Mirrored, Magnetic, Customizable Accessory Organizer (upcycled from medicine cabinet)

One trip to the metal pile at the dump a few months ago, I saw this old medicine cabinet. The mirror was still intact so my initial thought was to try to take the mirror off of its hinges but I didn't have any tools with me to do so. So I went back later, but after looking at it more, I noticed it was still in working shape as a cabinet, and it was 100% metal & magnetic, it really just needed to be cleaned & get a fresh coat of paint, so I took the entire piece home with me.

I've been in LOVE with chalkboard paint for the past few months, so I decided to paint it inside & out with chalkboard paint, as well as give it a chalkboard paint "frame" so that I could decorate the frame around the mirror with different colors of chalk if I wanted to. It had two glass shelves (a third had shattered) inside but I didn't take them with me as I plan on using this primarily as a jewelry organizer. I don't have much jewelry so I should be able to hang my necklaces & bracelets on the inside of the door & inside of the cabinet with magnets, as well as put my small jewelry boxes inside or on top of the cabinet.

Want to make your own? Here's what you need:
Mirrored metal medicine cabinet
Chalkboard paint & brush
Old newsprint (or old towel, sheet, etc - just something to protect your floor front paint while you're painting)
Scotch blue painters tape with edge lock
2 screws, 2 wall anchors, drill, hammer, screw driver
pen or pencil
Spray cleaner (I use 50% water, 50% distilled white vinegar) & old rags
Photograph Bottle Cap Magnets

The above two shots I took pre-cleaning.  Looked pretty gnarly.  ;)





1.) Wipe down the medicine cabinet, inside & out, top & bottom.

2.) Paint inside & out, top & bottom with chalkboard paint.




3.) Using Scotch blue painters tape with edge lock, create a "frame" - width of your choosing - & paint.  Allow to dry in between coats per the instructions on the label.

Note - this was a high-gloss white cabinet, so it took 3-4 coats of chalkboard paint.

4.) Using pen or pencil, note holes on wall.  Drill.  Using hammer, tap wall anchors into place.  Using screw driver, screw screws into place, leaving them sticking out enough to place holes in cabinet on.

5.) Hang.  Decorate.  Enjoy!  :)

I decided to decorate the "frame" of mine with my bottle-cap photo magnets - instructional blog post to come.  To the right is a scarf organizer from (shock) a free metal "rack" I got from the metal pile at the dump (blog post to come).

The plate is a family heirloom that my paternal grandmother & grandfather bought on their honeymoon & the plaque below was a gift from my mom.  It's nice to be able to have a place to display these items now. :)  The rocks were from a family vacation last summer that I just glued magnets to.  Nice to have them serving a function on display & not just in a jar. ;-)

I glued magnets to my tin of Badger balm so that I could have it off the shelf-area.  It's nice to have a place for my meaningful trinkets.  I'm not one for clutter, but I do have a few things that hold special meaning & it's nice to have them displayed now, organized & neat.  :)

Jewelry Organizer- New Life for old Frame (upcycled from old frame who's glass had broken)

I have several frames, large ones, that have broken glass that I've been holding onto knowing I could use them in the future. My mom had given a table-top jewelry organizer to my daughter. It worked, but my daughter would load up each arm with 4-5 pieces of jewelry in order to fit them all on it, some of them would drag on the shelf when it was turned because it wasn't tall enough, & it took up a lot of shelf space for the minimal efficiency it provided. I'm all for using empty wall space so using an old frame as a jewelry organizer was perfect. Also, each jewelry piece would be able to have its own hook, so she could quickly look at everything & decide what she wanted to wear as well as easily get rid of anything she didn't want anymore.

Here's what you need to make your own. :)
Old frame with broken glass removed
Staple gun & extra staples
Needle or long-nosed pliers or tin snips
Hardware cloth, 1/4 inch mesh
Chalkboard paint & brush (optional) - if your frame has a flat surface & you want to use chalk to label and/or decorate your frame
Chalk (optional) - a variety of colors makes for a more cheerful frame
Paint & brush (optional) - if your frame has textured surface & just needs a "freshening up"
Hammer
Old rag or sponge (optional - for applying paint to the hardware cloth)
S-hooks or metal wire & long-nosed pliers (to make your own s-hooks)
Measuring implement (optional)
Wall-hangers









1.) I could have used the needle-nosed pliers & wiggled out the metal pieces that previously held the frame backing in place, but since no one is going to see them when the organizer is hanging up, I just bent them over so they're flush with the wood.




2.) Use the edge of the staple gun to crease the hardware cloth into a 90-degree angle into the corner of the frame back & staple - I had to staple the hardware cloth into the side of the frame because the front of the frame was too thin to take the staples without the staples coming out of the front of the frame.




Here's the front of the frame with the hardware cloth stapled to it.




3.) (Optional) Use paintbrush to paint frame. Use old rag, dabbing it lightly with paint onto the hardware cloth.




4.) After the paint dries, hang, attach s-hooks (make your own with wire & long-nosed pliers if needed), organize jewelry, decorate and/or label with chalk, & enjoy!




Jewelry organizer shown with her hook board. Click here for hook board tutorial.




I happened to have some random plastic s-hooks around.




Clearly I haven't had a chance to make her s-hooks yet (& I didn't want to spend $20 on them). ;)





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