From Embarrassing to Exotic: How I Salvaged My Zoom Backdrop with Mahogany Shelves

Like so many professionals, my world has moved onto Zoom. While I love the chance to connect with clients, share my screen, and build relationships, there was one persistent problem: my embarrassing backdrop. For months, I’ve been staring at a plain white wall punctuated by holes and a leaning wire rack. I knew it was time for a change.

That’s when I decided to transform my office space, and the solution came from an unexpected source: genuine mahogany tree stumps.
I was fortunate to partner with Elements Wood Imports, a small family importer of exotic woods from the island of St. Lucia, which sponsored this project. They provided me with a few of their beautiful offcuts, which they thought I could turn into a decorative art piece. I saw an opportunity to create something both functional and beautiful—a set of floating decorative shelves.

My vision was to square off the top of each stump to create a flat surface, while sculpting the raw, branch-cut areas into a smooth, organic shape. The first challenge was taming these irregular forms. Since there wasn’t a single square edge to be found, I had to build a custom jig to safely flatten one side on the bandsaw. It wasn’t perfect—there was a little flex in the middle—but for a wall-hanging piece, I was confident it would work.

After successfully flattening one side, I faced the next task: deciding how the shelf would hang. I needed a level top, so I carefully measured and made a straight cut to remove the uneven peak. A few passes with a hand plane cleaned up the band saw marks, revealing the rich, ingrained mahogany beneath. It was a workout, but the result was worth it.

Next, I moved on to the most artistic part of the process: sculpting. Using a belt sander, I worked my way down the rough chainsaw marks, smoothing the wood and blending the natural edge of the bark with the raw cuts. My goal was to highlight the beautiful wood grain and a unique spark inclusion, allowing the true character of the mahogany to shine through.

With the sculpting complete, it was time to engineer the “floating” part. I built another small jig to carefully route out a slot in the back of each sculpted stump. Into this slot, I glued and stapled a French cleat—a simple but strong mounting system. A matching cleat would be attached to the wall, allowing the shelf to hang securely and seamlessly.

To complement the organic shelves, I also squared up some additional mahogany beams from Elements Wood Imports and routed French cleats into them as well, creating a set of simple, modern shelves.

The final step was the gallery wall installation. I used painter’s tape to find the center of picture frames without marking them and employed mollies to securely hang the shelves where they couldn’t align with wall studs. The process required patience, carefully drilling into the drywall to avoid any hidden pipes or wires.

The final result has completely transformed my Zoom background. It’s no longer an embarrassing white wall but a curated, conversational space. My clients love it, and it’s been a fantastic conversation starter. I get to share the story of the genuine mahogany, its journey from St. Lucia, and the great work done by my friends at Elements Wood Imports.
In the end, this project was more than just a DIY fix; it was a way to bring a piece of the world into my home office.

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