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I don’t know about you guys, but I have a bit of a problem when it comes to Kendra Scott jewelry, particularly earrings. The problem being that I’m a tad obsessed and have way too many pairs! This leads to earrings being left all over the house, and worse, I can never find the pair I’m looking for.
So, to solve this problem, I decided to do a mini remodel to the dresser space in my bedroom and turn it into a jewelry nook instead. I had been wanting to replace our outdated wicker armoire anyways, and with a little imagination was able to knock out two birds with one stone. Here’s how I did it:
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Upcycling a Cheap, Boring Dresser Into One With Oomph
As mentioned, I previously had a tall, thin, wicker style armoire in this space. I needed the extra clothes storage, but I actually really hated this particular piece—the wicker tended to snag threads and wrinkled my clothes. However, by moving to a shorter but wider dresser-style clothes storage solution, I was able to keep the amount of clothing storage while also creating a counter space I could use for other things. I found just such a dresser on Amazon for $125, including shipping.
Of course, I didn’t just want a boring off-the-shelf dresser. Nor did I want to pay several hundred dollars for something more upscale. Instead, my solution was to get a basic, factory-made model, and then upcycle it using a dry-brush tehnique and a little paint to make it one-of-a-kind.
I’ve talked about dry-brush painting on the blog before; if you’re interested in creating a wood-grain look on an item, it’s a really easy technique to master. Essentially, you get just a very small amount of paint onto the ends of a dry, natural bristle brush — I tend to use a 2″ width brush for this purpose — and then using long, sweeping strokes, you’ll create a line effect that mimics a natural wood grain. Here’s a close up of the wood grain effect:
Keep in mind that if you’re going over an already-finished piece, you’ll likely need to sand it first. I chose a grey color that had notes of purple in it; I wasn’t looking for something dramatic, but rather a subtle customization that made this blend with the rest of the room. And the best part is you can usually get away with just a “sample” can of paint for a dry brush project…you use so little, but it goes a really long way. It dries super quick too!
Overall, I was really happy with the finish. Instead of a shiny, bright-white, factory finish, I was able to achieve more of a coastal vibe and it only took me about an hour of extra work.
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Finding a Jewelry Storage Solution That Gave Me Visibility & Function
The next step in creating this jewelry nook was finding a way to store all my jewelry. Primarily, I’m an earrings gal. 90% of the time, I throw on a pair of dangly earrings and I’m out the door. I just don’t wear necklaces, bracelets or rings that often.
As such, I was comfortable with putting those less-used items in a jewelry organizer that the hubby had given me a few years ago. For my earrings, though, I wanted a solution where I could see them all out at once and choose the best pair. So I took to Amazon and found this very cute bronze earring tree, for just $30.
Not only is the tree functional, it’s also a very pretty piece once all the earrings are on it. There’s even a little “nest” built in, which is perfect for saving things like odd-earring backs, and my hubby now has a spot he can “return” my earrings, should he ever find them around the house.
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Finishing the Jewelry Nook with a Perfect Mirror
Finally, what’s a jewelry nook if you don’t have a “mirror, mirror on the wall” to gaze into while trying on said jewelry? We already had a large, more traditional mirror in another place in this room, so I felt comfortable going a little funky with this piece. And I also knew I didn’t need it to take up a lot of wall space – just enough to balance the dresser vertically.
Once again, I turned to Amazon, and was able to find a very cute mosaic mirror for just $35.99 (though the price appears to have gone up since then). Considering that Pottery Barn is selling a very similar version for $349, I’m more than pleased with my knock off that only cost 1/10th of the original!
So in total, that was $125 for the dresser, $5 for a sample size container of paint, $3o for the earring tree, and $35 for the mosaic mirror, for a grand total of $195. I’ve had this new jewelry nook for about a month now, and I have to say — it’s working pretty well! My earrings seem to be returning regularly to the tree instead of spreading all over the house, and the new dresser is working out great as well.
Tell me in the comments: how do you store your jewelry? Any tips?
