Last Minute First Communion or Mother's Day Gift

Do you need a last minute gift for a First Communion or Mother's Day? You can quickly and easily make this cute jewelry stand.

One of my nieces has First Communion tomorrow. I know she will be getting the traditional gifts from other people, so I wanted to give her something different. While looking at something else, I noticed the Jewelry Stand on the that's my letter blog. I know that my niece will probably be getting some jewelry, so I think this will be a perfect gift.

This is a quick, easy, and fairly cheap project. I did not follow the project plan on that's my letter exactly, but I did use it as a guide. Be sure to check out the blog, I've made other plan from her blog and she has lots of great ideas!

Step 1.
Cut your pieces.
You need the following:
2 - 1/4" x 1 1/2" cut at 6 1/2" (frame)
2 - 1/4" x 1 1/2" cut at 8" (frame)
2 - 1/2" dowel cut at 7 1/2" (cross dowels)
1 - 1" dowel cut at 13" (main dowel)
1 - 1/2" panel cut at 7 1/2" x 8 1/2" (base)

Step 2.
Make the frame. This part is easy. Just use some wood glue and clamp it together. Be sure to wipe up any excess glue. If you want, you can also secure it with finishing nails. I thought it was strong enough with just the glue, so I did not use any nails.

Step 3.
Glue the frame onto the base and clamp it down. Again, you can use finishing nails through the bottom of the base if you choose to further secure it, but I just used wood glue.

Step 4.
Using a 1/2" Spade drill bit, make two holes in the 1" dowel. You can put these holes wherever you want on the dowel.

Step 5.

Slide the 1/2" dowels into the holes that you just drilled.

Step 6.

I then made a small indent into the base of the stand using the spade bit. This is not necessary, but does help to keep the dowel steady when you attach it to the base. Now that you have both the base and the post completed, you will want to fill any imperfections in the wood with wood filler and sand any rough spots.

Step 7.

Paint. I used spray paint that I had left over from another project.

Step 8.

Glue in a felt bottom. I used adhesive spray to do this.

Step 9.
Attach the main dowel to the base. I used a 1 5/8" screw to do this.

Step 10.

I found some cute beads and some wood letters that were on clearance. I used craft tacky glue to attach the beads to each end of the dowels. I then painted the wood letters using craft paint and glued them to the base. When looking for beads, keep in mind that the main dowel is 1" and the cross dowels are 1/2" so the beads have to be on the large side. You can personalize your stand anyway that you want.

Step 11. Hang your necklaces and bracelets. You can put your rings and earrings in the base. Enjoy your jewelry stand!