In one of our previous posts, we talked about our FaceBook store, The Raven’s Nest.   If you did not read that post, we hand make jewelry among other things.  All of our jewelry is one of a kind, handmade with real stones and metals.  We rarely use plastics or acrylics unless the centerpiece is a specific item that is made of that.  We have several family members that like to create and explore themes, so everyone has a different style.  You will find all kinds of things in The Raven’s Nest store, jewelry themes such as Steampunk, Art Deco, Nature, Classic Lit, and some things that do not really have a category.

Along with making jewelry, we go to local festivals to sell our wares and of course, there is the FaceBook store I just mentioned.   Taking handmade wares to local festivals can be fun and a great way to get out and meet others like us.  But toting all your stuff around can be a pain.   There is so much to pack and carry, so much to not twist up or mix up.  The jewelry in cases can be very heavy and of course, the glass top cases can break making other issues.  Also, in handmade crafts, sometimes it is not so much the items as how they are displayed that catches the looker’s eye.   So to make our tent stand out at festivals and to catch as much attention as possible, we spruce things up.  We have cool, colorful covers for the tables, we hang streamers and lanterns and we have unique stands and displayed to show things off.

We have handmade quite a few different displays over the years but so far the best one has been the earring carousel.   This is simply as it sounds, a revolving holder that the earrings can be hung on.  The carousel is pretty simple to make and not expensive.  With a few tools and paint, you can make a carousel of your own.   We started off just making them stationary but now we put them on stands so they can turn, this makes it easier for the customer to browse.

Here is how we make earring carousels.    You will need:

Small trash cans we use the Dollar Store, metal ones but as long as they are the mesh style, metal or plastic ones will do.  Metal trash cans work better as they can hold more weight and do not squash easily but the metal does make the piece heavier also.

For the base:

Cement, a plastic plant pot, and a plastic bag

For the stand:   Make sure all of your PVC parts are the same size.

PVC joint

PVC pipe

PVC cap

Drawer pull  the ones with the long screw and nuts

You will also need some kind of pliers, hemostat, an electric drill, drill bits and, paint

To make the base, we used a plastic plant pot with a plastic bag liner to make a cement base with Quikrete.  Put the plastic bag into the pot and smooth it out as best you can.  Mix your Quikrete and pour it into the pot mold.  Place the PVC joint into the center of the cement.  Make sure it stands up straight and in the center.  It makes the finished cement base come out of the pot mold easier if you have a plastic bag in the pot first. The plastic bag also gives the cement base a neat texture.   If you do not use a plastic bag, your cement will be permanent inside the plant pot.  This is not an issue if you want a pot base.  You can easily decorate the pot to whatever color or design you want.

To make the carousel, we took the metal, mesh trash can we got from the Dollar Tree.  Our trash can was already black but if yours is not the color you want, just paint it.  The small, mesh cans make it very easy to hang earrings.  Note the trash can will be used upside down when all is said and done.

To make the turning stand, this takes a bit more work, assemble your parts and tools so you have all on hand and do not have to go looking for stuff.

At this point, you can paint all the parts separately or wait and paint the whole thing after it is put together.  Our trash can was already black so we just painted the other parts as we assemble then.   If you want to paint all parts after they are together, be sure you are careful not to paint the trash can to the stand, or it will not turn.  If you tend to slip when using tools, you can do touch-ups after you have finished assembly.

Take the cement base that you make with the PVC joint in it and attach the PVC pipe. There you have the main base stand.

Take your drill bit and make sure it is the same size as the long screw on the drawer pull.  

Drill a hole in the top of the trash can or actually the bottom but as it will be upside down, it is now the top.

You will need to drill a hole into the center of the PVC cap.

Next, you assemble the rest of the parts.   It is really very simple:  put the drawer pull long screw through the trash can top, into PVC cap, and screw the nut on to hold all together.   Here is where having 8 arms like an octopus will be handy.   With one hand hold the trash can up, eye-level seems best.  With another hand place, the drawer pull through the hole in the trash can top.  Then with another hand place the PVC cap, the one you drilled a hole in, inside the trash can, and snug it to the inside top.   Again, with another hand take the hemostats, hold the drawer pull nut with the hemostat.   Wiggle around as you can to get the nut screwed onto the drawer pull, long screw inside the PVC cap that you are holding inside the upside-down trash can.    Yes, it is just that easy.  We had to have several people to get this part done without causing a total crash and meltdown.

With the drawer pull long screw all the way through the trash can top and the PVC cap you will need to adjust the tightness to allow the trash can to turn.  If you screw the nut on to tight the trash can will not be able to turn.

Place the trash can on top of the PVC tube by securing the PVC cap inside the trash can, on to the top of the PVC pipe that you have already secured to the cement base.  A little push and the PVC cap should snug into place tightly.

There you have it, your new earring carousel.  As you can see in the pic, we had already been using the trash can to hang our earrings before the carousel idea.    If you want this to be permanent you can use PVC glue to put the pieces together.  Be sure not to glue the inside pieces or again the trash can will not be able to turn.  We break ours down to go to and from festivals so we do not glue ours.

As with most DIY projects you can make these any color you want, with any designs or themes you want.  You can use any topper you want also and again any color, shape, size or theme you like.   Also, as noted it is best to have several pairs of hand to do the final assembly.   But overall, this is a simple project that only needs a few parts and tools.   We made ours in one afternoon for less than 10 dollars.  The main catch is waiting for the cement to dry but you can get all the other stuff one while you are waiting on the cement.    This is a cute way to make unique displays for your earrings or really anything that you want to hang on them.   Here you have another DIY project you can say you make by hand and can be proud of with practical use.   These make great Christmas and Birthday gifts for the jewelry lover.  Everyone loves to get handmade gifts with their own color scheme and theme type in mind, made with loving hands, just for them.  What more could an earring collector want?  Hope you have enjoyed this DIY talk, try it out and see what wonderful accent displays you can come up with.

Thank you for visiting and please come again for another edition of Out Standing in the Field.