I’ve got a great project - for you and the kids.

This is a really simple project that the kids will love and you will get a great jewelry organizer as a result! (Plus it’ll take up a good part of your day and more - bonus given covid-19 isolation!!!)

I created this jewelry organizer below a couple of years ago using very simple materials.

I was inspired by these really high priced alternatives I found on pinterest.

I decided I could do the same, with a few simple supplies:

Wood birch panel - which I already owned since I use these for my artwork.
A set of wooden blocks (more on this below)
Elmer’s wood glue.

Wood birch panels
Easily available in any art supply store now (and you can order online). And you can purchase whatever size fits your wall space.

Wood Blocks

Although I thought this would be the easy part, it turned out to be the most difficult. I didn’t want to spend a fortune on little wood blocks.
The kids wood block kits I found on amazon were outrageously priced. I also looked at other kids stores, hobby shops and more - all too overpriced for what I needed.
Finally, while in the dollar store, I thought I’d take a look at kids toys. Eureka- I found these wonderful block kits for $2 - I bought 10 kits for all my future projects. BONUS - Our dollar stores here in Montreal are still open, I’m hoping yours are too.) The variety of shapes I found in this kit was exactly what I needed.

Elmers Glue
Finally, you’ll need glue to adhere the wood blocks to the wood birch panel. White glue is the best - wood on wood is the best “stick” you’ll ever get!

Next, figure out how you want to lay everything out - this is the fun part! Once you decide, you can get the kids to glue the pieces in place.

Here are some ideas for each of your jewelry pieces:

Earrings - use simple rectangular blocks and drill holes in the front to “accept” your earrings. If you don’t have a drill, you can still just hang your earrings from these blocks
Rings - half circles and then mini dowels provide the perfect way to “hang” your rings.

Studs - simple solution - while at the dollar store - I purchased cork. They only had them in circular format so I cut the circle into the shape I wanted and glued it onto the wood. Just stick the studs right in. Easy peasy!
Bracelets - more dowels from my box kit. If I had to do it again I would choose longer dowels - I have too many bracelets.
Necklaces, chains - play around with all your block shapes and see what works for you and your jewelry pieces. These quasi-triangular shapes worked perfectly for my chains and necklaces.

Backings for studs - this turned out to be a great idea. I glued a magnet to a wood block to hold the backs for my studs!
Genious! if I do say so myself lol.

As you can see, once you start playing with the “blocks”, the possibilities are endless.

Here are some other ideas:

Paint your birch backing in a geometric pattern by taping off sections
Use wallpaper, or even scrapbooking paper adhered to the birch panel for some extra pop
Use different sizes of birch panels and combine your jewelry display!

I’ve done other projects using this same concept including an entry wall mail/key/dog leash holder which I’ll show you in another post.

This is a really easy project to keep yourself busy with for as long as you like. There are no limits to this project except your imagination, the shape of the blocks and the amount of each type of jewelry you have. Get the kids involved. They often have the best ideas@

Have fun, and stay healthy!

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Playing with blocks!