I’ve never been a jewelry person, especially necklaces and bracelets. However after we moved, I realized I had more jewelry than I originally thought. I’m not a fan of the traditional jewelry boxes you see, so I saw an idea in one of my home magazines (can’t find it to cite it at the moment) to use a cutlery tray to organize your necklaces and bracelets. I thought leaving it as-is was kind of boring and used my craftiness to jazz it up a bit and I’m going to show you how.
What you’ll need is as follows:
Cutlery Tray
Various Scrapping Papers
Decorative knobs and pulls
Drill (with correct size bit)
Double-sided permanent adhesive
Exacto Knife
Ruler or straight-edge
Tape measure
Sand paper
Paint
Jigsaw (or small hand-saw)
Wood glue
Wood molding
Masking tape
As you can see, I added wood molding to the surface of mine, but that requires extra steps of sanding, sawing, and gluing. So if you have the knowledge and the tools to do that, it gives it a little extra flair, but you can keep it easy and simple and omit that part, thus omitting the last four to six supplies. I’m going to include my steps just in case you’re wanting to do the same.
First you’re going to drill your holes to place the knobs. I placed mine about an inch down and marked the spot with a pen, then drilled with a drill bit large enough to accommodate the screws for the knobs.
Next, you’ll want to cut the molding pieces. They were cut to match up in the corners, which requires you sawing them at an angle. The easiest way to do this is to to measure the width (in this case, one-half inch) and then measure that distance down the back of the molding and mark it. Then draw a diagonal line from one corner to the opposite corner of where you marked it. Cut on the diagonal line.
After all your pieces are cut, you’ll piece them together by gluing them on the surface with the wood glue. You might need to sand your surface first if it has a finish it on it, so the glue will work and also so the paint will stick. If you have wood clamps you can use them, however I found it was much easier to just use masking tape. Tape all the wood pieces down, then turn the tray over so it’s laying face-down and pile some heavy books on top. Let dry for a few hours.
Once the glue has dried you’ll remove the tape and paint your tray. Make sure it is completely dry before going to the next step.
Next, you’re going to apply your paper. Measure out the spaces of the compartments and using your exacto knife and ruler or straight edge, you’re going cut out the pieces. You can use spray adhesive to place your papers but it can get really sticky and messy very quickly, so that’s why I like using double-sided tape. You’ll turn your paper over, line the sides with the tape and place in the compartments, pressing down firmly so the tape adheres.
Next you’re going to take your exacto knife and very carefully poke through the back to the front, to pierce the paper to place the knobs. (You could also wait to drill your spaces until you adhere your paper, omitting the first step. I was just afraid it would mess up my paper, but as long as you’re careful you should be fine.)
Add your knobs and voila! You have a pretty and functional jewelry organizer.
Julie Nickerson says:
You are so CRAFTY!!! I love it! I wish we lived closer, I would pop in your little craft room and have so much fun!!! (Listen, to me, just inviting myself over!)
I LOVE IT!!! But that is too much work for me. What I did with all my necklaces (because I LOVE chunky necklaces so I have a tone) is I picked up some really cute wrought iron hooks from Pier One and hung them on one of my bedroom walls. It looks colorful and fun and I can easily find my necklaces.
October 22nd, 2008 at 3:54 am
AmyG says:
That’s so cute! What a fun project.
October 22nd, 2008 at 5:33 am
EmmaNadine says:
I asked for a jewelry chest for Christmas, and now I kind of hope I don’t get it so I can make this!
Or I’ll just have to get more jewelry so I can make this. That may be a better idea.
October 22nd, 2008 at 7:35 am
Rachel says:
That is so cute…I think it is awesome that you can come up with such amazing stuff all by yourself. I would like to think I can follow directions as good as the next person, but your creativity is AMAZING!
October 22nd, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Erin says:
This is adorable! I HATE my jewelry box, mainly because I haven’t really worn much jewelry lately and when I go looking for something it’s all in a jumbled mess. This is a VERY cute idea to organize it all!
I’m too lazy to be crafty. haha After a long day of dealing with bratty high schoolers and then taking care of my toddler in the evening, all I want to do with my free time is lounge around, watch TV or read.
