A few years ago I bought some cute drawers to use as extra storage in my living room. I chose them because I liked the style, but mostly because they were on clearance for $10. Putting them together it was obvious why they were so cheap; upon assembly most of the holes didn’t line up properly, and a few holes weren’t there at all.
The drawers with their original hardware.
I recently decided that I wanted to change the knobs on the drawers to give them a more custom look. However as you probably know drawer knobs are expensive; I can hardly justify spending as much on new knobs as I spent on the unit itself. Instead, I decided to make my own knobs out of champagne corks!
Project estimate:
- Champagne corks, on hand
- Screws, on hand or $1 and up
- Screwdriver, on hand
Total: Free and up
Start by removing the existing knobs. The screws that come with your knobs will have flat tips and won’t work for this project. Using one of the knob screws as a reference, find pointed screws that are the same diameter and at least as long as the original knob screws.
The corks I used had a dot printed on the bottom at the center. If your corks don’t have these dots, mark the center of each cork with a dot using a marker or pen.
Insert a screw into the hole on the drawer so that the end protrudes from the front of the drawer. Use a screwdriver to hold the screw in place and make sure it doesn’t spin.
Line up the tip of the nail with the dot on the back of the cork. Pressing firmly against the screw, twist the cork in a clockwise direction. Make sure the flat face of the cork stays straight and perpendicular to the face of the drawer as you twist. Continue twisting until the flat surface of the cork is flush against the face of the drawer.
Repeat as needed until all of your drawers have new knobs!
45 Comments
Michelle L.
What a cool look! Love this, Rhonda – it’s classy yet eclectic.
Samantha
This is such a great idea. My father-in-law makes art out of bottle corks. I got to forward this post to him!
songbirdtiff
A friend of mine has these for all her kitchen cabinet doors. So cute! She bought about 50 for around $20 on ebay.
heather
This is a brilliant idea, Rhonda! You got linked at Renest, too!
Toni
Cork is not hard. How do those handles not come off the screw or fall apart after a while?
rhonda
@Toni – the elasticity of cork makes it self-heal around the screw so it won’t slide out. Cork is actually noted for being very durable so the knobs should last for a long time without any issues.
Pat
Love it! Great idea !
K.
Ok, now about that lamp… Was that a re-do?? My daughter wants to know!
rhonda
The lamp I actually got on sale cheap at a local furniture store – it was the display lamp for a discontinued model, so I picked it up for $10!
Chii
Thank you for this wonderful idea and tutorial! I’ve been needing some new drawer handles, and have just finished fitting my corks. Thank you!
Kimmy
I LOVE this idea….my mom is giving me this hutch, it’s pretty fugly so I’m planning on painting it a distressed green color and I’ll use corks as knobs. Guess I need to stop by the liquor store when I get off work! :)
Mel the Crafty Scientist
I love this so much that I included it in my roundup of awesome wine and champagne cork projects here. Feel free to grab a featured button if you want! Thanks for sharing!
-Mel the Crafty Scientist
Stacey
I wanted to let you know that I linked this post on my blog entry on wine cork ideas. What a great idea!
Rilane
Great idea. I use this same method :)
Abby K.
I just finished this craft and included the link to your blog!! You have some really great crafts on here with great instructions!! Looking forward to browsing more of your crafts!! :-) http://mrskroening.wordpress.com/2014/08/22/diy-champagne-cork-drawer-knobs/
heather
Thanks for the link, Abby K.!