We quilters know that a functioning design wall is incredibly useful, if not essential, especially if you’ve ‘had enough’ of laying out your quilts on the floor. I had been hanging my design wall on Command hooks that kept falling down and it was getting rather frustrating. It was obvious I needed some sort of a dependable hanger, and thankfully my husband came up with this great solution.
I don’t have a technical name for it, I just refer to it as my design wall hanger. In a nutshell, it’s a 6′ wood board with cup hooks screwed in and it’s securely attached (with screws) to my sewing room wall. I’m sure some people wouldn’t want something semi permanently attached to their wall, but since I have a room dedicated to sewing, I’m perfectly fine with it.
If this is something you’d consider for your sewing space, here are a few photos with details regarding the making process, including the cost & the amount of time involved. In short, we spent less than $9* & it took about 3 hours to make! *This price is for the board & hooks (+ tax) as we had other supplies on hand, e.g. sandpaper, screws, stain and finish.
MATERIALS: One 1″ x 3″ x 6′ select pine board ($5.95); One pack of 6 – 7/8″ nickle cup hooks ($1.98) {both purchased from Home Depot}; Espresso Minwax Wood Finish; Minwax Water Based Polycrylic Protective Finish; general woodworking tools–router & drill; various other supplies such as rags, sandpaper, foam brush, etc.
Since I’m not handy with tools, my husband did all the drilling, routering, etc. I was in charge of sanding, staining & finishing.
The first thing my husband did was router a plain design around the perimeter of the board to class it up a bit.
Next, he drilled the three screw holes with a bit so the screws would be countersunk, placing the holes under the routering & toward the top so they wouldn’t interfere with the cup hooks.
Before staining, I used 220 grit sandpaper for a super smooth surface. Up next, I applied one coat of stain.
Once wood is stained, the grain tends to raise somewhat, so I sanded it again with an extra fine grit sanding sponge. After wiping away any residue, I applied two coats of polyurethane finish allowing a few hours drying time in between coats.
Next, we got out my design wall & screwed in the hooks in accordance to the grommets.
Finally we were ready to attach the board to the wall. Once leveled, 2 1/2″ screws were screwed into the countersunk holes/wall, making it strong enough to support the weight of a lot of fabric.
Now I can put up & take down my design wall with ease. It’s such a simple & affordable project & I’m really happy with it!
(excuse the terrible lighting–my sewing room window faces north!)
Monday Morning Designs 