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I have been dying to make a peg rail for my home for the longest time!
We have a pretty narrow hallway that leads from our front door to the rest of our home, leaving me a little confused on how to style the space. I wanted to make sure to create a functional area that we — along with our dogs — could pass through each day, but adding something like a cabinet, console table or bench would unfortunately be too large.
While I was figuring out how to best utilize the space in our hallway, I was also brainstorming some ideas for our guest bathroom. I’ve had these wall hooks in my cart for a while now, so I knew this would be the perfect DIY to create for both areas.
This is a really simple project and only requires a few materials, so let’s get started!
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
WOOD BOARD | DOWEL ROD | SAW | DRILL + SPADE BIT | STAIN OR PAINT | WOOD GLUE | SPEED SQUARE
HOW TO
- Determine the dimensions of the peg rail you want to create.
For my bathroom peg rail, I used (1) 0.5in x 2.5in x 3ft select pine board. I used two of the same boards for my hallway, as this was a little cheaper than a full 6ft board. - Next, decide on the thickness, length and number of pegs you’d like to use. You will need to have a saw at home for this step, though if you don’t have one, try using shaker pegs instead!
All of the pegs I used were 4in long, cut down from 0.5in x 36in wood dowel rods. - Sand the board(s) and pegs.
- Now, you will need to figure out where to place the pegs on your board. Make sure to use a tape measure and speed square to ensure your measurements are centered and evenly spaced.
I made the chart above to show how I spaced the pegs for both my bathroom and hallway rails.
For a 4-peg rail on a 3ft board I made my holes at:
3″ (mounting hole), 6″, 14″, 22″, 30″, 33″ (mounting hole)
For my 12-peg rail across two 3ft boards I made the following holes on each board:
3″, 6″ (mounting hole), 9″, 15″, 21″, 27″, 30″ (mounting hole), 33″
- Once all of your boards are marked, you can start drilling the peg holes.
I used a 0.5in spade bit on my drill that was the same width as my dowels, so my pegs fit in perfectly. Since my wood wasn’t very thick, the tip of the bit did go through the wood, though this didn’t affect how the pegs fit and actually created a nice hole for mounting the board directly to the wall.
*Tip: Add tape to the drill bit that shows where you need to stop drilling so you don’t go too far!
- Add wood glue to one end of the peg and place the peg in the hole. It should fit snug, but you can also use a hammer to gently tap it in all the way.
- Once all of the pegs are in, go ahead and start staining or painting. Make sure to finish with a clear top coat to help protect the surface from everyday use.
- Mount the peg rail to the wall with screws and you’re done!
Since I am renting, I didn’t worry about hiding the screw holes. You could easily fill those with wood filler and paint/stain over, though!
Another option is to place the screw hole in the same spot as the peg. That way, you could just place the peg over the screw without gluing it. This would be another great option for renters, one that I’ll definitely try next time!
*At the time of posting this DIY tutorial, it’s actually been almost a year since I made these peg rails for my home! Clearly, I’m very behind on things :). They have held up wonderfully though, even after hanging heavy winter coats, random bags and the occasional wet towel. An easy DIY with a huge impact on our small hallway!
PIN IT FOR LATER!
