When I worked in professional kitchens, there were very, very few–if any–utensils that went into a drawer or a utensil holder on the counter top. They–just like the pots and pans–were all hung up from racks dangling from the ceiling.
Well, in my kitchen, I don’t exactly have the room for a bunch of dangling racks, neither do I have the kind of utensils that can easily be hung from such racks. But I did have an empty space above my stove where a rack could go.
I tried browsing Amazon and various other local and online stores for hanging racks such as I wanted, but to little avail. The racks available held too few utensils, cost way too much for all they were, were kinda ugly, or wouldn’t fit properly in the space I was working with.
So I DIY’d it.
At first, I used a wooden dowel rod. But it was too flimsy. With all the utensils, it would sag in the middle. So, if you’re doing this project, don’t use a wooden dowel rod (unless it’s like really thick or you put up some center support).
Next, I got a metal dowel rod at our local True Value hardware store. And it has been working great!
To hang the rod, my hubby drilled holes in the sides of the cabinets on either side of our stove. The holes are little too big for the metal dowel rod because they were originally drilled for the wooden one. But, they still work!
To hold the dowel rod in place {for now}, we wrapped rubber bands around each end. If you’re doing this project, just make the holes so the dowel barely fits then hopefully it’ll be in tight enough you won’t need to redneck it with rubber bands like we did! Or, instead of rubber bands, you could use brackets to hold the ends in place.
For hanging the utensils, we purchased some S hooks then the Mister put his muscles to action and, along with a pair of pliers, bent one end so it was a loop. If you’re doing this, be sure to bring along your thickest utensil with the hole that’s furthest from the tip of the handle to try different S hooks to see which one fits (first set of S hooks we got were too small).
I slid all the bent S hooks onto the rod then slid one end far into the hole in one cabinet, then partially through the hole in the other cabinet.
Voila! An easy, awesome, sharp-looking, uber convenient DIY hanging utensil rack! Plus, it clears off some counter space and empties some drawer space!
Paula says
August 1, 2013 at 9:58 amVery clever! Ikea sells rods to do this very thing. They also have a lot of things you can hang on them to help get organized. You might want to check it out. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/kitchen/20677/
TJ says
August 1, 2013 at 12:29 pmBut this is a lot cheaper, lol. 🙂
Chrystal @ Happy Mothering says
August 1, 2013 at 3:21 pmWhat a cool idea! We have so many cooking utensils it’s ridiculous. It would be neat to have the most used ones so handy!
Elizabeth A says
August 1, 2013 at 5:24 pmThis is really cool! I wish I was that handy! Good stuff!
Amanda @Natural Living Mamma says
August 2, 2013 at 10:54 pmI love this! What a fantastic idea! I also love your rubber bands. That is something we would do. 😉
Jaime says
August 3, 2013 at 1:00 pmI love this! It looks so much better that way I think!
Keara B. says
August 4, 2013 at 3:41 pmSuch a great idea! Looks very professional…. can’t wait to try it. 🙂
Kathie says
November 4, 2013 at 3:26 pmI love this idea and if you do not own your home you could use a small diameter tention rod.
Troy says
July 7, 2014 at 3:39 amThis is a great idea. I did the same thing except I used a 1/2 inch 4 foot rebar rod. It is a very strong metal rod. I bought this at Lowe’s along with 6 packs of ” s ” hooks ( 3 per pack ). My cabinets above my sink are 3 feet 6 inches apart. This worked perfect. P. S. I painted the rod gloss black.
Total cost:
Rod – $2.35
S-hooks – $1.24 per pack = $ 7.44
Spray paint – $ .99
Total cost – $ 10.78 plus tax.