So, I am not a very girly-girl and am very picky about dangly earrings. I have a few pairs that I wear and that’s it because I feel like most of them are too showy or big. But stud earrings I’m much more comfortable about, although I’m still pretty picky about them. I made an earring holder last year out of a frame and some lace leftover from my wedding but got really tired of attaching the stud earrings to it, so into a bowl they went. But of course, I got tired of searching for earring mates in that bowl real quick and have been searching for a solution ever since.
I knew I didn’t want the holder to be anything that sat on a counter or dresser, #counterclutterphobe, so I decided it needed to be attached to my jewelry wall in the closet along with all the other try-to-be-girly jewelry I have.
How to Make a Pegboard Earring Holder
The materials I used are pretty basic, and I’m sure there are easier/simpler ways to put this together but I don’t have much in the way of woodworking supplies so this is how I roll.
- pegboard, my piece was 4 holes deep by 24 holes long
- 1/2 yd fabric
- 4′ wood lattice strip
- paint (I used ASCP “Paloma”)
- wood glue
- fabric glue
- hammer
- small nails
- jigsaw
- drill
- clamps
- screwdriver & screws
- knobs
- scissors
Once I had my piece cut, I sanded down the holes so they were smooth, then gave it three thin coats of chalk paint. A ton of paint gets stuck in those holes so I used a toothpick to get it out.
I had a handful of these 4’x 3″ x 1/4″ already primed lattice strips left over from my wainscoting project so I used one of them to make my front and sides. To make it go faster, and because I don’t have good clamps, we glued then nailed the frame together. The fabric is attached with the fabric glue on the inside of the frame only, I didn’t want any glue marks to be visible on the front. I started by gluing the top front, then got clean folded corners, then glued the fabric on the sides, repeated this process on the bottom, then folded in the back ends. I wanted the pegboard to sit flush with the top so I made sure to get the fabric laid flat around it.
I wanted to add even more storage options to this thing and pretty it up a little bit more so I decided to put some knobs on the sides to hang stuff on. I found these pretty mercury glass knobs at HomeGoods and knew they’d go great! Once the fabric was done and dry, I evenly marked where my six knobs needed to go (four on the front, one on each side). NOTE: trust me, make a small slit in the fabric before you drill your holes, otherwise the fabric gets caught on the drill and snags. Or be smarter than me and drill your holes before you put the fabric on, then just poke a hole in your fabric.
I also put a piece of fabric on the underside of my pegboard so the earring posts could poke through. I figured this may hold them sturdier and allow me to hold any future pairs that may be smaller than the holes without them falling through.
Attaching this thing to the wall is where we had a bit of trial and error. In the end, this is what I did, but again I’m sure there’s better ways to do this. I cut small pieces of my lattice, nailed it in an “L” shape, then glued it on the inside of each end so that the pegboard will sit level on top of it and sit flush to the top. I then predrilled a hole on the wall side which I later used my little stubby screwdriver to screw it to the wall with.
Ta-da! It is SO NICE not to have to dig around and find the earrings I want in the morning! And I have plenty of room to add more pairs in the future ;)
I put it right between my dangly-earring frame holder and my driftwood necklace holder and hung my bracelets off the knobs. Although I honestly can’t stand to wear bracelets, they drive me crazy! Any one else have this problem??
I really thought about doing a bright, fun fabric on this but, you know me, I was instantly drawn to this pretty white and gray print and think it paired perfectly with the light lavender/gray ASCP “Paloma” and the brass and mercury glass knobs.
So happy birthday to me!! This may be the most useful thing I’ve installed in our home to date. I actually get excited to go in there every morning to pick my earrings out and put them up in the evening (#nerdalert)!
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Emily, great idea! I have yet to find a good solution for organizing my jewelry, which I rarely wear because anything too fussy drives me crazy too. I also love the driftwood necklace holder!
Thanks Roxanne! I need to re-shoot that and the frame earring holder and do a quick post on them. So super cheap (or free!) and pretty way to organize all of it :)
Too cute! What a great way to store earrings. I love it!
Thank you Kat, we missed you guys this month!!
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this! I’m with you on the counter clutter thing. You have a beautiful jewelry display going on. Great job!
I am so OCD about it Aimee! But yet, not the pile of clothes by my side of the bed ;) Thanks!
This is adorable, Emily!! What a creative way to use pegboard! Love!
~Abby =)
Thank you Abby! Your bench is awesome too, thanks so much for joining us this month!!
Love this idea, Emily!
Thank you Erin :)
I love the knobs you chose for this! The project turned out soooo cute!! Love it!
I got super lucky with them, I knew they’d be perfect :) Thanks Lindi!
Super cute, Emily! I have a ton of stuff earrings that just get throw into a little drawer in my jewelry box, but then I have to go fishing for a matching pair! And I totally don’t wear bracelets either; I have no idea why I have a ton, too. Ha!
I HATE fishing for a match, like with a passion! And seriously, why do bracelets have to look sooo cute but be sooo annoying!
Super cute {and so functional} way of storing jewelry! Love it!
Thank you Ashley :)
WOW Emily!! Such a creative idea! I would never have thought of it. I LOVE it.:) And the fabric is beautiful! Nice job.:)
I’ve been wanting to organize those things for like a year, glad it finally hit me :)
I love this, Emily! Such a fun (and pretty) way to organize your jewelery! Pinning!
Thanks so much Amy!!!
This is such an awesome way to organize jewelry! What a great idea!
Thank you Shelly :)
Very clever! I can never figure out what to do with little post earrings, and this is perfect. Love your earring collection, too> :)
Thanks so much Rachel! I’m ashamed that I don’t wear alot of them more often, same with the necklaces. I’m such a jewelry phobe!
Awesome idea! I have the same earring problem right now and I’m searching for a solution–I think you may have created my solution. And those knobs! <3
Yay!!! You better show me pictures if you make one :)
Happy Birthday to you indeed! I love this idea. I rarely wear earrings and when I do it is usually studs. I am really weird about the weight of earrings and studs are usually the lightest. You created a really pretty place to display and organize them.
Thank you Carmody! I’m happy to hear that I’m definitely not the only one who has jewelry nuances ;)
Wow, what great organization! I am in DESPERATE need of a jewelry organization overhaul so I appreciate these ideas :) Thanks for linking up at The Pretty Preppy party!
Amy
I love having it all out where I can see it now, makes it so much easier to pick out pieces! Thanks Amy!
Hi there! Visiting from the Motivational Monday link party. This is so cute and clever! Hope you have a happy birthday!
Hi Ashley! Thanks so much for stopping by :)
Such a cool and creative idea to use a peg board to hold earrings. I love this!
Thanks Angela! This thing is a lifesaver for me ;)
Thank you so much for sharing this awesome DIY at the Talented Tuesdays Link Party! This has to be one of my all-time favorite uses for pegboard!
Aw, yay Amy! Thank you and thanks for hosting :)
This is so absolutely BEAUTIFUL! What a brilliant idea. I, too have a bunch of jewelry that I don’t really wear (bracelets bother me, too!) but I feel like if I have it displayed in a cute way I might be more apt to wear it. Great project!
Exactly! I forget about jewelry I own real quick unless it’s all out in front of me!
I absolutely love this idea!! I do have a question though… where do you store the earring backs? I wonder if the pegboard was on a hinge if you’d be able to lift it up and store the earrings with the back on them and then just lift it up so you can access it
Thanks Jessica! The backs are on there, so the earrings just sit above the hole. They’re still long enough to poke through the fabric to hold them in place. But lifting it up somehow would be a great solution too!