DIY Wall Organizer Adventures – Part 1
Living in a small space can become a good source of motivation to get creative. Needing more storage space but lacking ability to put up more shelves, I thought that homemade fabric wall organizers would be a good fit. So, I set about looking up how to make them. After being inspired, I made a plan to tackle several different kinds of wall organizers, starting with a more simple design first, then moving on to more difficult patterns later. At least, that’s how it seemed to me at the beginning! After this first adventure, I’m now hopeful that things will get easier as my skills have already begun to improve.
My first choice in wall organizer variety was the design that uses flat pockets, with the pocket being one piece of fabric the entire width of the organizer that is divided into smaller sections through stitching. Below is what I’ve learned so far after my first experience. If you’re interested in reading the story of my adventure, please keep on reading below the DIY tips.
Note: If you are a beginner, please make sure you are using the appropriate sewing needle, and that you are back-tacking to secure your stitching lines.
Tips and Lessons I Learned
Fabric selection can make your project harder or easier. Very large prints for the background can become an obstacle to arrange pockets around. Although geometric prints look easy to cut and sew, pieces must be matched (cutting 1 at a time) and sewing must be exact or the mistake will stick out badly in your project. With patterning, there is the added risk of a print being off-grain, so check your fabric before making your choice.
I had fun making up a design element. It wasn’t as fun as Debbie Shore’s key holders but I’m glad I put in loops to hang things from.
Pressing the seams open before turning the pockets right side out did help get a cleaner edge.
Surprisingly, felt fabric required different handling when sewing, because it didn’t feed the same through the machine. Think of how it doesn’t drape off the table into your lap. I ended up balancing it over my shoulder to get a better feed and sew a straighter line.
Binder clips were a nice idea but didn’t work to hold the felt and background fabric together through multiple steps. Layers would shift and be out of place. Pins weren’t helpful either. The best was to tack the two layers together, sewing inside the seam allowance around the edges.
The order and direction of sewing pockets to the background fabric mattered. Because of the thickness of the project and difference in (stretching) pressure between the presser foot versus the feed dogs, perpendicular seam lines could end up with a small bump when they met. Instead of seam ripping and sewing multiple times, I chose to just change my sewing order and direction. First sew across the bottom of the pockets. Then sew from the bottom seam to the top of the pockets for the pocket section seams. Sewing the vertical lines first would result in bumps along the bottom seam as it met each vertical line. Sewing vertical lines top down to meet the bottom seam would result in bumps too. Additionally, I found that sewing the long bottom seam first ensured that the pocket was straight the entire width.
The hanging loops (for the dowel rod) slip during sewing when trying to sew all of the pieces together, even when using binder clips. It’s better to sew them to the background fabric first.
It would seem faster and simpler to have the bottom pocket meet the bottom edge of the background fabric+felt, but that adds extra bulk. It’s easier to plan and place the pocket with enough extra room below for a seam allowance (but no more than that). The extra bulk of the pockets makes it more difficult to neatly sew the bottom opening closed when top-stitching.
Wall organizers that use rope and one hook to hang takes up more vertical room than I thought. The rope is not replaceable with crocheted/braided yarn either. One hook is also not as strong as two.
If pockets are designed and sewn flat like a patch pocket (no depth/sides), and the cargo that fills them is bulky, it won’t be flat anymore. Pockets will bulge and pull on the organizer, which will bow. If the hanging loops (for the dowel rod) are not close enough to the corners, the sides of the organizer will also pull in and bow a little too.
I learned several things, improved my skills, and had fun while making these two organizers. It was a good first adventure!
My first adventure:
Picking out the fabric and hardware:
The background fabric and felt I had selected from the fabric store for organizer projects. I knew from experience and research that I needed something to stiffen and strengthen the organizer, and since the recommended stabilizer is so expensive, I decided to try using felt first. The muslin for the pocket lining and back of the project I already had on hand. (It’s good to have a small supply of such fabric always available!) The pocket fabric was a separate selection that I selected for “something home décor” because I liked the print. I decided that the two printed fabrics would go together because of the print and colors.
