Like literally, I have five folders on my desktop of projects to share and I don't know which to share first as I'm excited about each and every one. smh....
See, so point being, whatever dilemma you're having whether it's a design direction, how to rearrange the furniture, too many design ideas, too few, or a life puzzle, be patient as the answer will come.
Dowels are frankly fantastic if you ask me. They're inexpensive and bursting with mad potential. Stare at one long enough, you'll think of a million uses.
Generally speaking, in my case, most often, ideas and projects stem from a need.
In this instance, I have low-key long needed a spot for jewelry in our bathroom.
Too, Mike bought me this eye-poppingly cool necklace by Provenance Creations* that I spotted at the Handmade Market while there selling my wares and I wanted to display it so I could gaze at it every day.
Turns out Mike is a big fan of this wall hanging art jewelry holder gizmo thingie. Big fan, he says. He commented right when he spotted it and has mentioned it a few times since. Unprompted. Yeah. Quite unusual for him. So, happy dance!
Of course my requirements list was long. Shatterproof. Doesn't take up counter or other space. Holds a variety pack of different types of items. Is not huge. Not a focus-grabber. Is attractive. Fuss-free. Uncomplicated. Minimal. Modern.
Damn, I am a picky mo-fo.
Usually I set stuff on the counter and have, on occasion, accidentally knocked it off. Stuff scurries under the vanity or scampers away, causing panic. I mean, where are they really going to go but still.
What distinguishes this from other wall mount or hanging jewelry holders you might find on the interwebs?
Well, this one is made of ubiquitous inexpensive dowels for one thing but most importantly, I wanted this to be artful on its own. If it’s sans jewelry, it ought to look like a piece of art.
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| The alcohol ink piece on the right is by my mom and you can find her site here. |
So something up off the counter, looks nice, and is safely out of harm's way was key.
What do we need for this project? Not much, my friends:
- dowels* -- square and round, various thicknesses
- wood glue* (or hot glue or whatever glue you prefer for wood)
- screw-in eye hooks*
- leather cord*
- spray sealer* (or paint or stain or a finish you prefer), optional
- drill bits*
- hand saw*
- miter box*
Those last two...I used my miter saw and band saw to cut the dowels but if you are sans power tools, not an issue at all, just use those hand tools listed.
So real easy here, my friends.
After picking up a pawful of dowels o'er at Menards, I kind of had a notion in my head how I wanted this design to play out. Turns out, some of the dowels I purchased had unique color variations so featuring that was key too.
First I chopped two larger square pieces some random lengths. Truly just random, but based on the space available between the mirror frame and wall, proportionally speaking. So the longer piece is 10" and the shorter is 7", just so happens.
I snipped a 1/4" square dowel about 7" long to span horizontally and hold the previous two pieces together.
With the band saw,* I snipped out 1/4" deep notches on both pieces and slotted the dowel into it. Snipped a little too large in fact so a few dabs of wood glue solved that problem.
Next I trimmed a few other pieces and glued them on though here with Gorilla glue* as I hadn't planned ahead to notch out for these unfortunately despite meaning to.
A pair of holes for some little dowel pegs, and voila, modern art jewelry holder decor!
As you've deduced by now, you can fully customize this concept to fit your needs and space, make it whatever size, however many dowels, any design you'd like. Paint, stain, whatever, totally up to you.
To finish this off, I gave the wood a few sprays of a clear sealer then drilled holes in the tops of the larger square pieces.
With a thin screwdriver, I twisted in tiny eye hooks until nice and tight.
Clip a length of leather cord or whatever hanging material you prefer like twine or string or ribbon or what-have-you, string it through the eyehooks, tie tight knots...
...bang a nail into the wall and ah HA, I now I have myself an incredibly handy DIY hanging wall art jewelry holder made of simple, easy dowels that's also artful decor unto itself.
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| Here's where it lives in the bathroom. It's just impossible to photograph things in this house. |
Mike Approved!
Have fun!
*The dowels, wood glue, eyehooks, leather cord, spray sealer, drill bits, hand saw, miter box, and Gorilla glue links are Amazon affiliate links. The Provenance Creations link is an Etsy affiliate link. The band saws are a Home Depot affiliate link. Mwah, thanks! Please see the "boring stuff" tab for more info.
Boy that's instant gratification, my favorite kind of project. If it's something that requires a lot of planning, tools and time, chances are, it will remain a bookmark only to be stumbled upon once in a blue moon while bookmarking newer, shinier projects.
ReplyDeleteLove how that turned out. And if Mike gets you more jewelry, you can just add more dowels or square pieces and make it a growing installation.
So many fun possibilities...now if I only had more wall space.
Yeah, this took me all of maybe 15 minutes to assemble so instant gratification indeed. I hear you -- the shorter, quicker, fast projects tend to get done in a snap around here while the longer, more involved tend to linger.
DeleteAnd you're so right, I didn't see it until you mentioned it but yes, I can totally add on to this as needed, thank you for that! How cool, thanks!