Wall-mounted plate rack

Short on cupboard space or just looking to display your servers and cutting boards? Build this simple wall-mounted plate rack (with drawer) to organize and decorate in one!

I’m working with my super-hero Jen Woodhouse today on the building plans for this gorgeous (and functional) wall-mounted plate rack.

Think plate racks are just for Grandmas (that’s what my Hubby said when I told him I was going to build one) – not so my friends. Sure you can decorate it with Grandma’s china if you want, but today’s plate rack is about function as well as design.

Jen has the building plans for this wall-mounted plate rack over on her blog, but today I’m going to show you how I put it all together.

DIY plate rack

I started by cutting my wood to Jen’s specifications. From there I created a groove in three of the shelf boards by setting my table saw depth to ~¼” and then running my boards over it three times – creating a 3/8″ dado groove. If you haven’t done this before, you set your fence to 1″ and run a groove, then reduce the fence space to 7/8″ and run another and repeat a third time.

*Note: protective gear is a must – granted, you can probably spare a finger or two and maybe even an eyeball, but it’s just not worth it – please be safe!

2. I cut the side boards to length per the wall-mounted plate rack building plans and then added a little decorative detail by tracing a quart-can of paint to create two semi-circles. I cut these with a jig saw.

3. I won’t lie to you – I am sub-par at best when it comes to using a router… but you never get any better if you don’t try, and I thought this plate rack could use a little extra fancy-ness. I ~~chewed up~~ routered the side boards and two of the shelves. If you do this step, make sure you router opposite sides of the side boards (so the routered edge will be on the outside of both sides) and on the side of the shelves that has the groove cut in.

4. I like to do most of my sanding before assembly to make getting into those tight spots easier. I gave everything a go-over with 150 grit and then assembled the pieces together with wood glue and 1 ¼” finishing nails (brad nailer).

5. Your two bottom shelves will be the ones NOT routered. Clamp until dry.

6. While my glue was setting up, I got to work on my drawer. No a drawer isn’t mandatory, but it’s a great place to corral tea lights, taper candles and lighters – so I needed one. Router the top edge of the face of your drawer (not the bottom – that was an error on my part).

7. I actually built the drawer for my wall-mounted plate rack right in the rack itself. I’m not spectacular at offsets and perfect measurements so I tucked the drawer bottom into the space then glued and attached the back with 1 ¼” finishing nails. I turned my plate rack around and attached the drawer front to the base (still inside the rack) with finishing nails and making sure that the upper (routered) edge of the drawer lined up perfectly with the shelf above. I will admit, I might have mis-fired my brad nailer once or twice, but that’s what wood filler is for right? lol

8. I gently pulled my 3/5-of-a-drawer out and attached the side boards with wood glue and finishing nails. Your drawer should easily (but snugly) slide in and out of the box on your DIY plate rack. If not, that’s what sandpaper is for (wink)

9. I attached my ¼” plywood/mdf back with ¾” wood screws drilled through the back. Because my plate rack will hold a bit of weight I screwed at the top of each side board and then again where the back met up with the shelves – just to make sure it was well-attached.

10. I gave everything a go-over with 220 grit sandpaper, primed and then painted it with a watered-down latex paint.

11. While the DIY plate rack was drying, I sanded and painted the trim I used as the shelf guards. I attached these later with 1″ finishing nails and a strong (clear) glue. The guards are lined up with the front edge of the side boards, not with the shelves themselves.

12. Hang with a french cleat and you are done!

IT’S SO PRETTY!

This is NOT your Grandma’s wall-mounted plate rack! (I told you so!)

This is a gorgeous decor piece that also functions to keep large platters, flat serving dishes and cutting boards off of your workspace and out of your cupboards.

Fill it with cookbooks or oils, create a display with candles and small plants.

That’s not to say you can’t fill it with treasured pieces from family members – I’m just giving you options.

The drawer should sit flush with the sides of the wall-mounted plate rack (I’m a skinch off), and with the ultra-narrow-profile you can hang this just about anywhere and not cause a glitch in traffic.

I now know where my lighters and candles are without having to scramble and search everywhere.

I totally painted one wall of my kitchen just to photograph the plate rack. The rest of the kitchen will come (when I’m feeling a bit more motivated). The goal is to someday have cupboards in the same colour as the plate rack. Hubby’s not on-board in the least, so I have to wait until he heads off to a convention or something. lol