The Stocking Shelf

The wife went to a craft fair and came home with six decorative cast iron hooks and some ideas. She asked that I build her a shelf to affix the hooks for hanging Christmas Stockings. The original idea was to simply screw the hooks to a wide board with a painted inscription, "The Stockings Were Hung." We decided on a stained shelf that can be used at other times of the year and a small board with a more personalized inscription.

Nothing special - but it's the first sawdust I've made in two months. It's made of scrap pine 1 x 4s and is finished with "special walnut" stain and satin poly. The inscription board that sits on the shelf is just distressed acrylic paint and a coat of spray enamel. We painted the inscription board together.  Here's how it turned out.

Dry fitting

Just the shelf

Shelf and inscription board

Mama is working on one more stocking

Now the house smells like varnish. :)  It's a sense of satisfaction, even though it's the simplest of projects. It feels good to make something and making it on my homemade table saw adds a bit more satisfaction. Plus it was pretty cheap to make.

Six cast iron hooks - $3.00
Walnut stain - $7.00 (but will be used on many other projects)
Screws - $0.50
Satin Polyurethane - $7.00 (but has been used on many other projects)
Paint brush - $1.50
Scrap wood - elbow grease


Probably even more satisfying is the look of admiration from my wife.  She told me last night, "I'm proud of you, but I'm not surprised." To know she expects that I would make something aesthetically pleasing is a good feeling.