DIY Scrap Wood Project to Make a Towel Rack

Do you have any pieces of wood left over from a previous DIY project? We had a pencil holder left over from a desk renovation! Instead of tossing it in the scrap wood pile, we’ll do an easy DIY project and turn it into a towel rack!

Do you remember when we transformed a desk set for our guest bedroom?

If not, hop over, and see how we repaired and painted the desk and stool here!

Here’s the piece of wood previously attached to the back of the desk.

I thought it would make a perfect towel rack for the guest bathroom!

Want to see what it looks like now?

Here’s a sneak peek!

Let’s start this DIY, so you can see what the rest of our French-inspired towel rack looks like now!!

Steps to make a Scrap wood towel rack

Gather

Gather or purchase the following items to complete this project:

• Scrap wood board – leftover from desk and stool makeover
• 4 Wall hooks- Antique Bronze Fleur-De-Lis Metal Wall Hook from Hobby Lobby
• Sandpaper
• Nail puller
• 8 screws and a screwdriver
• Tack cloth
• Cleaner – Krud Kutter
• Wood filler -Minwax Stainable Wood Filler
• Putty knife
• Primer – B-I-N Shellac based primer
• Paint – Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White and Graphite/Waverly paint in Ink
• Paintbrush- Zibra 2″
• Small paint brush
• Wax – Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Wax in Clear and White
• Wax brush
• Lint-free paper towels
• Transfer- Re-Design Classic Vintage Labels
• Sealer- Black Dog Salvage Show Dog Topcoat
• Egg Carton- optional -push screws into egg carton so you can easily paint them

Prep

To start the project, remove the pencil holder from the scrap wood.

Rich used a nail puller to pry the pencil holder from the piece of wood.

Then, I sanded the area smooth.

Next, I cleaned the wood with Krud Kutter.

Finally, I wiped the board with a tack cloth to remove any remaining residue.

Prime

Because this is an antique board, I will prime it so no tannins bleed through.

I applied two coats of primer.

Repair

Typically, I repair wood before I prime it, but I was in a hurry and forgot about the three little nail holes caused by the pencil holder.

So, after the primer dried, I filled the holes with wood filler and scraped off the excess.

I let the filler dry and then sanded it smooth.

Paint

I painted the board white and the wall hooks black.

Wood Board

I painted two coats of Annie Sloan in Old White on the board and let it dry.

Hooks

First, I painted the wall hooks with Annie Sloan in Graphite, but it looked too gray.

So, I repainted them and the tops of the screws with Waverly in Ink.

Did you notice how I used an egg carton to hold the screws while I painted them? It works like a charm!

Wax the hooks

I like the darker black color better.

Unfortunately, the intricate details do not show through the black paint, so I added some white Wax by Annie Sloan.

I applied the wax with a small brush and then wiped it off with a lint-free paper towel!

I love how the white wax brings out the details of the hook!

Add Transfer

I wanted to add a little more interest to the towel holder, so I added a transfer to the center of the wood piece.

I cut out the transfer, removed the backing, and stuck it to the board.

Next, I used the wood tool to press the transfer onto the board.

When it was adhered, I removed the plastic protectant sheet.

paint

To show off the transfer even more, I painted the grooves around it black.

Carefully apply the paint using a thin paintbrush.

Seal

Protect the transfer with a water-based sealer by Black Dog Salvage Paint Company.

I applied the sealer with my Zibra brush, let dry, and then lightly sanded it.

Then I applied one more thin coat of sealer.

Attach hooks

The last step was to use a screwdriver to attach the screws to the board!

Hang Your Scrap Wood Towel Rack

We hung our new towel rack in the guest bathroom beside the shower door.

We hung it up with Command Water Resistant Picture Hanging Strips made for moist environments like a bathroom.

Now guests can easily reach for a towel or robe from inside the shower.

We like for our guests to feel comfy while they stay with us!

This DIY scrap wood project gives them a great place to hang their belongings!

That’s a wrap on this DIY!

Another DIY SCrap wood Project

If you’d like to see another project using scrap wood, check out this post on how to make a beautiful DIY footed tray with handles!

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Blessings, Donna and Rich

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