~Scraps and Scribbles~: Hand-made Goodie of the Week: Clothespin Hat Hanger

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Hand-made Goodie of the Week: Clothespin Hat Hanger

Last year, when we were decorating the nursery, I was looking for something for Bobby's hats. I didn't want a hat stand, because that would be one more thing for him to knock over. And I wanted something that I could put on the wall, up out of his reach. While looking through my Land of Nod catalog, I came across this:

Photo courtesy of the Land of Nod

How cute! Theirs is a "art holder" but I thought, that would be perfect for hats AND I can make one!!

To make your own, you'll need:

Wooden clothespins-I used 12 for mine

Ribbon, twine, whatever you'd like to use to string your clothespins-I used hemp

Wooden shapes-I used stars for mine. And how many sections of clothespins you have will determine how many shapes you'll need. I used 5-2 for the ends and 3 to separate the sections.

Paint and brushes

Fine-tipped permanant marker (optional)

Hot glue gun and glue

First, I painted my stars a bright baby blue. While they were drying, I painted my clothespins brown using a dry brush to give it a wooden look. Now, I took mine apart and painted each side, then put them back together. I do not recommend doing this-it stretches out the spring and a lot of them I couldn't use and had to re-do.

Once the stars were dry, I drew a dotted line all the way around the edge to give it some character. I used a fine-tipped marker since I don't have a steady enough had for a paint brush.

Next is cutting your twine and putting it all together. The piece I used was about 45 inches long. I hot glued a star to one end, then began threading on my clothespins. I spaced everything about 2 inches apart.

To keep the clothespins in place, I tied a knot on either side once it was threaded. I divided my clothespins into 4 groups of 3, with a star in between each section, again, spacing each piece about 2 inches.