Homemade display unit for bead shows
 

I wanted places to stand focals, hang bead sets and have linear space for beads sets that need to be lined up, for example graduated sizes or focal with matching spacers. I came up with this and my brother, with a full woodworking shop, helped me out.

Today I went to Home Depot and found some poplar that was reasonable. I bought 12 pieces.... more than enough for a shelf unit but I didn't have my paper and pencil to do the figuring for exact amounts. Still, those 12 4' pieces only cost me about 24-ish bucks.

For the shelf unit shown, I cut 4 pieces 24" each. Then 10 pieces that were 18" each.

Next I took the 18" pieces to his drill press and drilled 3/32" holes 2" apart from each other. My goal is to cut mandrel pieces and glue them in the holes. These will be to stand my focals on AND the ones that are for hanging beads from will have the shelf piece nailed on upside down so my holes for the brass cup holders have been started for me- much easier screwing these things in with this head start!

The left side has a hole drilled on the outer side piece that goes all the way through. The matching right side has 3 partial holes drilled in it that line up with the ones on the left. I cut piece of welding rod (that I normally cut up for mandrels) to fit the width of the open area of the unit. These are the 3 rows that I will slide beads on.

As you can see, there are 2 shelf units and they are held together with brass hinges, which my brother happened to have on hand. (I hadn't bought them yet so I did get lucky!)

My brother has a nail brad gun and was really great to me because he glued and bradded the whole thing together for me. All I had planned for him to do was cut and let me drill. I was planning to nail the whole thing together myself but he had the tools and in no time, the unit was assembled and just needed paint before putting the hardware on it.

Here is what I am talking about:





























And here is a picture of the sticker on the poplar I picked up today:






I am going to make another one (with the help of my brother!) but I don't like the mandrel shelf pieces. They do not come out as easily as I thought they would. I will pick up some fish tank plastic tubing and cut little pieces to put on the ends to prevent the beads from falling off when I tilt it in taking it out of the unit. This is what BeadBoxMan does with all of his cigar display cases and it's his genius-- must give him credit for that! (Btw, I have a bunch of his boxes and LOVE LOVE LOVE them.)

Another difference I have made in my procedure for this is that I am going to paint the wood BEFORE having it cut up and holes drilled. I got paint in all the holes and it was a pita to clean the holes out. This time? Paint first- then cut up, drill and assemble. I will have some raw edges to paint afterwards but it's a heck of a lot easier to do that than clean paint out of my holes.

Oh and I put E-6000 glue in the holes before I pounded the mandrel pieces into the focal display holes.

Hopefully this makes sense.

Sue

Great Idea Sue!!! Thanks for sharing.Hope you don't mind if I use this Idea.
Now to go get my "Honey Do "List and add it to it for Hubby!!!:poke:
Janet C.

Janet,

That's the whole idea of posting it! I hope someone gets some use out of it.

It's not tippy but I think I would clamp one side to a table at a show, just in case.

It folds together nicely... should go take a picture of that. I'll go do that and then post it.

Sue

I would not leave the beads in the unit while transporting so ignore them in these 2 pics. I wanted you to see how it looks when you close it up. I should get a brass hook and eye so that it can stay closed.





Can you see the paint drips on the brass hinges..... sigh.... I hate to paint for a very good reason. I suck at it!

Sue

Very cool!

Wow, you're so handy and ingenious. Great set up!

That is just fantastic and thanks so much for the tutorial!

Very nice
One could use pallet wood if they want free nice wood
It would be more than likely oak

Very cool sue!!! Looks like something I could handle too.....

Murf, we have tons of pallet wood here, neighborhood is just being built so they are evrywhere. I didn't know they would be oak......goona go snag some!! Thx!
Sue

Very nicely made Sue!

Nice Sue. I'll have to check it out soon.

Very clever Sue.

