Wednesday, September 22, 2010

DIY: Freestanding Display For Craft Shows

If you're like me and have spent countless hours searching the net and coming up short on how to build a display; then look no further. This one is very simple to do and can be customized to however it suits your needs.

Here is what will be making:

It is 2' Wide and 5' Tall.

Supplies:

1-2'x4' Peg Board ( They come in 1/8" or 1/4" thickness, so that is up to you. However, I suggest the 1/4" as it seems to be more sturdier overall.)
2- 1"x2"x5' (sides)
2-1"x2"x20"
2-1"x2"x16"(legs)

4- L Brackets Preferably the heavier duty brackets that are 1" wide. (or just use what you already have)

Box of Roofing Nails


Now I will warn you that I am not a handyman or liscensed in any way so if there is something that I forget or doesn't seem right, feel free to comment. I wanted to make this with ease and for any skill level.

Before starting:
Clear an area of debris and give yourself plenty of room for this project. I had to rip or cut all of my existing wood so make sure you have an area for cutting if you haven't already. I used wood from a pallet that was left in the garage from the previous owner. So just use your imagination and recycle if you can.

Step One: Building a frame

Lay the 1"x2" x 5' boards (2) parallel to each other and lay the pegboard right side up, on top of it. The right side is the smooth side. Make sure that both the tops of the lumber and the top of the board are on the ends running down the 4' side. Hammer a nail in the top corners first making sure that the ends of the board are all flush and straight, then on the outer bottom end of the pegboard. Doing the top first allows you to move the bottom around if its not straight. Then nail 2 more along the middle and again on the ends.










Using the 1"x2" x 20" place them along side the top ends like shown. Again nailing 2 on each side of the lumber and 2 in the middle. Please remember this is face up still!! If you do it face down you will not grab the peg board or the nail will be poking through, ouch!




Step 2:Applying the legs

Stand your display up so that it is standing on the 2, 5' ends. Take your 1x2x16" and mark a line at 8". Place each leg on that mark. ( I am using this for hairbows and dont have to worry too much about counterweight. Depending on how heavy of a product you want to use, you might need to make the legs longer. Just play around with this part untill you get it at the right formula)

Next, take one of the L brackets and center it in the middle of the bottom board ( 1x2x16) and flush against the leg. You might want to have some help on this step as you will need to keep the display perfectly straight. Hammer in the nails in the bracket slots, preferably bottoms first.Or you can put an L bracket, one on each side of the leg that way when you hammer in the nail it will not hit the nail on the opposite end.

That is it!! Now you can paint it or leave it in its natural color. Also if you have some casters you can apply those to the bottom making your display very portable.

12 comments:

Jennifer DeDonato said...

this is a very good idea...way to go!

Unknown said...

This is great. Thanks for sharing!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting this. Are the 1"x 2" Lukber pieces actually only 1" in thickness? They look thinner which is appealing. I need to make a bunch and make sure they can still fit in my vehicle. Thinner would be better. Thanks again.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, it should read lumber pieces.

Anonymous said...

This looks great. I'm always on the look out for a good, easy, versatile display option and this is terrific. Thanks very much.
david

Unknown said...

Thank you so much. I am an artist and have been looking for a way to display my paintings. Not sure how this will work for painting but best idea yet. I will probably use some sand bags on the leg area for stability. Again thank you so much for the clear and easy plans.

Rachel Staalsen said...

Love it! I'm putting my hubby to work on it tonight!

Anonymous said...

We're making this tomorrow thank you!!

Sorry, shouldn't your motto say "too" fast?

Anonymous said...

This could be used for just displaying materials if you don't have much room. This is GREAT idea. Thank you.

Ark Presentation & Supplies Ltd said...

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Unknown said...

I want to hang pictures that have picture hooks on the back from this display. What would you use?

NEK Crafter's Emporium said...

Thank you for sharing! Can't wait to make tgis and use it in my shop to display ornaments.