I decided I need one. Even though our present system of key organization was clearly working for us.
Yeah.
So I thought I’d try to make one for less.
I cut some tongue and groove planks that I had left over from thisproject and this project and glued them together. I just used an ordinary construction adhesive.Then I needed to frame it. Since our miter saw is broken, I asked someone who kinda likes me to help.
He just used Gorilla super glue to attach the frame.
(Because I didn’t want to fill in the holes that finishing nails would have left.)
We used this kind of frame because we already had it.
Now for the hard part.
The original rack is made from reclaimed wood. Mine is made from brand new pine. Somehow I needed to make it look older, and maybe a little weathered.
(Yeah, a key rack wouldn’t normally be all that weathered. That thought occurred to me. But then I decided not to think that hard.)
So I started with some of this.
I just used a cheap brush, because I wanted a little bit of a streaky look.
I really like the gel stain. It doesn’t dry very fast, which was good. It gave me time to make sure I had a somewhat even coat.
Once that was dry, it was time to add something else.
I watered down some of the Slate Gray
and applied it. Then I added the brown (Mississippi Mud) to the watered down gray paint, and applied some more streaks.
I kept going until it looked like this.
Then I added more gray to the watered down gray and brown paint mixture, and coated the whole thing. When it was just barely dry, I rubbed it down with a damp paper towel. That’s the cool thing about craft paint~it will wash off if you don’t let it dry too long.
So then it looked more like this.
I repeated the process a few times, alternating between a more brown coat, then a more gray coat, rubbing it down with a damp paper towel each time.
This is the final coat. It’s streaky, but it doesn’t scream “STREAKS!!!” at you.
Then it was time to put on the hooks.
The hooks and label holders on the inspiration key rack look like they’re all one piece. I couldn’t find any like that. I found a few label holders online, but I really didn’t want to pay $3 each for them since I needed 20 of them.
I found these
at a scrapbook store, and these cup hooks
at a hardware store.
I just needed them to look like they belonged together. So I sprayed them all with this. It’s a dark bronze color.
Once they were dry, it was time to add them to my board.
I’m not the best when it comes to measurements, and I had to do a little adjusting.
That’s why I made all my marks with chalk. It’s easy to rub off if you make a mistake. I made my marks in the center of each label holder.
This thing is an odd width, and my ruler was too long to fit on this, so
I decided that if I used a template, it would be easier to get everything all lined up straight.
I just made one out of paper.
I put a dab of glue in the corners of the label holders and put them all in place.
Then I had to drill some pilot holes for the cup hooks. The planks I used aren’t thick, and I didn’t want the cup hooks to split the wood.
I used one of the smallest drill bits we have
and put a small hole under each label holder, making sure I centered each hole.
Then I screwed them in.
Once that was done, I needed to make sure the label holders were really secure.
I used these.
They’re very small, so it helped to use some needle nose pliers to hold the pins while I hammered them in.
Here’s the finished product.
I hung it by the front door.
I’m really happy with how it turned out!
It’s not exactly like the Mothology key rack, but I didn’t pay anywhere near $62, either.
I love DIY projects! It’s fun to see how we are able to recreate something that we see and make ourselves. Great job on the key rack!
Cassity Kmetzsch started Remodelaholic after graduating from Utah State University with a degree in Interior Design. Remodelaholic is the place to share her love for knocking out walls, and building everything back up again to not only add function but beauty to her home. Together with her husband Justin, they have remodeled 6 homes and are working on a seventh. She is a mother of four amazing girls. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.
We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you've followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you've seen here, we'd love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.
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>I love this key holder and really, really need one! I have keys all over the place and it takes me hours (or days) to find certain ones that we rarely use. I fell and hurt my foot today but as soon as possible I am going to attempt to make one and hang it in my laundry room! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
>What a fab blog – so happy I arrived here (no idea where i came from!) And love the key'board', in fact not only do we need a big one, but thinking a smaller version near the computers would be awesome for hanging the memory sticks on, they are always disappearing so thanx for the inspiration!
>Awesome project. I would like to make something like that, but mine wouldn't need that many hooks. We don't have many keys. Well, right now the only key I have is car keys. Maybe one day we'll have house keys. GREAT JOB!
>There's only one thing I noticed that may make this project better: If you angled your pilot holes, the cup hooks wouldn't overlap the labels. (And it looks like the inspiration piece was made that way).
>oooohhh….I love the idea of a memory stick one as well!! and a key one….and one for all the little purses that my kids acquire….and one for…lol you get the idea! THANKS!! 🙂
>I'm going to make one of these. Thanks for the idea. To get that naturally fading gray wood you can use baking soda with a couple drops of dish detergent and water, make a paste and paint it on the wood, let it dry and then wash it off, it will look weather worn.
>wow, it looks just like the original! great job! i would love to make one of these!
>Thanks for featuring my project~you made my day!
>I love it! She did a fab job!
>Great job! Looks really close to the inspiration! nice and functional too 🙂
>I love this key holder and really, really need one! I have keys all over the place and it takes me hours (or days) to find certain ones that we rarely use. I fell and hurt my foot today but as soon as possible I am going to attempt to make one and hang it in my laundry room! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
>That is really fantastic ! Great inspiration, great tutorial, great DIY!
xo
Kate
>So Great! I think it looks like an old hotel key rack…Just Beautiful.
>That is a great project! I love it and what a great tutorial!!
xoxo
Jen
>wow this is amazing! I'd love to do this as we are always misplacing keys! Thanks for the tutorial too it was very helpful,
Terry
>This is wonderful. Thanks for sharing. I love how it turned out. Great job!
>What a fab blog – so happy I arrived here (no idea where i came from!)
And love the key'board', in fact not only do we need a big one, but thinking a smaller version near the computers would be awesome for hanging the memory sticks on, they are always disappearing so thanx for the inspiration!
>This is great, it's even nicer then the original, because you made it. Go Girl!
big hugs
cindy@stitches
>So cute!! Love this 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
>Awesome project. I would like to make something like that, but mine wouldn't need that many hooks. We don't have many keys. Well, right now the only key I have is car keys. Maybe one day we'll have house keys.
GREAT JOB!
>That is a great project!!! Helps me realize too that lots of pictures along the way make for a more helpful tutorial too!
thanks!!
xoxo, cassie
>Lovely!
>There's only one thing I noticed that may make this project better: If you angled your pilot holes, the cup hooks wouldn't overlap the labels. (And it looks like the inspiration piece was made that way).
It looks great!
>oooohhh….I love the idea of a memory stick one as well!! and a key one….and one for all the little purses that my kids acquire….and one for…lol you get the idea! THANKS!! 🙂
>super cute!
>I'm going to make one of these. Thanks for the idea. To get that naturally fading gray wood you can use baking soda with a couple drops of dish detergent and water, make a paste and paint it on the wood, let it dry and then wash it off, it will look weather worn.