If you've ever ventured onto Pinterest or Etsy, then you have most likely seen a photo of a picture frame jewelry organizer. I have always loved the idea because I have tons of jewelry and am not terribly organized, but most of the options had a huge mesh section for earrings with only a couple knobs for necklaces and bracelets. Although I do have quite a few earrings, only styles with "fish hook" backs work well with a mesh screen. So to make sure that my jewelry collection could be properly displayed, I decided to make a completely customized version.

The reason that most jewelry organizers have a huge area for earrings is that they use a wood picture frame as a base. Most of the organizers that I saw used an 8x10 frame which made the earring section the main focus. My organizer is 18 inches wide by 14 inches high with the mesh earring section measuring 13 inches by 6 inches. This gives nearly the same area for earrings as 8x10 frame (albeit in a different shape), but can fit many more knobs on the bottom section.

Even with the extra room for necklaces and bracelets, I still had 3-5 pieces of jewelry on each knob. There is more than enough room in the mesh area for my earrings as well as a brooch and my sorority pin.

After the wood glue dried, I got to move onto the fun parts: painting the frame a bold red (this color is Deep Garnet by Glidden) and adding on all of the knobs. I wanted a variety of fixtures so I mixed metal knobs with wooden knobs that I painted. Finally, I attached the mesh screen with a staple gun and added hooks so that the organizer could be hung on the wall.

I hung my bracelets from the knobs at the tops of the organizer and my necklaces from the bottom knobs because most of my necklaces are fairly long. I forgot how much jewelry I actually have, so if I were to do this again, I would probably add even more knobs. However, I just layered multiple pieces on each knob and it works quite well. The one downside to this style of organizer is that you can't easily put post earrings on it so I do have to keep a small jewelry box for that purpose.

I am lucky enough to have a large, walk-in closet so I hung my jewelry organizer on a closet wall to make it easy to add a great accessory to my outfit. It is much easier to see what I have when it is hanging up, rather than stuffed in jewelry boxes and in drawers around my apartment. (I am pretty sure that this is not my entire jewelry collection, but I am having trouble trying to remember where I had stashed everything.) Hopefully this organizer will also help me achieve my goal of wearing more jewelry. 

How do you organize your jewelry so that it is easy to grab and does not get damaged? Let me know your tips and tricks in the comments and if anyone tries this project, please send me a picture of your final result!

The lobby of my building is decked out for Christmas, but it is missing my favorite holiday decoration: books. When I get home for the holiday, I love to swap out the coffee table books that live in the living room for some festive and absolutely gorgeous childrens books. Personal style always shines through in your holiday decorating, so it is fun to embrace what you love most about the season. Although this is not an exhaustive list of great holiday stories, these five books are some of my favorites. The illustrations are incredible and I never tire of reading them. How do you show your personal style through your holiday decorating? Let me know in the comments!