I bought this shelf to create a lighting space for my plants. I was concerned that the layer height was too low for my plants. BUT with this shelf you can actually adjust the height to your liking! See photo, this is how you put the layer on the shelf. I won't put too heavy things on the shelf because this design doesn't lend itself to too much weight. But for my plants it is just perfect! (It even has 2 hooks and I use them to hang my XDS hanging pots so I'm happy with this purchase.