Library Ladder Upgrade: A DIY Kid’s Room Storage Hack

We are back in my daughter‘s room for another fun DIY project! We’ve lived in our house for several years, and I have loved slowly making it our own. Simple projects like paint, decorative trim and wallpaper, and hanging a cool swing from the ceiling can completely transform a space from an average kids’ room to a thoughtful, beautiful space. For our next simple upgrade, I’m very excited to share our library ladder DIY project.

As with any project I do in my house, I learned something very important during this DIY. Do not start a project when my husband is home! I’m kidding, of course. But it’s safe to say he and I have differing levels of comfort with drilling into 100-year-old Victorian plaster walls. I’m gung ho, and he’s perhaps a little more cautious.

But, even though it took a little convincing, everyone in the family agrees that this library ladder DIY project is a perfect addition to Arden‘s room.

A Fun Solution to a Simple Problem!

Earlier this year, I installed an IKEA system in my daughter’s closet. It took a dull and inefficient closet from zero to wow! However, even as beautiful as her closet looks, it’s still difficult for her to access some of the items hung at the top of her closet. The same goes for the built-in bookcase to the left of the closet. She was having trouble reaching the high shelves.

So it got me wondering how to make it accessible for Arden to reach all of her clothes and books independently. I mulled it over for a couple of months and came up with the idea of a library ladder. What little girl doesn’t want the opportunity to reenact Belle from Beauty and the Beast every morning getting ready for school?

Then, miraculously, someone on Facebook marketplace was selling this ladder. It included the rail system that attaches to the wall, mounting brackets, ladder hooks, and rolling hardware. It was a total steal, so I snatched it up immediately.

A great feature of this library ladder is that it can both stand at an angle to enable you to climb it safely and then lean straight up against the wall when you’re done. This feature means that it doesn’t take up a lot of floor space. You can see this in the photo below. The ladder is tucked neatly up against the bookshelf and out of the way of her swing. I would not recommend this in the bedroom of little kids because the ladder does completely come off of the wall. But at Arden’s age, I feel very safe with it in her room.

How to Hang a Library Ladder

Fortunately, this library ladder came with all of the pieces that I needed to hang out on the wall. As you can see in the picture below, there is a long piece of trim and on top of that piece of wood is attached a bar that expands across the entire closet all the way to the wall with the window. 

After doing some research, I have not found any kits for sale that include the stained wooden trim board. The previous owner purchased a library ladder kit and made the trim board himself. If you like that feature, I put a close-up below so you can see what it looks like. In my case, the wood trim piece is actually very helpful. It enables the ladder to stand out in front of the existing trim above the closet and bookshelves and it was the exact length that I needed! Without the piece of wood, the ladder would bump into the trim and probably not fit in our space.

The fact that this library ladder kit is a perfect fit and the wood was stained the exact same colors as her doors is a complete miracle. As I said, I got this second-hand. While I had a pretty good idea that it would fit, you never can be sure until you have it in the space.

Drilling and Hanging

Because the board was previously used, there were already screw holes where it needed to be attached to the wall. In order to decide where to drill, I held up the board and centered it across the top of the closet doors and bookshelf. Unless you have very long arms, this part is a two-person job. I had a friend in town who held up the board for me. Then, I used a pen and very gently poked through the existing holes to make a little mark on the wall behind it. When we pulled the board away, it was very clear where the holes needed to be drilled.

This was the point where my darling husband just happened to walk in. He wasn’t exactly thrilled I was drilling our plaster walls. However, he did give me some good tips on tools to use to make this a safer install. I went to Lowe’s and purchased some plaster anchors, which are also called butterfly anchors. When using wall anchors, you want to start by drilling pilot holes. This helps prevent the wall from cracking as you insert the anchor. 

Once I got the anchors secured into place, we screwed the board into the wall and hung the ladder. Although you can’t tell from the photos, I waited until my dad was in town to finish this project. Projects like this are always easier with two sets of hands, and my dad loves a project (or maybe he just humors me)!

Pretty and Practical

The picture above is the view you get as you walk in the door to her bedroom. You can see the ladder in the distance, but it’s really not taking up a lot of space. My biggest concern with this project was that it would be difficult to maneuver or become a tripping hazard in her room.

It’s taken a little bit of practice, but Arden can safely manipulate the ladder on her own and can now access all of her clothes and even the books on her top shelf independently.

But the most important thing about this library ladder DIY project is that it raises the cuteness factor of her room by at least 10 points.

Make Your Home Your Own!

This project was extremely simple to take on. If you’re brand new to working on projects in your home, I highly recommend a library ladder DIY project. It’s such an easy way to personalize your space. And it adds a bit of unexpected charm in a way that is totally functional and still respects the historic character of our home.

My daughter loves her ladder, and I can see her using it for many years to come. Even when she’s old enough to reach the top of her closet, I can imagine using the ladder rungs as a blanket ladder. I can also imagine a host of different spaces where a ladder like this would be very beneficial. For example, if you’re building out a home library or just want to add some built-in bookshelves in your living room, this would be a great addition!

If you would like to learn more about DIY your home, follow along here and on my social media accounts. And most importantly, Arden wants me to remind you that no boys are allowed.