DIY Coffee Cup Display Rack

 I'm a coffee lover, therefor I have quite a few coffee mugs :) I have my cabinet full enough that my plates hardly fit in there. I did get rid of a few mugs last year, but then I bought more. So, I decided I needed another spot for my mugs. But! This time I wanted to display them. I have been eyeing some metal wall mount cup racks for awhile now, but can't justify there $80+ price tag. I was seriously like sooo close to buying one, when my DIY bone started hurting and got me thinking. I could totally make one! Duh :) It's not metal; it's wood. But I still love it and saved myself a little $$...well, a lot of $$$$.

You can make this any size you want, I made mine a little smaller than I wanted, but I needed it to fit on a certain wall, so I had to adjust the dimensions. Here's the size I used, but once again, you can adjust it to be wider and taller.
Supplies:
2- 1x2s @ 30"
5- 1x1s @ 12" (found in the molding aisle)
20- 1/4" dowels @ 3"
10 corner brackets
Drill and 1/4" drill bit
Wood glue
Paint
2 D-rings for hanging

Step 1: Cut the wood the length you need. My complete project was 30" high by 15" wide.  So, my 1x2s are cut at 30" and my 1x1s are at 12".

Step 2: After playing around with the measurements, I ultimately decided that each cup needs about 7" to dangle. So, I marked approximately 7" on each 1x2. The measurements didn't quite make it an exact 7 on each one, I just made sure to mark the same places on both 1x2s to make sure they lined up.

 Step 3: Then I marked the spots for the holes on the 1x1s. They are 3.75" from each end with 4.5 in between. I also marked the holes on the connecting 1x2s since I placed dowels on the actual 1x2s too. So, when you place the two pieces together, all the dowels should be 4.5" apart.

 Step 4: As for drilling holes for the dowels. I was going to use my drill press, but decided to hand do it since most people don't have drill presses. I wanted to see if it would work, and it did! Not every hole is perfect, but that's alright with me. So, for the 1x1 pieces, I started each hole on a mark with the drill bit straight up, close to the edge but not on the edge. I then pre-drilled a hole about 1 cm down. I then angled the drill about 45 degrees and drilled until I felt it give a little bit. This happens when you are about to drill out the bottom, which you don't want to do. So, to clarify a little bit, the first pre-drilled hole is going to be the top of the piece where to dowel is going to stick out of the wood, so drill the angle down through the thickest portion of the wood

 I then did it the same thing on each mark, in the middle of the 1x2.

 Here are all my holes drilled on the 1x2s, all going in the same upward direction.

 Step 5: Connect the pieces. I tried two other ways to do this before ultimately deciding to do it this way. If you don't do the holes on the 1x2s, then you can pocket hole the 1x1s into the 1x2s, or glue and nail a 2.5" nail into the 1x2 thru the 1x1. But, since there are holes there now doing it this way, I had to do something from the back and not side. I used these corner 90 degree brackets on each joint and glue to join the pieces.

If you want to hang this, this is where you will also want to secure your d-rings onto each 1x2. I chose to do mine about 8" down. 

Step 5: Add the dowels. I placed a drop of glue into each hole and then added the dowels as far as they could go in. You can use a hammer here also to make sure they are in. This is where you mugs will hang, so make sure they are secure!

 Step 6: Sand and paint, or stain. I just used a black enamel on mine to give it that metal type look.

 I love how this turned out! Although you could possible use each dowel to hang a cup, I didn't. You'll have to test it out and make sure the integrity of your rack is up to par :) I like the look of it being a little sparse. Although this is just for pictures, I do have 8 cups hanging on mine currently, two on each row.

 You can barely tell that the dowel holes were just eyed. Some are a little off, but that doesn't bug me.

 Here it is on the wall hanging by the d-rings. When you secure this to the wall, make sure you use screws into studs for stability.

Disclaimer: As with all projects on my site, make this at your own risk. I have made mine, and love it! When using power tools, follow all safety precautions and use your equipment as designed. My cups have yet to fall from the wall and break, but that doesn't mean yours won't, so please be sure to make sure the integrity of your piece meets the weight that you put on it!

DIY Farmhouse Blanket Ladder For $5

 It's no secret that I have a love for blankets. You'll find blankets in my house when it's negative temps all the way to 100 degree weather. I stuff most of my blankets in baskets throughout the house, or drape them over seating. I decided that it was about time to change up my front room a little bit and in place of the giant chalkboard, I put a cute little ladder to display more blankets.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this chalkboard...and it's a great place to hide a ton of stuff behind it :) But, it's been there for 5 years, so I figured it was time for a little change. Plus, I found this cute farmhouse sign at Hobby Lobby and the two pieces clashed.

