Back of the drop-shelf a strip of wood two inches wide is fastened to the wall by means of a wall-plate securely screwed to the studding, and two vertical plates one inch thick make an anchorage for the brackets. The latter are attached by means of flat hinges, and the shelf proper is also hinged to the two-inch wall-plate. All these parts must be screwed very solidly together if the safety of the household crockery is to be considered.
Cup-pins and Brush-rack
In the butler’s pantry or near the kitchen sink it is sometimes convenient to have a brush-rack and some cup-pins, on which cups, drinking-glasses, and small hollow-ware may be kept.
These are easily made, as the illustration (Fig. 11) will show. The cup-pins are dowels sawed in five-inch lengths, and then made fast to a square pine stick with slim screws passed through holes that have first been made with an awl. The rack is then attached to the wall with screws passed into the studs or uprights behind the plaster.
The brush-rack is made from two pine sticks, one of which is cut out in places, as shown in Fig. 12. The two sticks are then screwed together and supported on brackets. Brushes kept in a drawer or on a shelf do not dry properly, so that it is always best to place them where they have a free circulation of air.
Lock-shelves
In a cellar or store-room it is often convenient to have a portion of the shelves arranged so that their contents can be locked up. For this purpose Fig. 13 shows a slat door arranged in front of several shelves and hung on hinges. At the lower edge a hasp and eye may be made fast, so as to make a padlock available.
Fig. 13. Fig. 14.
The slats are from one-half to seven-eighths of an inch thick and two inches wide; they are fastened to battens with clinch-nails or screws driven from the inside. A smart boy can make any number of these doors so as to lock up a whole lot of shelving, but for convenience of handling they should not be more than four feet long.