Jewelry Board DIY

Hi everyone! Before I leave tonight (tonight! TONIGHT!) for Amsterdam, I thought I would post a quick DIY about a craft I made a while ago. I made it before I even created CanvasAndCrumpets, which is why I never thought to write about it before. But it’s an item that has stayed with me through three years of university, and never fails to impress all who walk into my room. ( “Oh my God did you make that?” is probably my favorite sentence in the english language ).

That item, ladies and gentlemen, is a jewelry board.

The best thing about having a jewelry board is that you can see everything you own. I actually have two of these, and they house all my gems and baubles that come up with me to Tufts each year. They also take up very little space, as opposed to so many of the unwieldy boxes that used to crowd my bureau. Here’s a DIY to show you how to streamline your collection into a beautiful display:

Materials

-Sand paper

-Exacto knife

-Ruler

-Plain wooden frame(s)

-Cork board that is bigger than the frame(s)

-White paint

-Gloss clear acrylic coating

-Wood glue

-Tons of newspapers (this is a messy project)

-Heavy books

-Thumbtacks (not the round head kind, but the kind that extend outwards)

-A pile of jewelry

Instructions

Step 1: Lay out a ton of newspapers and put some Billy Joel on Spotify.

Step 1: Sand the frame until it is soft and smooth.

Step 2: Paint the frame and a piece of cork board with two coats of acrylic paint. Let dry for an hour between coats.

Step 3: When dry, coat the frame with a clear glossy acrylic coating. Let dry overnight.

Step 4: Flip your frame onto its back. Measure the length and width not of the frame itself, but the picture that is meant to go inside. You can also measure the cheesy stock photo that probably comes inside your frame.

Step 5: Trace a rectangle onto a piece of cork board with the measurements you have just found.  Cut this rectangle out using an exacto knife. Try not to cut off your fingers. 😀

Step 6: Smear wood glue all over the inside of the frame. Fit the cork board on top. It should fit as if you are putting a picture inside the frame.

Step 7: Place some heavy book on top to keep the frame and cork together while the glue dries. Let dry at least overnight.

Step 8: Turn your frame over. It should be completely connected the cork. Start putting in thumbtacks where you would like to hang jewlery. The nice thing about this is you can hang the tacks wherever you want- super high to accommodate a long necklace, or really close together if you have a  ton of short earrings.

Now, I was content to simply lean my frames against the wall, on top of my bureau. Freshman year I put a few small, pretty boxes in front to keep it weighted properly. Other suggestions include: buying an iron frame holder that can support the weight of your jewelry, or attaching a hook to the top of the wooden frame so that it can be hung on a wall. Perhaps when I graduate and am allowed to drill nails in my walls, I will do the same. On the other hand, next year I may make a whole new jewelry hanging contraption! Stay tuned…

 

xoxo, Chloe <3