diy project: simple wooden laundry rack
This is the fourth installment of Brittany Watson Jepsen’s summer DIY series. Check out her previous projects here, here and here. I love how simple and minimal these projects are, creating awesome results with only a few materials. Thanks for sharing, Brittany! — Kate
For those of us lucky enough to have minimal living space, creative space planning is a must. Our current laundry rack takes up half of one room on the floor, so I thought of other ways to create more space. The answer? Look vertically. I devised a hanging laundry rack that can be hung from the ceiling beams in our enclosed terrace as well as between trees outside. — Brittany Watson Jepsen
Photography by Hilda Grahnat
Read the full how-to after the jump . . .
Materials
- 2 wood dowels (mine are 1 1/2″ in diameter) at 36″
- 5 yards of rope
- twine
- drill and drill bit (I used 16mm)
- scissors
- clamps
Instructions
1. Place the wood dowel between two tables and secure with clamps.
2. Measure where you’d like to drill your holes. I created four holes and placed mine 5″ apart from the ends and each other.
3. Drill holes in the two dowels.
4. Slide your rope through to the outside of the wood dowel and secure with a knot.
5. Knot on the other side of the already made knot and do the same at the other end.
6. Once all the knots have been assembled, take your twine and tie a triangle formation by tying a knot on one end of the wood dowel and then a knot on the other end.
7. Hang from two trees and get your laundry on!
This has been so helpful in creating a bit more space in our tight living quarters, and the best part is that it’s easy to tuck away. Enjoy!
Simply brilliant and perfect for these hot summer days.
When I have a beach house, I will need one of these for all the beach towels (keep dreaming, I suppose). Good idea. You could paint the dowels in bright colors too, for something a little different.
perfection. thank you for making/sharing.
Cool idea. I would call it a laundry hammock.
So simple yet great. Thank you
Simple but attractive idea. Good post. Thanks for this post.
Well cute, but surely it is just a clothes line like half the world uses regularly?
That’s a wonderful Idea! Pure and beautiful! I’ gonna make this for my balcony and throw my ugly laundry rack away.
Thank you!!
Hey there! I’m curious as to why you used twine and not string for the part that attaches to trees/beams? And thank you! I will be making one of these, perhaps on a larger scale???
Living in the cold wet South, BT (before technology), my uncle designed one of these to hang from corner to corner across a heated room with only two cords, hooks, broom handle, metal sash chain(google it) and pulleys for the sash chain,. Clothes were hung between the two cords, not over it . Could hang 2 or 3 wash loads on it, even sheets. Also worked as a humidifier…
This is one of those “why didn’t I think of that!” Thank you for a perfectly useful laundry rack
Great idea! And it can brought inside in rustic house, to hang towels in the bathroom for example!
Perfect AND cute!
this is a great idea that I’m incredibly envious of…my apartment is way too small for this lovely contraption, and my balcony doesn’t have two poles (and the trees are way too close to the highway)…maybe one day.
for those who claim to have no place to hang it…. consider between two chairs and enough weight on each seat to keep itself upright!
Like that Jean! There is always a way if you just”think” about it!
My family does a lot of camping and this is a perfect item to add to our campming equipment.
I finally made this but used 50 feet of rope for the actual drying space and several additional feet for the hanging part. I love it- finally good space for hanging sheets and table cloths!
You could also recycle old wooden spreader bars from a worn out hammock. Already got the holes in them.
I am impressed w/ the simplicity of this design-GOOD JOB! AND aesthetically, you could tie off the ends by affixing large beads to them just to make it look less rustic, if you’d like…