Constantly losing keys somewhere, and then wasting precious time, being late for work? The usual hanger for keys - the key keeper - will help to cope with this. In our article you will learn about how to make a housekeeper yourself (photos of products can be found in the following sections), as well as what tools and materials will be needed for this. Be sure, step-by-step instructions and an abundance of various product options will create something unique even to someone who is not too versed in this.
Why should you make a housekeeper yourself?
If you are wondering about how to make a housekeeper in the hallway with your own hands, then you are on the right track. Most people will simply prefer to buy the finished product at the hardware store, but the true masters of their craft are not looking for easy ways. In addition, why pay extra money when you can do something with your own hands, having invested your whole soul in an ordinary object? Here is just a small list of the benefits that hand-made key holders have:
- good combination with the interior (color and design are chosen independently);
- with the help of a common subject, you can convey love for loved ones;
- confidence in the reliability of the product made by yourself;
- great pleasure from the creative process;
- low cost of materials.
In addition, do not forget that the stores offer a rather meager assortment of key holders. This is especially felt by owners of apartments with an unusual interior. In hardware stores, it can be difficult to find a housekeeper who is made at the forefront or in a country, and acquiring a product that does not fit into the general environment is extremely reckless.
In addition, most modern key holders are made in China. Yes, such interior items are quite inexpensive, but they can easily break even under the weight of the keys, not to mention the various accidents that lead to deformation. Therefore, it would be better to make a housekeeper on your own, based on individual requirements for her appearance and characteristics.
Determined with construction and design
Decided to make a wall key holder with your own hands? Photos from the following sections will help you determine the design and construction of the future product. Be sure, the functionality and appearance of the key holder is limited only by the imagination and capabilities of the person who decided to make it. However, in order to create an interior item that will harmoniously fit into your home, you need to think through all the smallest details in advance, for example, how many keychains you plan to store on them, what material the key holder will be made of, what it will be attached to and so on.
If you want to make a truly unusual item, it is strongly recommended not to follow any patterns. You must put your whole soul into the product and make it so that your household likes it. You can use the most daring ideas. For example, some craftsmen make a housekeeper in the form of a cat or dog from wire, implying that the keys will be attached to the paws and tail. Others drill several hangers in the frame for the photo: simple, quick and original.
As for the hangers, they can also be made independently or purchased in the store for mere pennies. The first option is suitable for those who already have experience in processing various materials and want to create something really unique and inimitable, for example, a gift to a loved one, made entirely with their own hands. However, if you have never used a jigsaw or drill before, then it is best to purchase hooks in a hardware store so as not to bother with their manufacture. Fortunately, a rather large assortment of such parts is presented for sale, that is, you will have plenty to choose from. In this case, the main thing is to pay attention not to the quality of the product (the weight of the keys rarely exceeds 300 grams), but to its appearance.
What material is better to use?
Answering the question of what you can make a housekeeper with your own hands, it is worth noting that there can be a huge amount of materials. And there is no preference. Each of the materials has its own advantages and disadvantages. Even an ordinary wooden branch can be used to make key holders. And it is far from a fact that a metal product will fit well into your home, although it will have excellent durability.
Here is just a small list of materials from which you can make a housekeeper:
- wooden block;
- metal plates;
- old photo frames;
- cardboard or plywood;
- skin or substitute.
It is strongly recommended that you purchase materials for manufacture at wholesale stores, and not at hardware stores or in the market. The fact is that the range in such establishments is rather scarce, and the cost of materials is almost doubled. Although if finance does not play a big role for you, then there is no need for savings. Moreover, not many materials will be required to make a housekeeper.
List of required tools
Before you make a housekeeper with your own hands, make sure that you have all the necessary tools for this. Otherwise, in the process, you will have to constantly be distracted or use alternative methods of processing the material, which can be quite unsuccessful, which will affect the quality and appearance of the product. So, here is a list of the most necessary tools you may need:
- a screwdriver or a drill - for fixing a key holder with screws to a wall;
- nails and a hammer: a cheaper option for fastening is less reliable;
- grinder with a disk - for metal processing and metal cutting;
- buttons and glue - indispensable for attaching cardboard parts;
- scissors or clerical knife - suitable for cutting cardboard;
- awl - suitable for making even holes in cardboard;
- circular saw - ideal for cutting wooden parts;
- sandpaper - suitable for wood processing.
As you can see, the list of tools is quite extensive. However, it is worth noting that these are only the basic items that may be needed in the process. As a rule, the breadth of the list depends on the complexity of the product and the materials used. For example, if you decide to work with plastic, then you may also need a soldering iron. So it is better to get everything you need in advance. If you don’t have any of the tools in the garage, you can ask friends or neighbors for it.
Ideas for a Wooden Key Holder
Decided to make a wall key holder made of wood with your own hands? This classic version does not require much physical effort from you, since wood is one of those materials that lend itself very well to processing. The essence of creating a wall object is that the master cuts the workpiece from a wooden board, then processes it with sandpaper or a jigsaw, introduces various decor elements, covers with varnish and only after that screw several hooks in order to hang keys in the future. There can be a lot of options for execution, so you should not focus on one thing.
