Knob Jewelry Holder FAQs

My Distressed Knob Jewelry Holder tutorial is one of my most popular posts, so today I thought I’d address a few of the most frequently asked questions that I’ve received about the process.

What size are your knobs? My knobs range in size from 1.25″ to 1.5″ though you could use knobs that are smaller or larger depending on the height of your piece of wood (my wood is 2.5″x14.5″).

What type of glue do you use for the crackling process? How much should I use? I use white school glue (I’ve used many brands and all have worked equally well) for my crackling process. After giving your wood a base coat of colored paint (and allowing it to dry), spread a generous amount of glue on to the face of the wood. How much glue you use really depends on how crackled you want the final finish to be. You want to wait for the glue to become tacky before painting on a top coat, and use as few strokes as possible when painting. Too many strokes will result in overmixing of the paint and glue and the final result will not crackle very well or may crackle unevenly.

Here’s an example of different amounts of glue creating different crackle effects. For the grey wood piece I used a thin coat of glue, the pink had a thicker coat and the white used a super thick coat of glue. I suggest that you practice on a scrap piece of wood to get the hang of your technique before attempting your jewelry holder. After the piece is dry I like to go back and use a fine grit sandpaper to smooth out the edges and give it a bit more distressing.

How do I attach the knobs and hang it up? Start by marking off the places where you want your knobs to go (I recommend at least 2″ between knobs) and then drill holes in your wood at those locations. Before attaching your knobs, flip the wood over and nail a small sawtooth hanger to each top corner. For attaching the knobs, use the screws provided with your hardware. Some knobs attach by inserting the screw from the back side of the wood and then screwing the knob on to the front side to secure it.

Some knobs (including many/most of the faceted glass knobs) are attached by feeding a bolt through the front of the knob and through the back of your wood to be secured with a nut. After tightening the nut, use a pair of heavy duty metal clippers to snip off the excess bolt. You may need to do this a few times for the bolt to become flush and not so sharp. That’s it!

It’s not nearly as complicated as it sounds, I promise! The hardest part is choosing which knobs you want to use!

This jewelry holder will be on auction at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar as part of the For the Love series to support Owen’s Heart beginning on Tuesday, July 25th. Please stop by and check out all of the great projects and tutorials that were donated to help raise money for this incredible family!