Perhaps a couple of clasps to hold it shut and also a couple of hook and eye type clasps to keep the display in a locked "open" position along the hinged side where no one can see them but it keeps the display rigid and toppling over due to clumsy fingers. Also, if you painted up two 1/4" pieces of plywood 24" x 18" to use as backing. That way, transportation would be a snap as long as you keep it in an upright position. You could also put a handle on the top for easy carrying but, that would show.

I'm all about function at an affordable price.

Tammy,

Good thoughts but I want to keep it lightweight and I'm thinking backing it would add more than I want. Then again, a white background would show the beads up better than anyone looking thru it.

Handles on top, another good idea but it's light enough that (once I put the hook and eye on the front to keep it closed), I can just hand carry it by holding onto the top of it.

Still, good ideas are welcome. What works okay for one can work much better with improvements for another. Keep the ideas coming, everyone. LE is a very giving community and I'm pleased to be a part of it.

Sue

Fantastic Sue!! That is absolutely brilliant! I may just have to rob your idea, if you don't mind. I love it!

From now on I'm going to start calling you "queen of the tube beads". Can you ever make a great, long, balanced bead!

My tube bead skills are courtesy of TWO Trey Cornette classes. The man is a genius. If you ever get the chance to take a class with him, hock the family jewels and pay for the class. You will NOT regret it.

And it's not robbery-- this is freely given and if someone gets a benefit from it, I've done a good thing.

Sue

Well, then I shall take your idea and run with it! Thanks so much for sharing.

I think you live in a real primo area for glass teachers; you've been to some awesome classes. I will definitely keep my eyes open to see if he comes near me.

Quarter inch plywood or MDF weights almost nothing. It also would give you stability for your case and, privacy so no one can see what you have inside when it is closed. Plus, if you want to leave your beads in place, you just have to shut the unit, latch it and adios. If, in the unlikely event you hit a bump, then the beads will be contained inside.

That's true. Wonder if my brother would like to experiment with me on the next one! lol I am the older sister after all. Aren't I supposed to pick on him?

Sue

Unfortunately theft is sometimes an issue at craft shows, especially for a small item like beads.

You can make this more resistant to the sticky-fingers crowd by:

• Using carabiners or spring clasps instead of regular cup hooks.
• Using longer posts that go all the way through on the lower, vertical display of large beads. These can then be threaded rods, which have to be undone before the bead is removed.

Another option is to use two posts and the spring from a ball-point-pen:

------------------------------- (top shelf)
|
| (top post)



|
Z (bottom post with spring on it)
Z
------------------------------- (bottom shelf)

You must press down on the spring to insert or remove the bead. The bead appears to float above the shelf.

Ben David...can't see pictures... or maybe it's just me??

It's a graphic Roo.

I hang gauze behind a similar display I have (actually a clothes dryer) that gives some background without losing the see through effect. And it's light.
Very nice display Sue, well done you and your bro.

That is excellent Sue!! I can see it would be easy to mount or clamp some small spotlights on there too.

Great idea Sue. My husband made some bead stands for me ages ago and I wrap them tightly in clingwrap and stand them upright while transporting them - that way the beads stay in place.

I :love: cling wrap....

ok carry on......

LOL you sound like Dexter, Jaci.

:lol:

Sue, this is a wonderful tutorial! thank you so much for sharing. and Tammy, I love your add-on. I would definately make it with a backing of the very thin (I think it is about 3 mm?) MDF that I can get locally. and the handle - SUPER idea!
Love it when you guys are brainstorming!

Sue, I am loving the idea... but I am also a put a back on it person.. to keep it light weight you could use some foam core, or masonite. I need to dig out my table saw and make some.... thanks for the info and pics

Candice

thats great sue! It would look lovely with a background

Looks great Sue!

Have a similar one that I made from oak. I didn't want to put backs on because it will limit the amount of light on the beads. To transport it I use 3 sheets of carpet foam, 1 in the middle of the 2 panels, the other 2 on the outside. A stretchy cord holds it all together, velcro straps would work too. I can leave the beads on it and not worry about it then. To keep it clean it goes into a cardboard sleeve made with duct tape.