Shabby-Chic Earring Holder & Display Tutorial

I don't know about you, but I have lots of earrings that I never wear because I just don't think of it. If they're not in front of my face, I totally forget they exist. So I wanted to create something to hold my earrings so that I would remember to wear them every now and then.

To stick to the shabby-chic theme, I made a tutorial that is pretty shabby as well... 

...mmk, I didn't mean to it just happened that way.

So I hope you'll be able to follow along if you attempt to make one of these with me. Luckily, it's not supposed to look absolutely perfect it will probably turn out pretty good. Ready?

What you need:



a plain wood frame (mine used to have canvas on it)
a piece of burlap a few inches larger than your frame
quilt batting
fabric
staple gun & lots of staples
glue gun & lots of glue sticks

How to make it:

Cut pieces of quilt batting the length of each side of your frame and three times the width. Fold them in thirds and lay them on top of your frame.

Next cut wider strips (that can wrap around the frame) the length of each side and cut the sides at an angle so they will wrap around without causing extra bulk.

Wrap these pieces around your folded up ones, gluing them on as you go with hot glue. When you're done your frame should look like this: 

Next you need to cut pieces of fabric to wrap around the frame. I just laid the frame on top to get an idea for the size... like I said, it's a shabby tutorial!

You might want to make them a little longer than the pieces of quilt batting so that you can fold, tuck or glue the fabric at the corners to make them look nice. When you cut your pieces they should be this sort of shape:

Wrap the fabric around the batting and staple it in place. I did the inside edge of the frame first.

Then the outside. Make sure your fabric is sitting nicely, then pull it somewhat tight (not too tight - don't rip it!) and staple it down.

Don't be afraid to use a lot of staples! I did the two short sides first, then the long ones. When you're putting on your last two sides, take extra care with the corners so they look nice. I folded the fabric over so there weren't any rough edges and I used glue here and there to keep things in place.

For the last part, I found it easiest to work on my kitchen counter so I could lean the frame against the wall. First line up your burlap so you have lots of overlap on all sides. Then use your staple gun to attach the burlap inside the frame (not on the back). Staple all along on side, trying to keep the staples in a fairly straight line and very close together. Make sure you put a staple right in each corner.

If you started with one long side, like I did, do the other long side next. Pull the burlap fairly tight, but be careful because it rips fairly easily. Staple all along the inside of the frame the same way.

Now stand it on its short side. Pull the burlap fairly tight and staple all along the edge again. Then flip and repeat. In the end the back should look like this:

And the front:

Now all you need to do is trim the excess fabric away. I also glued the rough edges of the burlap down with hot glue to make it a little extra sturdy. Just be careful not to burn your fingers on this step, the glue comes through the burlap!

Now all you need to do is hang your earrings!