Airstream Living

living a big life in a small house

DIY Stocking Holder

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No fireplace mantel? No problem. One of the wish list items for my new house was a fireplace. I like to seasonally decorate the mantel, use it as a candle ledge, and feel the warmth of a roaring fire on a raining day. But most of all, I love to hang the Christmas stockings on it.

My new living room is small and it doesn’t have a fireplace. Where in the heck am I suppose to hang the Christmas stockings? I like to hang stockings for each one of my children, their spouses, and my grandchildren. Plus, the three kitties share a stocking. So that is 11 stockings!

My solution was a temporary stocking holder. It is basically a coat rack, but it will only stay on the wall during the Christmas season.  After the holidays are over, it will be tucked away for safekeeping until the day after Thanksgiving next year.

Here is how you can make your own DIY stocking holder.

My new living room is small and it doesn’t have a fireplace. Where in the heck am I suppose to hang the Christmas stockings? I like to hang stockings for each one of my children, their spouses, and my grandchildren. Plus, the three kitties share a stocking. So that is 11 stockings!

My solution was a temporary stocking holder. It is basically a coat rack, but it will only stay on the wall during the Christmas season.  After the holidays are over, it will be tucked away for safekeeping until the day after Thanksgiving next year.

Here is how you can make your own DIY stocking holder.

Supplies

  • 6 feet of molding – I chose kind of an ornate piece so it (sort of) looks like a mantel
  • 12 coat hooks
  • 3 picture frame hooks
  • paint
  • paint brush
  • hammer
  • screwdriver or drill

Paint the Molding

I used my interior trim color. I always have a bucket handy for touch-ups. My trim color is Sherwin Williams Snowbound in semi-gloss. Allow drying then nail three picture frame hooks to the back of your board for hanging on the wall. Mount two toward each end and one in the middle.

Add the Hooks

Depending on how many hooks you want, do a little math and figure out how far apart you need them to be. For 12 hooks on a 6-foot board, your measurement will be to space them apart every 5 1/2 inches.

Mount to the Wall

Using a measuring tape and level, mark with a pencil where your mounting nails will need to go. Hammer in your nails and mount to the wall.

After Christmas

But what about the holes left in the wall from the nails used to hang the stocking holder after Christmas? Since I am not keeping my stocking holder up year around, my plan is for the holes left is pretty simple. I will fill the holes each year with a little bit of spackling and brush with a little bit of my wall touch-up paint.

What do you think of my no mantel stocking holder? Have you had to come up with a creative solution to hang stockings without a fireplace?

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Welcome to Urban Cottage Living

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Everything needs to start somewhere. To be honest, I’ve been mulling over what my first blog post should be. Since I couldn’t decide, I thought I would just do a little introduction to my thinking behind this whole thing called Urban Cottage Living. You can also read a little more about me here.

I love home

I love everything home. My environment is really important to me. I’m one of those people who had to learn over the years to let messes sit because I like everything in its place. This is not to impress anyone, but because it makes me relaxed – an oxymoron I do realize.

When John and I were first married, we were broke. I was forced to be creative with what we had, inspired by Country Living, Martha Stewart, and Better Homes and Gardens magazines. We did not buy our first home until 11 years of our marriage, and we moved around often so I got plenty of practice.

Our home has always been decorated and inviting. Over the years friends would ask me “how did you do that?” I realized I had a knack for interior design and I was helping them with their homes.

This is what our house looked like the day we bought it

I love to DIY

Even though I had no other choice than to DIY in the beginning, I’ve never stopped. When I stroll streets filled with boutiques and antique stores I am idea shopping. I love nothing more than to be inspired by something and then come home and create my own spin on it.

Growing up, my dad was a school teacher. But, really, he is a closet architect. He has designed and built five houses and done two remodels. I started building my own furniture out of leftover 2×4’s and plywood from the construction site trash pile. When I was seven years old I built my first table and a pair of benches with a handsaw, hammer, and nails. Today I enjoy my power tools!

I love to entertain

My love language is acts of service. Whether it is a dinner for six or a full out party, I want my friends to feel special. I’m deathly allergic to paper plates and plastic forks. However, I’m learning to loosen up, realizing it’s the people that matter, not the fork.

Nonetheless, if I can make it happen, I want my guests to feel spoiled and special–from the decorations to the lighting, to the music, to the food, to the fork.

I love to garden

This is something I do for myself. I am absolutely grounded when I am cultivating and nurturing in my yard. I think growing my own food is one of the most amazing experiences. I never feel like I can learn enough about it.

In my big house, I had a big garden. Here, in my small house, I have a small yard but I am absolutely having a ball figuring out where to grow everything. With permaculture and edible landscaping becoming more popular, I am finding I can grow just as much food on my small lot as I could in my big garden.

I love to share

Urban Cottage Living is exciting for me because I have some life experience behind me. I have a new project and a new challenge for my small house. I know what works for me. So, I thought I would share it will all of you.

I would love to get to know you more. Please comment, follow me on all those little social media icons in the top right corner, and subscribe to my email. Welcome!