    Hi, I am new to this furniture building thing, and I read that you need a clamp for pocket screws. I can’t figure out how a clamp would work with this piece. Any hints?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you have followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you have seen here, we would love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.
Recipe Rating




Hey there, I am Cassity! Nice to virtually meet you!

This blog is about DIY at its finest. We are obsessed with it and so are you, so while we're working and have nothing to show you of our own projects we show off yours. So submit your projects! More About Us…

Categories

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Meet The Team

Privacy Policy

Remodelaholic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Please see our full disclosure here.

© 2005-2016 Remodelaholic LLC, All Rights Reserved

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2021 · Remodelaholic

  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Twitter