DIY Hat Stand from Wooden Candlesticks and Bowls

I’ve confessed my love of accessories to you before, particularly with scarves and vintage costume jewelry. But I am ALSO a lover of hats…especially during the humid southern summers! So, while I’ve made plenty of accessory organizers over the years (as well as other kinds of organizers), I was clearly overdue to make a DIY hat stand for my collection of Trilby hats.

Well, my friends, that day is finally here!

I love the look of vintage hat stands, but they are hard to come by and unsurprisingly pricey. But the look and shape is something that can be replicated using a few pieces from the thrift store.

In fact, it was this set of wooden bowls that inspired my project.

The clear varnish had nearly flaked away over the years, but otherwise, they were the perfect size and shape to hold a Trilby hat. Now, I just needed to find some wooden candlesticks to pair them with.

I found these- and while they weren’t perfect (more on that later), they would more than do and I could work around their flaws.

Now, I just needed to put everything together and see if my upcycling idea would work!

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Building a DIY Hat Stand

First, I needed to do a bit of prep work on the wooden candlesticks. The tops were slightly rounded, whereas I needed a flatter, smoother surface.

Using our orbital sander, I smoothed out the tops of the wooden candlesticks. 

While cleaning out the remnant candle wax, I realized just how deep that brass core was. Which meant I wasn’t going to be connecting the wooden bowls to the candlesticks with a screw (my original intention).

So, I’d just have to work around that later. But here’s here I was going with my idea for a DIY hat stand.

The wooden candlesticks also didn’t have a large, stabilizing base. I would need to add a more secure base to each candlestick to make them more secure as a DIY hat stand.

Thankfully, I found some plain wooden plaques at a craft store that would do just nicely.

A Wooden Hat Holder for DIY Hat Storage

As I studied the pieces of my project, I wondered how to coordinate them. Staining the wooden bowls and bases to match the candlesticks sounded awfully daunting.

I LOVE wood stain, but I suspected that no amount of stain-matching would yield a seamless appearance.

Plus, it sounded like a lot of work in my garage and it was, like, 97°F outside. So, I decided to paint them; not my first choice (I really did want the look of natural wood), but the splashy blue won me over in the end.

Once the paint was dry, I did I test run of how my DIY hat stand would look. Nothing was connected, but it looked good!

Next, we drilled a hole through the center of each base. Then, we drilled a pilot hole into the bottom of the wooden candlesticks and added a 2” wood screw through them.

Lastly, I used my favorite wood glue to fix the wooden bowls to the candlesticks. A screw would have been ideal, but sometimes thrifters can’t be choosers!

DIY Hat Stand from Wooden Candlesticks and Bowls

After the wood glue had set, I re-enforced the junction with a bead of hot glue. it’s not visible unless you turn over the hat holder, and I’m all about a little glue insurance.

Especially since my original plan to use screws was thwarted.

But that was it! I had created a pair of DIY hat stands that were perfect for my hats.

I love creating accessory organization from thrift store finds.

And yes, I’m already on the hunt for additional wooden candlesticks. I still have three wooden bowls left and many more hats to display and store!

If you enjoyed this upcycling idea for a DIY hat stand, then you may also be interested in my new book that just came out. It includes 55 tutorials using flannel shirts or flannel fabric for new accessories, home decor, and so much more!

Craft on!

S

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