This post is in collaboration with 3M DIY >>>

Remember when we sold our house and moved to a rental about a month ago?  Well, I promised I’d be sharing a few of my ideas for decorating a rental, and I’ve got one to share today!  Actually it’s more of an organizational thing, and credit for the idea goes to Becky at Whippy Cake and her genius jewelry board.

See, my old closet was great.  It wasn’t huge, but I had plenty of shelving space for my jewelry boxes, perfume, folded clothes, shoes, etc.  This closet … ugh.  The only shelves are directly under the hanging space, and the bars are either so high I can barely reach the hangers, or so low that my clothes brush the floor.  And anything I want to keep on the shelves (like my jewelry) gets covered by anything I put on the hangers.

SO, after a few weeks of digging through this mess:

… yes that is all my jewelry wadded up in a corner, and shoved into a Pop-Tarts box …

I knew I needed another solution. That’s when I found Becky’s jewelry board idea. Her jewelry collection is vast and fabulous, and her jewelry board is large enough to lean against a wall.  I don’t have quite the storage needs, so I thought I’d make a mini-version, and hang it right on this empty patch of wall that is doing nothing for me storage-wise.

Ahh, no more mess!  And no more smelling faintly of Pop-Tarts at church!

It’s a simple project, but you will need to break out a power-tool or two if you’d like to make your own.  I started with a 1/2″ thick piece of 2’x4′ plywood.

Then I used my circular saw to cut about four inches from the end of the board to create the shelf.   If you’ve never used power tools before, don’t be scurred.  Once you try them for the first time you will be like, “This is great and non-scary!  Why was I letting the boys have all the fun?!”

But first, let’s talk about some SAFETY concerns that apply to the ladies.  Here’s what NOT to do:

Can you see what I’ve done wrong here?  Sheesh, I hope so.

First of all, tie that hair back.  Who wants to get long hair caught in a spinning saw blade?  No one, duh.

Second of all, beware of dangly jewelry, necklaces, bracelets, anything that could possibly get in the way and become a hazard.

And most importantly, eye and ear protection!

3M Tekk is a brand that is serious about safety, and they recently sent me a few items to try out myself.  I’m never, ever without safety glasses when I work with power tools, but this pair, 3M™ TEKK Protection™ Holmes Workwear™ Safety Glasses was great because their gray-lenses are specifically made for working outdoors and in bright light.  So even though you can’t wear your $WAG chain, you can still look cool, and be safe too! They also have a feature built into the sides that controls the cord on your earplugs, and acts as a lanyard.  Love that.

OK, next step.  Attach your shelf with some simple brackets, and screw in cup hooks underneath.  I think I spaced them about an inch apart.  I also didn’t want raw plywood edges, so I framed the whole thing with 1/2″ lattice.  Once it was painted though, I didn’t really notice a huge difference, so you could probably sand the edges well and get away without it.  Or get some fancy moulding and really glam it up, either way.

Give it a good sanding and you’re ready to paint!

Here’s another fun tip.  Don’t let your husband paint for you, or he might not wipe off all the sawdust first, and you will be sanding A LOT over your paint and in between your cup hooks which is super lame!  Luckily, I also received this respirator face mask from 3M™ TEKK made just for paint-sanding, which was great for protecting me and my unborn from inhaling paint particles, and my husband from my death glares.

After everything is painted and sanded to your satisfaction, hit up your local thrift store for the fun part. I found these vases and bowls from Goodwill for my bracelet and rings, and I had a beautiful ornate frame I was going to use for the earring holder, but haha!  I didn’t measure it first, and it didn’t fit.  Oh well, this simple $4 frame got the job done.  I trimmed this wire paint-tray liner to use as the insert.

I painted the frame and insert, then used Gorilla Glue epoxy to glue everything in place.

I love the look of all-white everything, so that the jewelry is the star, but I think colorful dishes and paint would be cute too!

I attached it to the wall with two screws, (painted white afterwards so they blend it). Luckily my landlord is super cool about us putting holes in the wall.  I’ve heard of some rentals where you are charged per thumbtack hole, and that just sounds like cruelty!

Hope you liked my jewelery station!  I’d be happy to answer any questions in the comments. And for more info on 3M Tekk Protection products, hit them up here:

3M DIY website

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This post is a collaboration with 3M™ TEKK Protection™ Brand,  all words and opinions are my own.