The Budget Babe | Affordable Fashion & Style Blog

Cheap Ways to Organize Your Jewelry


Affordable ways to organize earrings
Frame a piece of wire mesh to create a functional and stylish place for earrings.

A reader recently asked me for some inexpensive ways to organize her closet, and to be honest, I should be the one asking for advice in that department! Nonetheless, getting my wardrobe organized is one of my top priorities this year, so I will share what works for me as I go along. In the meantime, I thought I'd share some photos taken by my highly-organized and very stylish friend, Liz, which demonstrate her creativity and resourcefulness when it comes to organizing jewelry. Hmm...maybe I should just hire her to clean up my mess? How do you keep your jewelry organized?



A pretty blue bottle becomes the perfect spot to stack precious bracelets.


Drawer pulls double as hooks and keep necklaces tangle-free.


Store rings on the pretty fingers of sculptural plastic hands. This Glass Hand Stand ($14) will do the trick.


Comments
nice! good ideas!

now I have another challenge for you :-) ... storing and organizing make-up! I've expanded my collection recently and it's outgrown the plastic 3-drawer set I have on my bathroom counter right now. I don't like double stacking items bc I want to be able to see everything. I also have a little OCD and everything has to be organized with it's own place, lol! any ideas?
#1 Danielle on 2009-01-14 08:12 (Reply)
I recommend using drawer organizers... I honestly use the plastic container that comes when you buy cookies. Lol If you have a lot of round containers like blushes you can store them standing instead of laying down. It works perfect! You can use some type of pencil holder (a plastic cup works fine) to hold all your eyeliners, mascaras or lip glosses. Everything should fit in the 3 drawer set you have. Just be creative!
#1.1 Clara on 2009-01-14 11:40 (Reply)
Make a magnetic makeup board I made one they are awesome!!! Look up the how to on pinterest!
#1.2 Darcy on 2013-02-20 20:01 (Reply)
Plastic cross stitch canvas also works in a frame for holding earrings. And might be more readily available/easier to work with than metal window screening. Any Michael's/AC Moore/Pearl Paint etc will have it, usually near their fiber section. I have black in mine, but it comes in "clear" and many other colors.
#2 Victoria on 2009-01-14 10:14 (Reply)
ooh i love the idea of using a pretty, blue bottle!
#3 Cupcakes and Cashmere (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 10:21 (Reply)
ohh.... this makes me all excited to organize my room someday! I'm a newlywed who seems to keep moving... and living in a hotel room now lol. Great ideas!
Any other ideas for storing necklaces? I have some really nice ones that I'm not sure I'd hang like that...
#4 Liz (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 10:33 (Reply)
For my necklaces, I got a wooden man's tie rack (the kind that is flat against the wall, not the round swivel type), painted it to match my decor, and mounted it on the wall. It provides 30 seperate hooks so I can keep the chains from tangling, but I can also easily see my choices when I haven't decided what to wear.
#4.1 Kris on 2010-10-07 16:01 (Reply)
could i see a picture of it?
#4.1.1 Andrea on 2011-08-25 12:05 (Reply)
Love the bottle idea! funny b/c at a boutique I show my jewlery at here in town, that is how it is presented there (first photo)-in a frame with a screen background-but with necklaces :-)
#5 Real Style Real people (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 11:04 (Reply)
yay! Thank you for the post!!! I love the bottle Idea. You can use one of those shoes organizers that hang behind a door to place jewerly and makeup. I use it for combs, make up brushes, abd hair clips. You can use ice cube containers to put earings. I use big hooks to hang my necklaces in my closet. I found this really cool website that have me so many Ideas. http://www.thriftyfun.com/Organizing_669.html
#6 Clara on 2009-01-14 11:14 (Reply)
Great Ideas!!!
Does anyone have any ideas on organizing/storing hand bags? I have over 100 and refuse to get rid of some! Right now I keep them on a plastic container that's definitely not a good idea I know… :-(
#7 Tink on 2009-01-14 11:46 (Reply)
i use this little decorative tree from Ikea to store all my jewelry that i want to be able to see (out of site out of mind you know?) This tree hold necklaces, earrings and rings depending on what branch you use- and its actually a perfect size even for long pendants- and for 5 bucks its a steal!!!! its a way better deal then the jewelry trees from places like Urban outfitters, and is actually sturdier as well! I really love this!

