Try A Dollar Tree Cutting Board Hack To Keep Coffee And Tea Mugs Organized

The mugs in your cabinet probably come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and as a result, keeping them neatly stacked and organized can be a challenge. However, these kitchen staples are often an important part of your daily routine. If you're used to kicking things off in the morning with a hot cup of tea or coffee, the last thing you want to do after you wake up is spend time looking around for one of your favorite mugs. To keep these items easily accessible, and prevent them from contributing to the clutter inside your cabinets, you might want to store them on your counter with the help of a mug tree. As it turns out, you can build such a fixture from scratch with just a few inexpensive items.

A Cooking Concepts bamboo cutting board from Dollar Tree is the perfect base for your DIY mug tree. For the center pole, you can purchase an inexpensive rolling pin, such as the Bamber Mini Wood Rolling Pin, or repurpose an old one you already have at home. You'll also need a few sturdy screw hooks that will attach to the sides of your rolling pin, some wood glue, a decorative knob or finial, and a long screw such as a drywall or wood screw for anchoring everything in place. The finished product is a simple yet creative way to display all your adorable mugs.

To begin building your DIY mug tree, measure and mark the center points of your cutting board and one end of your rolling pin (this will be the bottom). If you're repurposing an old pin, you'll first need to remove any handles from the ends and sand down the edges where they used to be. Next, drill pilot holes using these tips for drilling the perfect pilot hole in the center marks using a bit the same size as your screw. Slightly widen the opening of the pilot hole on the bottom of the cutting board with a larger drill bit to ensure that you can countersink the screw to be flush with the wood. Alternatively, you could just use a countersink bit when you drill that pilot hole.

Next, apply a generous layer of wood glue to the bottom of your pin, and attach it to the base of the mug tree by drilling your screw into the pilot holes, up through the bottom of the board with either a normal drill or an impact driver. Let the glue dry, and paint the entire piece with your preferred color or wood stain to ensure that all of your project's components match one another. Then, drill small pilot holes for the hooks into the rolling pin at varying heights with enough room for each mug, and screw the hooks into place by hand. Finally, attach your decorative knob or finial to the top of the tree with wood glue. If you choose to forgo the decorative knob, just skip the last step.

There are a few smart and simple ways to improve your DIY mug tree. To begin with, you might want to consider sealing the wooden components of the project to ensure that they last longer and resist moisture. A product like Hope's Pure Tung Oil Wood Finish will work well here, but you could just as easily use mineral oil or beeswax. If you have some spare plywood at home, you could use it in place of the cutting board to create a wider base for your mug tree, which may improve the fixture's stability. With this material, you could also choose to make your tree base circular rather than rectangular. The easiest way to make a round cut is with a band saw, although a table saw with a circle-cutting jig should also work.

If hooks are too small for the size of your mug handles, attach small dowel rods in their places. To do this, you'll need to create a drill guide. First, take a small block of wood, and cut one edge of it at a slight angle. Then, drill a hole through the block at the same angle to create the guide. Clamp the guide over your rolling pin wherever you want to position the dowel rods, and pre-drill holes for them to fit into. Then, coat one end of each dowel rod with wood glue, and insert it into its hole. After the glue dries, the dowel rods should be secured in place. Once you've finished your tree, you can learn how to DIY an impressive coffee station to go alongside it.