yesterday i was sitting in the living room looking at my fluffy co. key rack and thought to myself- wouldn’t it be fun to have a few more of these around the house for other hanging objects like kitchen aprons and necklaces? so i started looking online for something that had the sort of pattern i was looking for and couldn’t find any (though i did find these lovely key racks by erin lang norris). so i figured, why not make one myself? i’m always looking projects that lets me take advantage of the absurdly huge collection of gift wrap i have around so i gathered up my supplies and created my own “custom” key racks using the same dwell pattern paper i used for my jewelry shadow boxes. start to finish it took about 5-6 minutes per rack and cost maybe $5 for all four. the options for decorating something like this are endless but for this specific style and the basic instructions click here to rest of the post with details (or just click “read more” below).
[thanks again to dwell for sending out such great press pads- i’ve been using that paper for a different project every other day. it’s tragically cute.]
what you’ll need:
-small piece(s) of wood cut to your desired size (i bought a small board and had it cut evenly into four pieces appx. 6 inches by 4 inches)
-glue (i used mod podge glue)
-triangle ring hangers or saw-tooth hangers (available in picture frame aisle of your local hardware store)
-small round screw hooks
-gift wrap or decorative paper
-scissors
-nail for hanging on the wall
-hammer
1. sand down your pieces of wood and clean them thoroughly with a damp cloth or paper towel. make sure they’re dry before you proceed.
2. nail one triangle ring hanger or saw-tooth hanger to the back of each piece of wood, about 1 inch from the top (so the hanger won’t be visible).
3. if you’d like to cover the sides of the wood, measure the paper to be about 1 inch wider and longer than your piece of wood. paint the front of the wood with a thin layer of mod podge and place your paper, centered, on top. press down and fold the edges neatly around to the back. let dry (you can use a staple gun or small nails to hold the paper in place while you wait if necessary).
[if you don’t care about the sides of the wood piece showing- or have chosen to paint them a different color- simply cut the paper to fit the front of the wood and paste into place. there won’t be anything to fold over and secure. let dry and proceed to step 5]
4. once dry, cover the paper surface and as much of the wood on the back as you’d like with mod podge to finish it off. if you’d prefer to have a matte surface and not glossy just use the mod podge or regular glue to secure the paper to the wood.
5. gather as many small screw hooks (for keys, jewelry, etc.) as you’d like to fit on your rack and gently tap (with a nail and hammer) and indentation into each spot where you’d like to have a screw. then use the nail hole to start the screw and simply screw each hook into the wood.
[if you’d like the hooks to be on the front of the wood board and not hang underneath like i’ve done simply tap your nail holes and screws into the front of the board and not the bottom]
6. use the hanger on the back of the wood to secure each rack to the wall with a nail and you’re done!
notes: there are so many ways you could decorate the board. here are a few i plan on trying next- stencils, hand painting, fabric (it would need to be thin and staple-gunned to the wood), collage, stamps or paper cut. i’d love to print out a monogrammed “A” and “G” and mod podge them onto wood for ac and myself. the possibilities are endless.
cost:
-wooden board (anywhere from $2-$10 at your local hardware or home supply store, if you don’t have one lying around like i did)
-screws and hooks (i bought packs 2 packs of 4 for each totaling $3.50)
-gift wrap (i bought single sheets at a craft store for $0.75 each. but you could use pricer wraps that range up to $15 a roll)
total: anywhere from $5-$20 depending on what you already have at home. but not bad for a fun afternoon project!