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90135491
#8 peaches on 2009-01-14 12:22 (Reply)
Great ideas! I usually just throw everything into a few random boxes but that of course leads to many frustrating times of untangling necklaces! I quite like the idea of hanging things from drawer handles.
#9 MizzJ (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 12:31 (Reply)
The best thing I did to organize my jewelry was to get a solid wood cabinet made just for jewelry storage at a garage sale. It's fantastic! It's also very sturdy and looks nice, and cost just $50! I highly recommend one of these if you have a lot of jewelry and trinkets, etc. to store. But I also urge looking for one at a thrift store or garage sale because they can be pricey at regular stores. Hospice thrift stores are great places to look for such cabinets because ladies from past generations seem to have used them a lot.
#10 Anusha (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 14:46 (Reply)
I hang my earrings from ribbons that are hung on my wall with a straight pen. You can get a yard of ribbon anywhere but I suggest using some that isn't satin. Use the backs of the earrings to poke holes in the ribbon, and hang them. The straight pen is what holds the ribbon onto the wall and it allows for extra room, but doesn't put a huge hole in my wall.
#11 Nicole on 2009-01-14 15:02 (Reply)
You know, that is really cute. I think it allows a lot of room for creativity by decorating with ribbons and dangly earrings!
#11.1 Julia on 2009-01-15 21:10 (Reply)
Oooh, gotta try the bottle trick. My bracelets are mashed up in a really cute ceramic box ... can't find a thing, and am constantly losing bangles behind the dresser!
#12 Sal (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 16:33 (Reply)
Omg, I love the hands idea for holding up the rings!
#13 Celeste (Homepage) on 2009-01-14 17:04 (Reply)
I have one of those little wooden jewelry cabinets, but I really love these two ideas --

DIY Shutter To Jewelry holder - picture: http://casasugar.com/2339389, inscrutions: http://casasugar.com/2339473

Fancy Plate Display To Necklace Display: http://casasugar.com/2389533
#14 brista on 2009-01-15 16:51 (Reply)
As a college student without room for my old jewelry box, I found a solution for storing necklaces that works quite nicely: an unused message board with thumbtacks. I already had one up on the wall with various scraps of paper covered in favorite quotes and poetry. I simply hang and drape the necklaces over the thumbtacks already keeping the bits of paper in place. It's an easy way to keep them untangled and even create an interesting piece of art, if you're willing to take it far enough.

And I also store my bracelets on a bottle - an old Arizona Green Tea one, actually. A great way to reuse a beautiful bottle.
#15 Jennifer on 2009-01-16 12:21 (Reply)
The best way to store earrings and also display them is with thumbtacks and ribbon. Just find some ribbon you like (thinner works better) at the craft store (about $2 for a whole roll) and cut however long you'd like it to be. Just tack the ribbon in a U shape to the wall, one thumbtack on either side. Be sure the ribbon isn't too tight or too loose. Then hang your french hook earrings on it, alternating ends so you don't throw off the balance of the ribbon.

It looks really cool when it's done and you can fit all your earrings on it.
#16 Dana (Homepage) on 2009-01-17 09:19 (Reply)
Love these ideas! Also, to keep from getting your necklaces tangled, you can cut a straw in half and string the necklace through the straw if you don't want to hang your necklaces up. I also love my jewelry armoire! You must invest in a big one! It's totally worth it!
#17 Anna (Homepage) on 2009-01-17 15:01 (Reply)
I love the earring trick! That also can be cleverly hidden away on the inside of a closet, wardrobe door, etc. Although, truth be told, I'm not a huge fan of the necklace idea, since I used to do that and it just looked like clutter to me.
#18 Linda (Homepage) on 2009-01-17 17:49 (Reply)
I have one of those hanging shower caddies that I use for my jewelry. It has bars going across that I hang earrings on, two shelves for rings, pins, and a little container of stud earrings, and then 4 hooks on the bottom that I hang necklaces off of. I have it hanging in my closet and it works perfectly! I love it!
#19 Megg on 2009-01-19 20:08 (Reply)
Is there another way to hang necklaces keep them orgnized?
#20 Lori (Homepage) on 2009-01-27 19:22 (Reply)
Some good ideas! I was also reading jewelrygalblog.com and they put up a post showing a person using a cultery board to organize their jewelry. I thought that was a really clever idea.
#21 Jada on 2010-07-07 21:20 (Reply)
I use wooden thread spool holders from JoAnn Fabrics, they can hang on walls or open to set on the dresser. These are great for bracelets, necklaces and rings.
#22 Kim on 2010-09-20 11:02 (Reply)
Try a jewelry tree. I picked one up for 5 bucks at a discount yoga store of all places. (something like this: http://www.zappos.com/lucky-brand-tree-jewelry-stand-gold). It holds all my necklaces, tangle free. I have been downsizing my jewelry slowly over the past few years. My college costume collection was amazingly large. When moving into different life stages, some pieces just don't work anymore. I gave away several pieces to younger cousins and thrift stores. It makes organizing much easier with less clutter!
#23 Frugal Fashionista on 2010-12-26 10:17 (Reply)
For my bracelets I cut a paper towel holder in half and added a flower in the middle for decoration. It's similar to the glass hand stand minus the hands. :-)
#24 Lynn on 2010-12-29 00:45 (Reply)
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