By Shelby
I haven’t made a secret about the fact that I suck at crafting, but ever since I saw how easily a decorative corkboard could be tweaked into an earring holder, I’ve been wanting to give it a go.
My jewelry box is a bit of a tangled mess that often ends with me wearing the same pair of earrings practically every day or forgoing them all together, which isn’t ideal when there are just so many fun earrings out there.
So following the instructions, I bought:
Open-backed frame without glass (I found my simple black one for $12 at Hobby Lobby in the 90% off custom reject section)
Window screening ($6 at Home Depot for a roll large enough to make 30 earring holders)
Staple gun ($8 at Hobby Lobby)
First, I cut the screen with scissors to fit the frame. It was pretty easy to cut it with scissors, but if you have a pet or an often-barefooted roommate, be mindful that the screen left behind some small metal pieces that could be painful to step on.
Next, I pulled the screen across the back of the frame and used the staple gun to put in the first staple. Then I moved to the opposite side and put in another staple and continued that pattern until it was stapled all the way around. If I had it to do over again, I would probably staple the screen to the back of the frame rather than the inside lip of the frame (where the glass would press against if the frame had glass) because I think I would have been able to pull the screen tighter that way. Mine wasn’t super tight, but it’s still functional. Also, the staples ended up coming through a little on that inside lip so you can see them from the front. Oops. Luckily my frame is black and my staples are black, so it’s not terribly noticeable. I touched up the staple holes a little bit with a Sharpie, just in case they showed.
I’d hoped that I could put some hooks in the bottom of the frame so that I could have my earring holder double as a necklace holder, but I guess that was a little too greedy because no matter how hard I tried to get those screw-in hooks to go in the frame, they just weren’t budging. Also, as a heads-up, I didn’t realize beforehand that this type of holder isn’t ideal for hoops or post earrings.
But all told, I’m pretty happy with my homemade earring holder. It’s not flashy by any means, but now that I’ve got all my earrings on it, I think it adds a bit of something to the empty wall by my dresser.
If a crafting newbie like me can do it, believe me, anybody can. Plus it gives you an excuse to buy cute new earrings as ART. Anyone want to hit Forever 21 with me?