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From Spools to Jewels

Reader Contribution by Gina Gaines
Published on April 4, 2014
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Many years ago, I purchased a couple of imperfect spool racks to use in my sewing area. I didn’t mind that a few of the pegs were missing since they were only a buck each. When I moved, my new sewing area didn’t have a wall to mount them on, so I put my spools of thread in a plastic drawer bin, where they remain today. I didn’t discard the racks because I was sure such a useful shape would eventually find another purpose. After adding a few pieces of cedar stripping pulled from the interior of the closets we ripped out of our current house, the spool racks were dismantled and transformed into a lovely jewelry rack.

The bars that contained all of their pegs were used on the far right section for bracelets and miscellaneous items. I spaced them farther apart than they were on the thread rack, so there would be enough room for the bracelets to dangle. On the center left section, I pulled out every other peg with a pair of pliers, then filled the hole with wood putty and sanded it smooth. This created a space where large round bracelets would fit nicely.

The extra pegs from those rows were used on the center right section for necklaces. I drilled a small hole between each peg and, after dipping the damaged ends into a little glue, inserted the pegs into the holes.

For my earrings, I used a small piece of leftover cedar paneling ripped from the enclosed carport remodel. After cutting wavy-shaped holes in the center of two small rectangular pieces, I just glued them together with a pretty scrap of lace between them. Placing the lacy frame on hinges allows me to get to the backs of the post earrings.

My jewelry rack is built to fit one of the short walls of my dressing room, but you could create a shape to easily fit any space. I was nervous about painting that wall black, but it really made the jewelry shine!