Clever Storage: Undershelf Hooks for KitchenAid Attachments and More

published May 4, 2012
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(Image credit: Miss Treats)

Baker Mary Wolf, aka Miss Treats, has been sprucing up her Los Angeles rental kitchen and we love her DIY solution for storing and displaying KitchenAid attachments, measuring cups, and spoons.

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

Cooking tools like mixer attachments and measuring cups can be a challenge to store in a small kitchen. Mary came up with this functional and attractive way to keep them at easy reach while baking her scones, biscuits, and cakes. (Quite scrumptious baked goods, we might add! Her scones are a big hit at our LA

food swaps

I was getting really frustrated with my KitchenAid attachments being bulky and awkward in drawers and cupboards. They always ended up in different places around the kitchen and as I was struggling to find a solution, I had the epiphany of these cup hooks.

Now, I always know where my attachments can be located and they are also safe from the wear and tear of being tossed around to different locations. All this on top of the added bonus of a cool decoration in the kitchen; I love seeing the attachments up on display every day.

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

Mary built the shelf using simple materials from IKEA and Home Depot. It took just a couple hours and less than $40 dollars to make. She kindly shared the breakdown for our readers:

Unfinished cut poplar wood: $4.88/foot at Home Depot. My shelf is 30 inches long, so it cost approximately $12.10.

Shelf supports: Ekby Valter brackets from IKEA, $4 each. I used 2, so it cost $8 total.

Screws for assembling shelf and wall mounting: $10.14 total but used for multiple projects. 3/4 inch stainless steel screws (for shelf assembly): $4.24 for 50 piece pack; I used 4. 2-1/2 inch zinc plated screws (for wall mounting): $5.90 for 25 piece pack; I used 4.

Wood stain: Minwax Oil-Based Provincial, which comes in various size cans. We had a gallon, which is $26.76 and, yes, used for LOTS of projects and still have some waiting to be used. But the great thing about stain is that you can get smaller size cans and it still goes a long way and is super inexpensive. A smaller 8-ounce can (which is totally appropriate for this project) is $4.78.

Cup hooks: 3 pound, 1-1/2 inch hooks, $4.46 for 25 pack; I used 11.

Total cost: $40.00 or less. This depends on how much stain you want to invest in, and obviously the cost of making multiple shelves goes down once you have the main components to work with. The initial cost could also be less if you already have certain things to use around the house like screws or cup hooks, etc.

Total Time: Under 2 hours of active work, 1 night to let stain dry. It took about 1 hour to assemble and stain the shelf: sand the rough edges of the piece of poplar wood, attach the IKEA brackets, and stain the shelf as a whole. We let the stain dry overnight and then mounted it on the wall the next morning, which took less then 30 minutes to do using an electric drill and a level. I decided to add the cup hooks a couple of weeks later and that took about 10 minutes.

Thanks, Mary!

Read more: My Favorite Shelf at Miss Treats

(Images: Miss Treats)