October 22nd, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Merrie says:
I love this — way more pretty and clever than what I did here: http://sleeplessmornings.blogspot.com/2008/09/how-i-spent-my-weekend.html
No matter what, isn’t it nice to be able to find your jewelry when you want it? What organizing it all made me realize is how much pink jewelry I have, and I barely wear pink these days. Someone needs to go shopping…
October 22nd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
bee says:
When I’m a millionaire, I’m hiring you as my personal crafter, after I hire the chef, housekeeper, and personal trainer, of course!
You seriously rule! And you may be a little bit psychic. We had to rearrange our bedroom and I was just looking at my old “traditional” jewelry box and hoping to figure out a way I could get rid of it!
October 23rd, 2008 at 7:10 am
Wendy says:
That is a very cute idea and I like it for metal pieces. Please be careful with items that are strung on cord, such as silk, particularly if it is vintage at all and or has a lot of heft to it. When I learned to make jewelry specifically items strung with cord we were taught to lay the pieces flat because hanging them such as you have them adds stress to the cord and will speed up the deterioration of the cord and well then you have beads everywhere. When you wear necklaces that are strung your neck and chest are there to provide support to the cord so there is not as much stress as there would be if you hang it from a hook. I hope I don’t deter anyone because I do like the idea I just wanted to give everyone an FYI.
October 23rd, 2008 at 11:12 am
Rachel says:
This is the most creative organizer I’ve seen in a long time! I love it, and I love your blog! I’ll be linking to this project and adding you so I don’t miss a thing!
October 23rd, 2008 at 11:53 am
Mamaphunk says:
I just found this via Craft Magazine, this is genius!! I can’t wait to make one!!!
October 23rd, 2008 at 2:11 pm
steph says:
This is a pretty great idea, considering I run a website for a hardware store.
Unfortunately most of our hardware is prohibitively expensive for a project like this, but if you can find the materials for cheap (or have them leftover from something) it’s an excellent idea!
(linked via Craft)
October 23rd, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Laurel Plum says:
I just found your site through Craft magazine. I LOVE this idea. Now I’m going to look around your site to see what other clever things I can find. Thank you for the tutorial!
October 24th, 2008 at 1:20 am
Lauren says:
Lovesit! Beautiful! This idea came at the perfect time, too. I relate to not being a jewelry person yet finding a surprising amount of jewelry all crumpled into a ball in my closet. Absolutely none of the DIY ideas I’ve seen have resonated with me, but I fell in love with this at first sight. I haven’t been feeling terribly crafty lately either, but I am so excited to do this project. Thanks for the inspo and tutorial Candace. You rule!
October 24th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
Tara says:
So cute! I LOVE your blog! Where did you buy the cutlery tray?
October 24th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
ella says:
I was just saying the other day that I needed to get one of those stand-up jewelry armoires to accomodate my necklaces - but this idea is way more affordable and cuter to boot! I could even put a picture hanger on the back and hang it on the wall next to my dresser. LOVE*IT
October 27th, 2008 at 11:30 am
Cary says:
Very cute! Found via StumbleUpon.
Awesome job.
October 27th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
Naomi says:
What a great idea, so cute!
October 27th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
Miina says:
Oooh, I love it!
I found some old cutlery tray in my kitchen cupboard and have been wondering what to do with it, because it’s wooden and hard to clean. I never thought I could dress it up and use for something fancy
October 28th, 2008 at 3:09 am
Teri says:
Gosh I never have anywhere to put my jewelery! I have it in so many different places… I LOVE this clever idea and it is so easy to do. It’s so nice because you can make it fit into any decor! Thanks for sharing such an interesting idea… looks like something you might buy in Anthropolgies.
November 2nd, 2008 at 8:13 am
Maria says:
Just… amazing .. I love it. Very imaginative. I hope you don’t mind that I translated your article into Spanish it’s a way that more people can know your great work. I will recommend to visit your site.
http://www.mariamatencio.com
November 2nd, 2008 at 10:26 am
Emily says:
I love this idea! I am going to have to do this with my messy jewelry.
November 3rd, 2008 at 6:43 am
geek+nerd says:
I’m definitely saving this tutorial for a rainy day. Thank you!
November 30th, 2008 at 6:22 am