A few years ago, my friend hosted a Pinterest party at her house. The idea was for everyone to bring their own Pinterest projects to her house so we could all work on them together. There are usually dozens of projects in my head or pinned to my Pinterest board but getting started is half the battle, so I loved the idea! Work on a project together with friends – sign me up.
The night of the party, I watched my friend work on her necklace board project. She has a ton of cute necklaces (I’m ALWAYS jealous of them!), but was looking for a better way to keep them organized. It seemed like a cool idea, but it wasn’t until I saw the final result that I was convinced that I needed one for myself.
This is one of those projects that has been in the works for far too long. It’s not a difficult project, but does require some tools and could seem a little overwhelming, which is why I have tried to be really detailed in some of the steps. I hope it helps. The good news is that I’m THRILLED with how it turned out and am so excited to share it with you today!
Supplies:
Tools Required:
angle grinder
Directions:
1. I started out by covering the MDF board (I had mine cut down to size at Home Depot) with scrapbook paper. I worked on one section of the board at a time, spreading the Mod Podge* in a thin layer, placing the scrapbook paper on the board, and then smoothing out the bubbles.
It looked a little something like this.
2. After all the scrapbook paper was on, I covered the entire board with Mod Podge*. I believe I may have done two coats, letting it dry in between. This makes it more durable. Let this dry overnight before proceeding.
3. Then it was time to add my decorative frame to the board. Since I had never used a miter saw, I worked really slowly to make sure I made the right cuts and in the right directions. First, I measured the length of each edge of the board, marking the moulding with pencil so that I would know where to make my cut.
Once I had the miter saw set to the correct 45 degree angle (in the correct direction for the corner I was working on), I made my cuts.
Tips for using a miter saw:
– Line up the saw blade and the pencil mark on the moulding before you turn on the saw.
– Make your cut slightly to the outside of the marked line. You can always shave a little more off if needed, but you can’t ever add anything back on if you cut off too much.
4. Use wood glue* to adhere each piece of moulding to the edge the board, clamping them down while drying. Let it dry overnight to make sure it is completely secure.
5. If you want to take it a step further, you can also nail through the moulding (which is what I did). Make sure to set the nails, fill in the holes with putty, and lightly sand before painting. (Tip: make sure you check the length of your nails so you they don’t come through the bottom of your MDF board). I painted two coats on the top of the moulding and a third coat on the sides.
6. Now it’s time to lay out your knobs on the board and mark where they should go. I even brought out some of my necklaces to make sure I was allowing for enough space for some of the longer ones.
7. The trickiest part of the project was getting the knobs onto the board. (Tip: If at all possible, I’d recommend you try to find cabinet knobs as it makes the process much simpler. Cabinet knobs require one drill hole all the way through the board and then the screw comes up through the back of the board and screws into the knob on the front of the board.) I had a variety of knobs, most that had to be screwed into the front of the board, which made the process a little more complicated.
Here’s how I made it work for me:
I took one knob at a time and had to cut the screw down with our angle grinder. The screw for each knob was slightly shorter then the depth of MDF, so that it would not come through the board once I screwed in the knob. I used electrical tape to make my mark.
8. Then, I pre-drilled holes into the board, making sure to use different sized drill bits for each size screw. My drill bit was slightly smaller than the screw. I marked on my drill bit to make sure I didn’t drill all the way through the board. I used electrical tape for that as well.
9. I screwed in each knob, until it was as tight as I could get it. I was originally concerned that they wouldn’t screw in tightly, but they seemed to go in fine.
10. I used a special wall/mirror hanger* designed to hold a lot of weight, since MDF is heavy. Part of the hanger was attached to the wall and the other part was attached to the board, so I could hang the board onto the hanger that was screwed into the wall. The instructions on the hanger were pretty self explanatory.
It was so nice to finally see it up on the wall, but then it was time to load it up with my necklaces.
I am so thrilled with how the project turned out! All my necklaces are organized and easy to access, yet there is still room for more. I used very neutral colors because I wanted the colorful necklaces to be the main focal point, but you can be as bold as you’d like. This project was definitely not a quick and easy one, but it was worth the time and effort. And if I can do it, then you can too!
I don’t have the exact cost breakdown for this project, since some of my receipts got thrown away, but I’d estimate $60-70. Considering this is a custom piece, I don’t think that’s too bad.
How do you organize your necklaces?
P.S. For more frugal family inspiration delivered to your inbox, subscribe to my email list here.
{Note: This post contains affiliate links. Read disclosure here.}
