We were constantly tripping over shoes and boots in the laundry room, which provides access to the garage and the basement. So we made use of a wall in the basement stairway for storing them. The shelves were cut from old particle board left over from some rickety shelving units that we got rid of. The uprights are 2 x 4 (nominal) knotty pine with slots cut for the shelves so they can be repositioned as desired. They're spaced 16 inches apart so they could be securely screwed into the wall studs. I spaced the shelves 5-1/2 inches apart which is enough for most shoes. Removing a shelf provides enough space for hiking boots. The shelves are painted and the uprights are finished with boiled linseed oil.