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Shelving
5 products
A home office fills up faster than any other room, and usually in a house where drilling into the wall is either awkward or not allowed. Everything in this range is freestanding, so it adds shelf metres without a single fixing.
The pieces are teak and reclaimed wood: a six-shelf display unit on castors, three- and four-tier corner units at 90cm and 135cm, a 100cm log shelf and a folding A-frame that puts away flat. Heights run 98cm to 180cm, depths 23cm to 40cm, prices £121 to £390.
Natural Folding Wooden A-Frame Shelf – Brown | Kaiku
From £121
Natural Teak Corner Shelf Unit – 3 Tier Display Stand 90cm | Kaiku
From £295
Natural Teak Log Shelf Display – 3 Tier 100cm | Kaiku
From £325
Natural Teak Corner Shelf Unit – 4 Tier Display Stand 135cm | Kaiku
From £350
Reclaimed Teak Six Shelf Display Unit with Castors | Kaiku
From £390
How to choose
Work out the shelf metres you need before the style. A metre of shelf holds roughly 25 to 30 books or eight or nine box files, and box files are 32cm tall — which rules out any unit with shelves closer together than that.
Use the corner. In a room that also has a desk, a window and a door, the corner is the only floor that is not on somebody's route, and a 3- or 4-tier corner unit turns it into four surfaces.
Watch the depth against the desk chair. You need to be able to push back and stand up: leave about 90cm behind the desk, and where that is tight take the 23cm-deep pieces rather than the 40cm ones.
Load heavy low. Paper is dense — a full box file weighs a couple of kilos and a metre of them is a serious load. Keep files and reference books on the bottom shelves and the light things at the top, especially on a wheeled unit.
Common questions
- Will box files fit these shelves?
- Only where the shelf gap exceeds 32cm, which is a standard box file's height. Check the internal shelf spacing on the product page rather than the unit's overall height.
- Do I need to fix the shelving to the wall?
- No — all of it is freestanding, which is the point in a rented or awkwardly-walled study. Load the bottom shelves heaviest so the unit sits stable, particularly the one on castors.
- How much shelf do I need?
- A metre holds roughly 25 to 30 books or eight to nine box files. Count what is currently in piles on the floor and add half again — a study fills the shelving you give it.
- Is a wheeled unit stable enough for books?
- Yes, with the weight kept low. Put the reference books and files on the bottom shelves and keep the top for light items, and lock or chock the castors if the floor is not level.