2 answers

★ Best answer

It really depends on what kind of decoration you want in your space. I bought floating shelves a few years ago for my apartment and I really loved them at first, but then I started noticing things I didn't like as much. What's true is that they look more modern and clean, and obviously take up less visual space, which is great if your room or living room is small. The problem is they're harder to install properly, you need to find the studs in the wall (or call someone to do it for you), and if they're not perfectly straight you notice it right away. Plus, when you want to change your layout, they leave holes in the wall that you have to patch up afterwards.

Traditional shelves have their charm too. They're more stable, you can load more weight without worrying, and installation is generally easier. My mom has some of those at her house for years now and they're still solid. What's true is they take up more space and can look heavier visually, but that's not always bad depending on your style.

My recommendation is that you think about what you're going to store. If it's just decoration, light books, plants and stuff like that, floating shelves are fine. But if you want to put heavy things like college textbooks or big collections, I'd go with traditional ones. And also think about your patience for installation, because that matters at the end of the day.

I'm the type to really check things out before spending money, so when I was thinking about this recently for my place I ended up measuring weight and everything. Floating shelves look more modern and clean, but honestly it depends on how much stuff you're gonna put on them and how solid your wall is. If you load them up with too much weight or the wall isn't solid, you'll regret it later when they start sagging or everything just falls down. Traditional shelves are more boring to look at but they're a safe bet, especially if you don't wanna be dealing with reinforcements every couple months.

Your answer

Log into answer.