How To Build A Mirrored Wall Mount Jewelry Cabinet

Anyone who knows me might wonder why in the heck I of all people would need a jewelry cabinet. Other than my wedding ring and earrings I rarely wear jewelry. Most of the crown jewels costume jewelry was gifts. If I'm going to a special event I'll get real fancy and throw on a bracelet or a necklace and if I'm feeling rather divaesque I might wear both.

It was always a chore digging through the tangled mess to find what I was looking for. That ended this weekend when Mr. Frugalista and I built a Mirrored Wall Mounted Jewelry Cabinet in the master bedroom.

The inspiration began when we purchased an inexpensive floor length mirror at Wal-Mart with the intention of painting it white and hanging it in the master bedroom.

SOURCE

We bought it to replace the one that was previously hanging in the room but re-purposed into a DIY Antiqued Mirror for our dining room. Then inspiration struck and I'm so glad it did because I just love having my jewelry in one place and organized into tangle free zones.

How To Build A Mirrored Wall Mounted Jewelry Cabinet

Supplies:

Mirror 15 1/2" x 51"
1" x 3" lumber
1" x 1" lumber
Pegboard (Home Depot will cut to size for you)
Plywood
Carpenters Glue (we used Gorilla Wood Glue)
Brad Nailer
Wood Screws (#8 x 1/2") (#8 x 2")
Pegboard Hooks
Knob and/or Hook Racks
Magnetic Door Latch
Piano Hinge

Painting the Mirror

First I painted the frame with a 50:50 ratio of Old White and Pure White chalk paint. I distressed a little around the edges with sandpaper and gave it a coat of clear wax to protect the finish.

Building the frame

Using 1" x 3" lumber we built a simple rectangular frame (14" x 50") slightly smaller than the size of the mirror (15 1/2" x 51"). We attached them with #8 2-inch screws in each corner and applied wood filler to conceal the screw heads. If you want to get fancy and have them hidden you could use a Kreg Pocket Hole Jig but in our case, it wasn't important because they would be hidden (see above).

Adding a back

Cut a piece of plywood to fit the back of the frame and secure in place using a nail gun.

Adding a back onto the mirror

Cut a piece of plywood to fit the back of the mirror. Secure it in place using mirror adhesive and clamp them together (we placed a sheet of 1-inch plywood on top to hold them in place while they set overnight (see photo above).

Painting the cabinet

Using Behr Premium Plus Ultra Interior Paint & Primer in the color Wedgewood Gray (same color as our bedroom walls) I rolled two coats over the entire cabinet. 

Adding Pegboard Inside

Cut two strips of 1" x 1" lumber to fit the inside of the cabinet and using wood glue and a nail gun secure them in place (pictured above). Attach white pegboard onto the 1" x 1" strips using a nail gun.

Stenciling the back of the door

To add a fun element when you opened the door, I stenciled white polka dots on the back of the door.

Mounting the door with a hinge

Cut a metal piano hinge the length of the door and mount it both onto the cabinet and the door using #8 1/2-inch screws. Make sure the screws you use are not too long that they break the mirror on the opposite side.

Magnetic door latch

Attach a magnetic door latch according to package directions.

Mounting the jewelry cabinet onto the wall

Drill pilot holes through the back of the frame in each corner top and bottom.  This is where they will be secured to the wall.

Note: You will need a second set of hands for this step.
Have someone hold the cabinet up to the wall where you want it mounted. Place a level on the top of the cabinet to ensure it is nice and straight. Using an Awl poke a hole into the wall through your pilot holes in all four corners.

Where your holes are on the wall (as pictured below) attach drywall anchors if you were not lucky enough to hit a stud.

Place the screws into the pilot holes in the cabinet and screw them in until they stick out the back of the cabinet slightly. This will make it much easier to see and feel your way to lining them up to the anchors on the wall. Line up the screws to your wall anchors and tighten the screw completely.

Note:

This cabinet could be recessed inside the studs of the wall for a flush mount installation. We chose not to because it just sounded like a heck of a lot of work on an already tight schedule.

Adding the jewelry hooks and hangers

Now for the fun part, adding hooks and knobs to organize your jewelry.

Our kids used to have these IKEA organizers in their rooms growing up, I keep everything. They were perfect to use for necklace hangers on the back of the door. Secure them in place using #8 1/2-inch screws.

I had a basket full of pegboard hooks that I used to use in the workshop. They are perfect for hanging bracelets and hoop earrings. Each hole in the pegboard fits a pair of wire back earrings.

Initially, we cut slots into the top row of the pegboard holes for post style earrings (see photo above). That was a fail because the pegboard is too thick and they ended up falling off.

Onto Plan B, using plastic coated wire mesh. We installed two cup hooks into the pegboard and hung a small piece of wire mesh. The mesh can be easily removed to hook post earrings on and off and it works like a charm.

There is loads of room for more jewelry inside this cabinet.  Perhaps some diamond earrings would look fabulous hanging in here, just saying Mr. Frugalista.

No more digging in a jewelry box drawer to find my earrings. Oftentimes it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack to find a pair of earrings.

Another bonus, because they are inside a cabinet, no more having to wipe the dust off of my necklaces because they hung from a hook behind the bedroom door.

If you like my Mirrored Wall Mount Jewelry Cabinet, please share it with a friend and/or save it on Pinterest.

Who knows maybe this little cabinet will inspire me to wear more jewelry now that I can see what I actually have.