Earring Keeper - Tutorial

My earrings of choice are the "french hook" style and nine times out of ten they are in a little pile on my shelf, getting hooked to eachother or other things, often resulting in frustration and the wearing of the same pair day in and day out, rather than digging.

Last year (yes - I said last year), I found this frame at a yard sale for 25 cents, and decided I wanted to make an earring keeper.

Yesterday I finally got around to making it, and I decided to document the steps in case someone else wants to make one of their own.

First I removed the backing and the glass and set them aside.  If you wanted to paint your frame, this would be the time to do it. I chose to keep mine the dark wood as it will go well in my bedroom.

Next I cut fabric rectangles the same size as each of the backing boards.  You could cover with paper also, or a stronger colored fabric, but I wanted something neutral (plus it was what I had on hand).

Next I grabbed the Mod Podge and a wide brush - and something to cover my work surface.

I worked on one backing board at a time, covering it with the Mod Podge and then laying the fabric over it.

I just used my fingertips to smooth out any bubbles.

Set these aside to dry while working on the next step.

I used fiberglass window screen for this project - I have a roll of 36" wide that I picked up at Home Depot - it has all sorts of crafty uses.

Cut a piece larger than the frames, and subcut it into 3 sections.  You will need the excess to help you hold it as you glue it, but will trim it off later.

I used low-temp hot glue for holding the screen in place.  After a few burned fingertips, I found that using a wooden dowel for pushing the screen into the glue worked well.  This was messy and some oozed around to the front, and if I had it all to do over I may have found a different adhesive method - but in the end this worked.

After the glue cools, trim off the excess screen with a sharp blade, being sure no screen overlaps the slots where the backing boards slide into place.

Slide the boards back in, and you are done.  The nice thing about this frame for me is that it is freestanding, but you could easily do this with an easel style, or one that hangs on the wall.

Earring keeper in place after I cleaned my shelf.  The "olive dish" in front of it holds earrings that have a different style hook and won't work on the rack.

The whole shelf - with an old textile spool to hold my bracelets.