I made this ladder in about an hour with just a few pieces of wood. Here's what I used:
Two 2x3s cut at 76 inches
Five 1x3s cut at 14 inches.
Wood glue
Nail gun
Dark Walnut Minwax stain
White latex paint
Cup of water

 I placed the two sides of the ladder on a flat surface and then started measuring where to put the rungs. I started at 12 inches from the bottom (this will help keep the ladder even just in case your two sides aren't exactly the same height), placed a mark on each side. Then from there did 12 inch intervals up until I marked for 5 rungs. Make sure to mark both sides of the ladder so the rungs line up evenly.

 I then glued each rung or 1x3 into place, using the marks as my guide. I lined the bottom of the 1x3 up with each mark. I then used 2 1/2" nails and secured them in place from the outside.

 Next, I stained the entire thing Dark Walnut.

 Before the stain dried all the way, I dipped my paint brush into the white paint, and then circled it around in the water for a minute.

I then brushed the paint on to ladder, working with small sections at a time. Once it was brushed on, I then took a paper towel and rubbed it off, thus also smoothing it out and working the paint in. The way to do this the best is to not let the paint dry, make sure it's still wet or else it won't work. That's why I worked in small foot size sections until the whole ladder was done. The below picture is what it looks like before I rubbed the paint in, just after brushing it on.

 Here's the finished ladder. I liked the look of having a bigger gap on the top of the ladder. It's about 15" compared to the 12" intervals.

 Here's a closer look at the color. Also, for the wood, I chose the most beat up pieces I could find so it added a lot more character.

I love this corner of the room! It's just nice having a fresh change....and let's be honest...it's super nice to have another spot to put blankets :)

 I wanted to be able to use the rungs as little shelves also, that's why the are flat and the width of the sides, approximately 3". This is just the perfect space to place books or small decor.

As for the cost, I found the 2x3s for about $1.60 each and the 1x3 for a little over $1. The cost does not include the other materials like paint and stain which I already had on hand.

Social Artworking Paint Party! How To Paint Like A Pro

 I was provided product by DecoArt and compensated to write about this project, but all thoughts, opinions, and ideas are my own :)

I'm not an artist. I'm not a calligrapher, yet I painted this. How'd I do it?

 A Social Artworking Party! I'm sure you all have heard of some parties like this going on around your area. Well, this one that you can do in your own house with your friends! For mine, I just did it with my family and we had so much fun! I had no idea that my girls would love it so much :) Social Artworking is a program created by DecoArt to make learning to paint on canvas and hosting a canvas painting party easy and fun! Their patterns and step-by-step instructions make it easy for the first-time painter to have 100% success. You can learn more and see all their patterns here.

So, to get started, I set up the canvases.

 I separated the things I needed for each painting. Each painting came with an instruction sheet, transfer paper, pattern, paint and paint brushes.

 For mine, I used the "All You Need" template. I painted my canvas as suggested.

Then followed the instructions and used the template and tracing paper to draw the design onto my canvas.

Here it is with just the tracing paper markings. Looks pretty good already :)

 

 I then continued to follow the instructions on what paint to use, what brush, and what paining technique to use to finish the design. I love how it turned out!

Funny story here...I picked this stencil because "All You Need Is Love" by the Beattles was our first dance song at my wedding. It wasn't supposed to be, but the AV stopped working and we couldn't get our music to play, so my mom's friend ran to here house which was close by, grabbed her CDs and boombox (are those still even  thing? lol) and 'saved' the day! The best song out of all of her CDs was the Beattles "All You Need Is Love". And so, that little song is dear to my heart....brings up some memories that cause a little anxiety too, but it's fun to look back on it now :) ...and who doesn't love coffee? So, this was the perfect pattern to paint for me!

 As for the rest of the party goers? They all chose different things to paint :)

 "Love You To The Moon" and "Mermaid Tales" were the other designs.

 My little 4 year old made this. She did an awesome job with hardly any help! I think for her next birthday party, I'm going to do a paint party! She took to it so well, and loved it :)

 My mom made this cute one for her house.

 And I didn't get a template for my 2 year old, just a canvas and she had a riot :)

 I love how these all turned out and it was so much fun doing this! I can't wait to do it again. It was a great way to spend an afternoon. Even better realizing how well my barely 4 year old is at painting :)

 To learn more about Social Artworking and hosting and throwing a party, visit www.social-artworking.com.










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