DIY Tie Rack Tutorial

This year for Father’s Day, I decided to make Davis a rustic DIY Tie Rack.  Now that Davis wears a tie everyday to work {thanks to his new business!} and to church, he’s out grown his tiny tie rack. So a new tie rack was in order. Plus his old one was pretty lame. And this one is awesome!  

DIY Tie Rack

How to make DIY Tie Rack || Awesome Father's Day gift idea!


Isn’t this rustic DIY Wood Tie Rack completely rad?! I totally love it….and I don’t even wear ties. haha! The wood, the metal, the distress, the old fashioned nails. Its perfect for the modern man! And an easy DIY project too.

Tie Rack DIY || Make your own wood tie rack on the cheap

AND its really easy to make! Talk about beginner DIYer project! It only requires a couple basic tools and supplies.

Rustic Tie Rack Tutorial || Awesome DIY Father's Day gift idea!

This DIY Rustic Wood Tie Rack holds 39 ties!!

Supplies:

  • 1″x12″ board {main piece}
  • 1″x3″ board {ledge}
  • Wood stain – I used Kona by Rustoleum
  • Foam Brush
  • Paper Towels
  • Wood Glue
  • Brad Nailer – I use this Ryobi Brad Nailer
  • Compound Miter Saw – I use this Hitachi {optional}
  • 2.5″ Old Fashioned Nails
  • Hammer
  • Hand Sander with fine grit sand paper
  • Pencil
  • Tape Measure
  • Peg Board {optional}
  • Clear Matte Spray sealer
  • 2 Sawtooth hangers – preferably the hammer in kind

How to Make Wood Tie Rack

1. Cut your boards to 27.5″ lengths. If you don’t have a saw, you can always have them cut the boards in the store for you. I cut mine at home with my Hitachi Compound Miter Saw.

tie-rack-tutorial1

2. Lightly sand the edges and apply wood stain according to directions on packaging. I believe I left my stain on for 20 minutes then wiped off the excess.

tie-rack-tutorial2

3. Apply wood glue along the top long edge of your 1×12 board. {the main piece}

tie-rack-tutorial3

4. Using your finger, spread the glue out so that its thin and even. {note: my “purple nail polish” was not from this project. Its from being clumsy shutting the back door of my SUV lol}

ryobi nail gun

5. Press the 1″x3″ board on top of the main piece perpendicularly to create an L shape. {This will be the ledge.} Using your brad nailer, place brads every few inches across the top of the ledge to hold in place. Wipe any excess glue that oozed out in the process. Allow to dry for 4-6 hours or according to wood glue package direction.

tie-rack-tutorial5

6. After glue is completely dry, then lightly sand the edges and the flat surfaces of the wood to create a subtle distressed look.

DIY Tie Rack || Use pegboard as a guide to evenly mark where each nail goes

7. Place a piece of peg board over the Main Piece of the tie rack so that the top row of holes is about 3″ down. Use the holes in the pegboard to evenly mark where you want the old fashioned nails to go with a pencil. Note: you do not need pegboard to do this, but it sure makes it a lot faster and easier! 

How to make wood tie rack tutorial

8. Using your hammer, drive the old fashion nails into the Main Piece where your pencil marks are. {if you look closely, you can see my little circles on the board} Don’t drive the nails all the way through the back. Just in enough so that they are secure. The key is to try and drive them in as straight as possible. If you look closely at my finished photo, you’ll see my nails are far from straight!

tie-rack-tutorial8

9. Turn your diy tie rack over and hammer a sawtooth hanger on each side. Then spray a coat of clear matte sealer over your entire tie rack, including the nails.

Rustic Wood Tie Rack Tutorial || Perfect handmade Father's Day gift idea!

Doesn’t it look so awesome?? I love how it turned out!

DIY Rustic Tie Rack Tutorial || Awesome handmade Father's Day gift idea!

What are you making for Father’s Day? Do you make Father’s Day gifts? I’d love to hear in the comments below!

Rustic Wood Tie Rack DIY tutorial || Would make an awesome Father's Day gift idea!

More DIY Projects:

Wood Arrows Tutorial

diy-wood-arrows-4

DIY Wood Ceiling

wood ceiling how to

Linda
Hi! I'm Linda, the craft addict behind Craftaholics Anonymous®, a craft blog. Crafting is cheaper than therapy, right? When I'm not DIYing something, I can be found taxiing around our 4 crazy kids or working out. Or shoe shopping... because you can never have too many shoes! Happy crafting! ♥
Linda
Linda

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Comments

  1. 1

    Great idea Linda!!! Love that it functions as a mini mantel too! And the idea to use pegboard for a spacer…genius!

    1. 1.1

      Thank you, Jessica! :)

  2. 2

    This looks like such a fun and easy project! My husband would love this!

    Paige

  3. 3
    Caryn

    Any hints on getting the nails to ‘stick’?

    1. 3.1

      Not sure what you mean. If they’re not staying in place when you hammer them in, hammer them in a little farther. Does that help?

  4. 4

    Thanks for sharing! I saw this on Instagram and immediately showed my husband. It was the perfect way to organize his ties (and belts). He immediately went to Lowes and got the supplies to make this. And now we have one hanging in our bedroom :)

  5. 5
    Karen

    So glad to see this. I’ve been considering using “Shaker” style pegs on a board to hand my athletic shoes on in a hidden corner of my bedroom (I have a lot of them; I keep the ones falling apart to wear gardening, then toss once they are truly beyond redemption). But I don’t want to mess with a DIY for it, and the pre-made ones are expensive, plus pegs are too close together for wide footwear. YOUR board with the heavy nails is the perfect solution … and you are a GENIUS for using pegboard to get the spacing you wanted!!! And as someone else noted, you also got a great little mantel shelf out of it, too — can always make use of that. Thanks for posting!

  6. 6
    Marsha

    absolutely love this idea.
    Using the old fashioned nails, nails it! ( had to add that )
    This will go well in my house as it was built in 1927.
    I have always loved those nails.
    Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful idea.
    Marsha

    1. 6.1

      Thanks, Marsha!

  7. 7
    Stephanie

    How did you figure out the optimal spacing for the nails ?

    1. 7.1

      I used a pegboard {as shown in the pictures} to keep the spacing staggered and evenly spaced apart.

  8. 8
    Allison

    I know this is an old post…Is a brad nailer necessary? I don’t have one but I would really like to make this tie rack! What could I do instead?

    1. 8.1

      You can totally use a hammer and nails :) The nailer just makes it quicker and easier!

  9. 9
    SK

    Would the nails eventually leave rust stains?
    I

    1. 9.1

      I sealed them with a clear sealer to prevent that.

  10. 10
    Gabby

    My nails aren’t going in and I’m hammering as hard as I can. Should I used a different size of old fashioned nail?