For example, if your old wall clock has broken, you can remove the dial from it, attach a new mechanism to the square plaque, then hang several hooks on the structure and fix the watch on the board. Such work will look especially beautiful if the dial was taken from an old watch. You can also make additional decoupage elements, for example, cover the key holder with a wax patina or varnish. Well, if you know how to burn wood rather well, then such skills will come in handy when creating almost any key holder.
You can also take a five-millimeter leaf of a good tree and draw on it some simple picture, where all the elements are fastened together. Alternatively, you can use the words "Home" or "Keys." After that, you will need to carefully cut the resulting pattern with a jigsaw and process it with sandpaper. If you want to give the tree a white color, it is best to use the simplest option for this - to cover the product with plaster. It remains only to screw a few decorative eyelets, and the key holder will be ready. You can also hang several antique keys on it, having previously processed them in a cast - beautiful and unusual.
Cardboard Housekeepers: Ideas for the Lazy
How to make a housekeeper yourself (with your own hands) (photo will be presented below) from cardboard? The most important advice in this case will be the acquisition of truly high-quality material for work that will not be afraid of processing. It is best to do a search for the basics in construction or office supplies. Remember that the denser the cardboard, the easier it will be for you to work with it, because you do not have to constantly worry about the fact that small parts will fall off in case of careless handling.
We find some beautiful picture on the Internet, print it out on a printer, cut it out, then lean it against the cardboard and begin to carefully trace all the contours with an ordinary pencil. For starters, it’s best to choose some simple element, such as a house or a star. However, over time, you will be able to cut out cats, flowers, keys and other complex objects that have many curved details from cardboard. After cutting, it will remain to process the resulting image in any of the available ways and apply several decor elements. Key hooks are hung with glue - right inside the cardboard.
A sign that says "Family" is a pretty simple and original idea for a housekeeper. In the photo this word is written in English, but you can try to write it in Russian. To do this, open Microsoft Word on your computer, then write the desired word in it, select the font size and style, then print the blank and repeat all the above steps. The advantage of words over pictures is that you can use dozens of different options, especially if you are fluent in computer programs. But the picture can not be edited.
Key holder
In some cases, the usual key keeper may not be enough, for example, if, in addition to the keys, you need to put out a mobile phone or wallet. In this case, you can make a key holder from an ordinary shelf by attaching several simple screws or hooks to it. Moreover, the more original and unusual the shelf looks, the more beautiful the keychains under it will look.
Of course, you can make a shelf with your own hands. The benefit of doing this is quite simple. It is only necessary to draw up a schematic drawing of the future design in advance, after which all the necessary details should be sawn out of wood, processed with sandpaper and fastened together with screws or glue. You should also treat the product with a stain so that it changes color to darker and is not subject to aging.
The final step will be the fastening of the hooks for the keys. In this case, you can use the most unusual elements, so that the interior looks more original. For example, hooks can be made removable or wooden by cutting them yourself from the rest of the material. It will be possible to hang on them not only keys, but also glasses, caps, watches and other accessories that you put on when leaving the house. Well, it will be possible to put a wallet or phone on the shelf so that they do not have to come back afterwards.
Key holder
Perhaps one of the most commonplace options that you can bring to life with your own hands, but it will look original in any apartment. To make a housekeeper made of wood with your own hands in the form of a key, you will need to use a board with a thickness of not more than 1 centimeter. As an alternative, you can use a regular sheet of plywood, which is very easy to process with a jigsaw. Such material will cost much cheaper, but after cutting the base, you will have to thoroughly process the edges with sandpaper so that no one gets hurt about them. It is also strongly recommended that all work be done with special protective gloves.
After you manage to make a key holder from plywood with your own hands, be sure to paint it with acrylic paint of the color that will harmoniously fit into your interior. After that, it is recommended to varnish the entire product in order to increase its useful life. By the way, the advantage of the key is that it does not have to purchase additional hooks for the bundles. Everything you need can be hung directly on the screws, without specially twisting them to the end. Well, or you can use more expensive mounts that have a decorative look.
Leather key holder
To make a housekeeper out of leather with your own hands so as not to lose keys during a walk - what could be easier than that? For work, we need a piece of good leather, an awl, durable threads, several fasteners, as well as paint. If you have tried yourself in needlework at least once before, then making such an item will not be difficult. We simply fasten together two cut pieces of skin so that a bag forms. After that, we attach the button to the front of the key holder with a rivet, and from the back we attach another small piece of leather with the second part of the button. After that, it remains only to paint the skin black or gray. Congratulations! You managed to make a key holder from the skin with your own hands, and now you will never lose your keys, even if they fall out of your pocket. You can also add some beautiful stripes to this product so that it looks more original.
Conclusion and video
We hope you now understand how to make a housekeeper with your own hands for your apartment. If any of the steps is still incomprehensible to you, we strongly recommend that you watch a short video in which the master makes a housekeeper at home and tells the viewer everything in detail. We strongly recommend that you watch it to the end, especially if you are making a similar piece of furniture for the first time.
As you can see, there are a lot of different options for housekeepers that you can make yourself and hang at home. Remember that the variety of manufactured items is limited only by your own imagination. If you really have some kind of bold idea, then don't be afraid to bring it to life. After that, you will have not only a place where the keys will always be safe, but also a wonderful piece of furniture that will harmoniously combine with the overall composition of your apartment.