If you follow this blog for longer, you probably know that I always wanted to have an etagère building set. I looked everywhere and made then an etagère from scratch. So that was the end of a long project and supplies hunting. Until recently. When an etagère building set found me. It’s true! Thanks to the lovely people of koalaplan (how amazing is that name by the way?!) offered me to test their etagère building set – right in time for Mother’s Day!
You can get all the pieces you need to build the set – including an ceramic drill and a diamond drill. And what a beautiful result!
All you need is:
– one set of etagère building materials (c/o of koalaplan)
– 3 plates in different sizes
– a drill machine
– a ceramic drill
– a diamond drill
– some painters tape
I asked my lovely sister to get me some plates from an antiques store. She chose a beautiful set with gold lining and was quite surprised when the seller asked for € 1,50. Best deal ever!
Before you start drilling, you have to mark the plates with some tape. The plate will get quite hot where you drill the holes and the tape makes sure that the tensions that result won’t make little chips at the top.
Now mark the spot where you want to drill. First you need the ceramic drill. (The package with the etagère building set will tell you exactly what you need to do.)
Drill and drill with the ceramic drill until you have a decent hole in the plate. The problem now is (and that’s where I always had problems with my previous attempt to make an etagère that resulted in a few broken plates) that the ceramic drill has a pointed end. The top of the hole is now bigger than the bottom. Now that’s where the diamond drill comes in handy! It will make an even hole through which the pole will go easily!
Now make holes like this in every plate. This might take some time but it’s worth it! What can beat a handmade and unique plate stand (and all the sweat and tears that go into it – I’m just kidding. No tears.).
Now assemble the pieces and voilá!
Isn’t it beautiful?!
And now comes the best part: the lovely and kind people of koalaplan gave me another etagére building set to give away! Yes! The very first give-away on this blog! I’m probably as excited as you are!
All you have to do is comment below until the 15th of May and I’ll write every single name on a piece of paper and my boyfriend will draw the lucky person that gets the etagére building set (including a ceramic and diamond drill!).
Now, go on! Comment and I wish you luck!
And after that: carry on!
What a beautiful reason to leave my first comment on your blog! I’m Anna, i originally come from Russia, but live in Vienna. Your blog inspires me a lot although I never have courage to do a project with such a “heavy” equipment as a drill 😉
Nice to e-meet you, Anna. I’m sure you would be fine with a drill. It just needs some courage: what could happen?!
Yours is lovely, i’m not really sure (if …) i could do mine as good as yours ! What sort of cupcakes did you bake for putting on it ? They look so yummy !
Those are Red Velvet Cupcakes. The same recipe as here: https://look-what-i-made.com/2014/01/28/valentines-day-cupcakes/ (but I colored the whole dough).
Hi Sarah,
your etagere is just great! I was looking for something like that, too. I love your blog – you are the reason I just bought three wine boxes 🙂
Best wishes, Jessa
Wow, you comment makes me really proud. Wine boxes are great. I plan a new DIY soon…
Hi.
I’ve always liked the idea of setting the coffee table with an etagere like that.. It would just be so much cooler if i had made it myself..;) Thanks for a great idea..
Christina from Denmark..
What a lovely project! I always wondered how to drill through something as fragile as plates
Beautiful! Throwing a kids tea party… This would be perfect .
Love it! Those plates are beautiful- excellent choice! Thanks for the tutorial!
Hallo, Sarah
What a beautiful etagere you made. And it looks so good. I raelly love it. The next time I went on a fleamarket I will take a look for old and beautifull plates. Thank you very much for this great idea.:-))
This is so beautiful, I’ve been looking for one of these in the shops but they are all so floral or shiny! I’ve put this on my to make list.
Oh, it looks really nice! I would like to win this 🙂 Love from Switzerland
I’ve been looking for a how-to on this exact project!!! Thank you!!
Absolutely LOVE IT!
I’ve been looking for a set as well for quite some time. Glad I stumbled upon your blog. I tried a different dyi version but it ended up in trash. This one looks like a keeper. Thanks
This is a beautiful piece of work! Thanks for showing the step by step instruction~ just hope I can have the set for myself!
wow, I was looking for a set like this for years…. thanks, so exiting! (from paris, France)
I love this! I collect these and to be able to make my own is pure heaven. Thanks for posting this
great! would love to try this myself 🙂 nice blog sarah!!
Thank you, Ulli. That’s really sweet of you to say.
Having inherited some mid century modern plates…this would be a GREAT way to actually use a few of them…
I cannot wait till the giveaway on the 15th, and I already realised I have 3 plates which are a perfect match for an etagere (and they are metallic, so I need not worrying about drilling the porcelain!). So I’m almost ready to make an order from koalaplan – just one question – do you by chance have any discount code? Thanks!
Hey Anna, that sounds like a great plan. Unfortubately I don’t have a discount code. But don’t let that stop you!
Your sister did a great job with picking up the plates, and you did even better one with ensembling them into etagere. I always wanted to have one 🙂
I’m not sure if I can participate too since I’m from Croatia, but here I am anyway 🙂
Totally fine if you are from Croatia. I don’t discriminate… 😉 I wish you luck!
Really cool Stuff. And it Looks so easy.
Would you also let us know where you bought the plates?
Bye, ALEX.
Hallo! Natürlich gebe ich das Preis: es ist ein kleiner Altwarenhändler in der Goldschlagstraße 94 im 15. Bezirk. Den Namen weiß ich leider nicht mehr. Aber er ist leicht zu erkennen…
Ahhh-mazing! I’ve always been on a hunt for a nice étagère at fleamarkets and such, but never found any. Bookmarked this & will try it out after I got some old plates 🙂
P.S.: You have a really beautiful blog, I wish more Vienna people would be as creative as you. Maybe then they would stop lamenting for once!
[…] DIY etagere stand (via look-what-i-made.com) […]
[…] made an etagere (one even from scratch without a building set) and then one like this one but with upcycled and old plates. So why did I make one again? All those I made before were gifts. Not when I made them but they […]