Himmit helped me pick out the hardware, since he’s knowledgeable about such things. One cannot simply nail something into sheet rock and have it stay there! I purchased a dowel rod, drywall anchors (look like expanding screws except hollow), threaded hooks, and sandpaper. I already had the sewing notions required (thread, needles, tools, etc.).
Cutting:
I first measured the space I planned to put the organizers, to determine the length and width. Then I carefully cut the background fabric (ivory with flowers and green ribbon), felt, and muslin to size, including extra length and width to accommodate seam allowances. It was a slow process cutting out the large print, since I had to make sure everything was lined up just right with the large flowers and geometric print.
Now on to the pocket pieces. They were going to essentially be horizontal stripes the width of the organizer. It should be simple to determine the height and cut out the pocket fabric and muslin lining right? Wrong! My background fabric, consisting of a very large print, made pocket placement difficult. The large print would look awkward if the large flowers were covered in funny places, more like a “What’s that?” (confused, slightly disgusted reaction) rather than an “Ooo what’s that?” (oh my, that’s cute reaction). [It reminds me of The Hoof GP on Ytube describing a cow’s two basic reactions. To add to the difficulty, the geometric print that I thought would make cutting and sewing easier required that I carefully cut each piece out so that all pieces would match each other. If your geometric print doesn’t match throughout a project, the eye will pick it up very quickly. I finally determined the number and height of my pocket pieces and cut them out, making sure to add in extra height for 2 seam allowances.
Then came the accessories! Since the plan was to use these organizers for my headcoverings and hair accessories, I thought it might be helpful to have loops for organizing my headbands. To eliminate the risk of white lining peeking through the open loops, I made a tube out of the pocket fabric. This piece was the height of the desired loop times two (for a tube) plus two seam allowances, and the width of the organizer fabric. I also cut out three pieces (pocket fabric and muslin lining) for loops to hang the organizer from the dowel rod. These loops were wide enough to turn right side out easily, and was twice the space needed for a rod plus two seam allowances (because it’s a folded over loop).
This was when I asked Himmit to cut the dowel rod to length. I sanded the ends smooth.
Making the Pockets:
Once everything was cut out, finishing the top and bottom of the pocket pieces was simple. I sewed the matching lining and pocket fabric right sides together along the top and bottom edges only. Keep in mind while working that, for the pocket pieces, the width of the organizer is the longest measurement. Make sure not to sew the wrong side! After some experimentation, I think pressing the seams open before turning the pieces right side out improved my seam edges a little. I sewed all of the pieces along top and bottom (leaving the short ends open), including the hanging loops and loop accessory. Then I pressed the seam edges open. I turned the pieces right side out, and pressed the edges to make the pieces lay flat with a crisp, clean edge.
Binder Clips Versus Tacking:
With the project being so bulky, I thought that using binder clips was a better idea to keep all of the layers in place. I ran into slight difficulty feeding the felt through while sewing, since it doesn’t drape like other fabrics. Therefore, pieces tended to slide out of place. On my second attempt at this organizer, I lightly tacked the felt and backing fabric together, sewing within the planned seam allowance all around the edge. That helped keep things in place and allowed me to focus on keeping the pocket pieces straight while feeding the felt into the machine at the right angle.
I should note here that just because a measurement says the pocket pieces are straight, it doesn’t mean they are to one’s liking. To be on the safe side, I pinned the pocket pieces to the backing+felt, hung it from my curtains with a clothespin, and stared at the whole design while sipping my tea. Sometimes a minor adjustment needed to be made, usually in the middle. I used pins to make sure I didn’t sew on a slight slant, as one’s perspective changes when a project is taken to the sewing machine.
Attaching the Pockets:
First, I sewed along the bottom of the pockets near the edge, attaching them to the backing+felt. I was careful to follow the print as well as keep my seam allowance to make sure my sewing line was straight.
Then, I divided the pockets into sections. I planned carefully so that my sewing lines would match each other both in the geometric pattern, and vertically throughout the pocket pieces. I would get an occasional sewn bump if I sewed from the top of the pocket to the bottom seam line. It was probably because I was a tiny bit off, or because of the thickness and feed of the felt, or because of how the presser foot and feed dogs cause a slight difference in stretch/pressure. Instead of taking more time to get absolutely perfect on my alignment and handling, I simply started sewing from the bottom seam line to the top of the pocket. Easy!
