Ribbon Organizer and Dry Erase Frame

A while ago, when I started making bows for my niece,  I purchased most of my ribbon online in bulk.  The prices and variety were great online but unfortunately most of them didn't come with the spools.  I've seen so many great ideas online on how to store ribbon but most of them use the spool.  I didn't come up with this idea until I started cleaning out my craft room and came across a shelf I had purchased several years ago

The shelf was in desperate need of some new paint.  It was painted a teal color but it was missing a few coats so the dark (black I think) color wasn't covered completely.  It needed a little sanding and paint and was ready to go.  

I just picked a color from my stash and then I put some antiquing glaze on it.  I found my glaze at Lowe's for around $8. I've used it on several projects and haven't put a dent in it.  A little goes a VERY long ways.  This glaze is so simple to use and adds character to painted pieces. 

I then picked up a few wooden dowels to wrap the ribbon around.  The top one as you can see, has the towel sticking out both sides.  I can easily remove ribbon spools or add new ones in.  For the middle dowel, I drilled a hole partially through both sides of the shelf with one side deeper than the other.  It isn't one that I want to remover very frequently but it has enough give on it that I can.  The final dowel is held up by ribbon that is attached to the back of the shelf.  The ribbon is looped around the dowel instead of glued so I can easily remove it.

The four dowels on top are permanent.  I just drilled partially down into the shelf and then glued the dowels down.  I have them spaced far enough apart that I can put spools on later or I can add more vertical dowels.    

The final thing I did was make a dry erase frame to go next to my ribbon holder.  I often have so many ideas in my head that I forget about most of them.  I wanted somewhere I could write down things that need done, reminders, and future projects.   

 

All I did was paint it and use the antiquing glaze on it.  I then cut some scrap fabric that fit just behind the glass and then closed it up.  Finally, I just looped some ribbon at the bottom to store the marker.