Handypanda

So if you want pretty decent-looking shelving that is not the usual geek unfinished pine, here's one thing you can do. It has the advantage of being cheap; it's also handy if you have typical old Massachusetts house sloping floors which wind up making traditional bookshelves lean precariously into the room. I did not do this all by myself; cityofbeige was crucial for tool knowledge and actually doing about 75% of the work, and michele_blue suggested the idea in the first place. ( Here's the scoop. )

Or you can skip to the professional explanation, but you miss my pictures.