Attaching Other Design Elements:
This is when I added my other design elements to my project. I pinned my completed, pressed tube across to keep it straight. Then I sewed it into smaller loops, matching my vertical stitching lines with the pockets below.
With the first organizer, I tried using binder clips to hold dowel rod loops into place. However, despite sewing all of the layers carefully, it was easy for things to slip slightly out of place. So, with the second organizer (same design), I tacked the loops into place, sewing within the seam allowance edge. When you are attaching such features as curtain rod sleeves or hanging loops, make sure your orientation is correct so that they will be pointing the right direction when all is done and turned right side out! (see pictures)
Sew the sandwich!
I made a sandwich with the front organizer (the pretty background fabric and pockets) and the organizer backing (in my case it was muslin), right sides facing and edges all lined up. I used a few pins to keep everything in place. Starting a third of the width before the bottom corner, I sewing all the way around the organizer, ending a third of the width after the opposite bottom corner, back-tacking to secure my stitching. The goal was to attach everything together, encasing the edges, while leaving a pocket at the bottom edge to turn everything right side out. My original design included a little extra length below the bottom pocket in order to reduce bulk while sewing on the backing. Even though I had to get the stitching really close to the pocket while not catching it, I think that reduced bulk and stress in the top-stitching step.
Before turning the organizer right side out, I clipped the corners a little (it’s like cutting a triangle out of each corner without clipping the stitching). This technique helps decrease bulk to give a better-looking corner. Then, I turned the organizer right side out and used my fingers and a knitting needle to poke out the corners.
I probably should have pressed it at this point. Honestly, I didn’t think pressing would convince the felt to behave, but I should have tried anyways. I top-stitched around the entire organizer, making sure that I closed the bottom opening shut carefully. The top-stitching helped the edges look flat while keeping the backing (muslin) from peeking out. Since I didn’t include the pocket layers into the bottom seam, closing the opening while sewing became easier. I was careful to keep the background fabric hidden at the bottom, while following my original seam line along the bottom of the pocket. Two white seams would have looked odd.
Hang It Up!
I wanted to try a design I saw which hung an organizer from a single center wall hook by means of rope attached to either end of the dowel rod. I thought it would work out okay because I didn’t plan on hanging a lot of weight. The rope looked cute and simple, right?
My first mistake was that I didn’t plan on how much more room/height it took to hang from a rope. So, when I eagerly put in the drywall anchors and hooks, they put the two organizers too near each other, as well as too near the floor.
Then, I thought that I could replace sturdy rope with crochet and braided yarn. It was cute, but stretchy. It was also almost impossible to get the length right. I kept fighting with the yarn, wrapping it around and around the dowel rod to make it taut yet keep the whole rod from twisting. When I discovered my wall placement mistake, I decided to switch to a very small loop of yarn in the center of the dowel rod, tying and winding the yarn around the whole dowel rod to keep it firmly in place. Making a small loop to hang on the hook brought the organizer closer to the hook, which helped keep the organizers from overlapping each other and the floor. It was a frustrating day to be so very close to finishing the project while wrestling with something that just wouldn’t cooperate. I got it to work, but I won’t be making those mistakes again!
Get Organized!
The intention for this first project was to store most of my headcoverings and hair accessories. Because the pockets were flat, and the organizer was hanging from braided yarn, I kept an eye on signs of stress on the yarn and stitching (from overweight or overstuffing). The pretty cargo in the pockets caused the flat pockets to bulge out, which pulled on the organizer and caused it to bow/curve a bit. The sides bowed in a bit as well, probably because I didn’t position the hanging loops close enough to the corners, and the whole weight was suspended from the center point. I didn’t get to store as much as I wanted, but I am happy with the overall results!
Now I have a cheerful, functional wall that reminds me of adventures and accomplishments every single morning! Don’t wait to try something because you think it won’t be perfect or are afraid to fail. I think failure comes more from not trying at all. You may discover some new skill while making a dreary corner of your home bright and functional with favorite prints and good memories. Make the time, even five minutes here and there, to do something you like or try something new!
