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Home » accessories » Creative Block Desk & Art Utensil Holder

Creative Block Desk & Art Utensil Holder

May 5, 2020 Brittany Bailey 11 Comments

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Need a quick gift using scrap wood? A Creative Block Desk & Art Utensil Holder is an easy and fun gift to make and certainly a project that you can customize to meet your needs. Best of all, the kids can help with the painting step!

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Creative Block Desk & Art Utensil Holder

Mother’s Day is this coming weekend! Have you decided how to show her your appreciation and love?! I did! My mother is a professional artist. She creates amazing paintings that inspire others and brightens their homes. For Mother’s Day I wanted to brighten her studio with these art utensil holders. I call them “Creative Blocks.”

Go ahead and raid your scrap pile and join us as we make these colorful and fun Creative Block Desk & Art Utensil Holders.

Materials:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

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  • 2 – 2×4″ scrap blocks of wood
  • Carpenter’s Wood Glue
  • 2″ wood screws
  • Drill
  • 3/8″ drill bit
  • Wood putty
  • Putty knife
  • Sanding block
  • Paintbrushes
  • Clamp
  • Painter’s Tape
  • Cutting mat
  • X-ACTO Knife
  • Acrylic paint
  • Art palette knife

Instructions:

1. Block assembly: Select two 2×4″ scraps cut to the same length. Spread glue on one board and sandwich them together.

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Clamp the wood together and drill two small holes to countersink the heads of the screws. Drive two screws into the bottom of the wood to hold the pieces together.

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Use a band saw, jigsaw, or table saw to trim off the rounded edges of the wood so you have a square block of wood with straight corners.

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Putty any cracks or holes. Sand until smooth.

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2. Creating the mask:

If you have a craft cutter (Silhouette or Cricut) you can create a mask in vinyl easily. But, if you don’t you can use the computer to print out your words. Lay the print out on top of a strip of Painter’s Tape. Use a few pieces of tape to secure the corners.

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Trace around the words with the X-acto knife (be sure to have a few fresh blades on hand.) Transfer the resulting cut-out tape onto the block of wood. Press the edges of the tape mask to secure the tape.

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3. Painting the block: Paint a base color onto the block. Then use a brush and/or palette knife to dab thick paint over the block (minus the base.) Use the X-acto knife to gently peel off the tape mask. Let the paint dry thoroughly overnight.

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4. Drilling Holes:  After the paint has dried completely, mark the location of the utensil holes with a pencil. Put a piece of painter’s tape on the drill bit to mark the depth of your holes. Clamp the block and drill holes at each pencil mark.

drill_holes

Dump sawdust out of the holes.

Wrap up the blocks in gift wrap and enjoy the look of joy as your Mom opens her Creative Block Mother’s Day gift!

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You know, as an artist myself, I almost loved these too much to give them away. But, my Mom is worth it. (And I can make another set if I want ;-).)

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For more last-minute Mother’s Day gift ideas and many other creative projects, check out the Gift Ideas section here on the blog.

PHGFancySignIf you liked this project, you’ll love these floating picture frames using more 2×4 scrap wood.

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accessories, art, arts and craft, Build It, Crafts, Gift Ideas, Make It May, Mother's Day, Paintbrushes, painting, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, storage, Trash to Treasure, Tutorial, Upcycling, wood putty

Comments

  1. Jeannie Wallace says

    May 5, 2020 at 8:27 am

    I’m not an artist, but my mom is, so my daughter and I are going to make her some of these for Mother’s Day. My daughter only has one question … do we give you credit for them, or do we say it was us?? LOL HAHAHA

    Reply
    • Brittany Bailey says

      May 5, 2020 at 11:13 am

      LOL. You take full credit for sure! But, let me know how she likes it!

      Reply
  2. Catherine S says

    January 3, 2019 at 1:13 pm

    I’m a 5th/6th Grade teacher and am always trying to find positive ways for my students to ReUse before they Buy new. This project (pencil/pen/artsy tools) AND this site is great. Thanks.

    Reply
  3. Sandy says

    May 4, 2014 at 12:20 am

    My mother would kill me if I gave her that for Mother’s Day.

    Reply
    • Brittany Bailey says

      May 4, 2014 at 10:41 am

      My suspicion is that your mother isn’t an artist. My mom loved it.

      Reply
  4. Olivia says

    May 14, 2013 at 2:13 pm

    As you know, I love this project! I’m thinking of what words I will write…

    Reply
    • Brittany Bailey says

      May 14, 2013 at 10:41 pm

      Thanks Olivia 😉

      Reply
  5. Sam Peri says

    May 12, 2013 at 11:41 am

    Hello Brittany,

    I admire your creativity. You just gave me an idea. I will show this to my 9 year old daughter and we will make our own version. Thanks for sharing! 😀

    Reply
    • Brittany Bailey says

      May 12, 2013 at 12:00 pm

      Oh so happy to hear that you two will be making this together. I’m all for raising more Handy Girls!

      Reply
  6. Jeff Patterson says

    May 11, 2013 at 6:45 am

    Brittany, thanks for this great idea. We need approximately 20 of your blocks for all the pencils our girls get from school and parties (LOL).

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Brittany aka Pretty Handy Girl. I like the smell of coffee and sawdust in the morning. I live to break stereotypes and empower you to take on your own DIY project.

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