• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Bigger Than the Three of Us
  • Our Home
  • DIY IDEAS
    • DIY IDEAS
    • DIY Open Shelving Kitchen Guide
  • Shop
    • Shop Our Home
    • Shop My Closet
    • Vintage Home Decor
    • My Current Favorite Rugs For Sale
    • Pieces I’m Loving
  • Podcast
  • Travel
  • The Three of Us
    • Privacy and Disclosure
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • House Tour
  • Floating Shelving Guide
  • DIY Projects
  • Shop
  • The Three of Us
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Make this DIY Knife Holder for your Kitchen + See Knife Storage Ideas

    June 3, 2024 by Ashley Mayes 48 Comments

    Make this DIY knife holder to sit on your kitchen cabinets. This knife block is a great knife storage idea because it is a universal knife block (meaning, any knives will work)!

    Creative DIY Knife holder

    But stick around, even if you don't want to make your own knife holders, because I'm sharing some great ideas for drawer storage for knives, magnetic knife holders, and more!

    kitchen knife holder DIY plus other knife storage Ideas

    I've been blogging for a long time now, doing projects and making things. It's always such a good feeling to realize that a project that I did closer to the beginning of this home decor journey is one that I still have and love.

    I made this kitchen knife stand back in 2015 for a challenge with a group of gals. We had to take something we were inspired by at a specific store and make it our own. I'll link everyone else's projects at the end of this post, so you can check them out if you'd like. Anyways, for this specific challenge, the goal was to take something that inspired each of us from Anthropologie.

    I really love Anthropologie but don't often actually buy anything from there. The prices are a tad high, in my opinion, for the quality. That being said, I was excited to check out their catalog and find some inspiration. I saw that they had a knife block (see below because they no longer have it) and I just loved it.

    Knife Block Inspiration

    Since we didn't have a knife rack, magnetic knife holder or any drawer knife storage, I knew that making something similar would solve a big problem for us at our house.

    *Affiliate links below. Thanks for supporting me. Click to read my privacy and disclosure policy for more information.

    I hate to admit it, but we had been just throwing our knives in a drawer to the left of the sink. The bad thing about that, is that we have a few decent knives (Shun slicing knife and Shun All-purpose knife) and weren't taking care of them at all.

    Anyways, the knife block set at Anthropologie ranged from $50-70 depending on the size. With those as inspiration, I decided to go for it and try my hand at making one myself. It turned out great, so I'm sharing the DIY kitchen knife holder with you so you can make one. Or, stick around to the end and you can shop some other knife organizer ideas that might work for your home.

    DIY knife holder sitting on a kitchen counter by the stove. A great option for knife storage!

    How to make a DIY knife holder

    This do it yourself knife holder was sized based on the longest knife size that I had. Feel free to customize your knife storage in size but I do think that the size that I made the knife stand would fit almost any sized knife!

    DIY knife organizer supplies

    • (8) â…œ" x 4" x 36" Craft Wood Boards (found on the lumber aisle)
    • Stainable Wood Glue
    • Stainable Wood Filler
    • Stain
    • Rag
    • Bamboo Skewers
    • Clear Polycrylic in Matte

    Tools needed to make your own knife block

    • Miter Saw (or any other saw that you have)
    • Wood Bar Clamps (or make your own pipe clamps!)
    • Nail gun (or Stapler with brads)
    • Air Compressor (if needed by nail gun)
    • Orbital Sander (or sanding pads)

    How to Make a Knife Holder

    1. Decide on the size of the knife block (mine came out to be 12" x 12" x 4").
    2. Cut boards at 12". This will give you 8 pieces total.
    3. Wood glue and clamp three pieces together (we're glueing three long pieces together to make one larger sheet).
    4. Repeat with another three pieces so that you have (2) sheets of three pieces glued together.
    5. Let dry.
    6. Attach one 12" x 4" board (the bottom piece) to an end 12" x 4" board using a brad gun and wood glue.
    7. Attach 1 of the glued 3-piece boards to the bottom and to the end board.
    8. Repeat until you have attached all pieces.
    9. Sand with an orbital sander.
    10. Use wood filler in all the brad holes.
    11. Let dry and lightly sand.
    12. Stain.
    13. Let Dry.
    14. Seal.
    15. Fill with Bamboo Skewers.

    I know visual cue's can be good, so I want to show you a few in-process steps to get you started on this knife organizer!

    Measuring and cutting the boards to length is the first part of this project. I cut the boards on a miter saw but you could use any type of saw that you had.

    Cutting wood boards on a miter saw

    The next step is to glue your three boards for each side together.

    DIY Knife Block Tutorial
    *Marvel at my uneven cuts. Ha. It turned out alright.

    From there, you can attach the bottom board and one side board to one of your sets of three glued together sides.

    DIYS Inspired by Anthropologie DIY Knife Block Tutorial

    Keep attaching your boards until you have the form of a knife block.

    DIY knife holder in progress

    Sand the whole knife block until smooth.

    *If you are more exact with your cuts, you'll have less to sand but as this was one of my beginner woodworking projects, I was just learning how to measure and cut using my tools.

    Knife Block Tutorial By Bigger Than The Three Of Us

    Stain and seal the kitchen knife holder and then fill with bamboo skewers.

    Knife Block Tutorial By Bigger Than The Three Of Us

    I wondered how well the knives would stick in place and they haven't budged. It's really perfect for them. The key is to put enough bamboo skewers in the knife block so that the knives slide in but don't fall down.

    As I mentioned earlier, this was a project I did years ago and it's still one that I have and use. I love it!

    How to make a knife block featuring a knife block on a kitchen counter

    You might wonder how dirty this will get and then what to do about that. So, let's talk about that.

    How do you clean knife holders?

    Cleaning the knife holder is super simple. Wipe down the wood on the outside. For the bamboo skewers, take them out and wipe them down. Once you've taken the wood skewers out of the block, gently wipe the inside of the block down.

    I've had this knife block for over five years now, and it's still going strong. I wipe it down every so often, but it doesn't get dirty easily so that's been great.

    I do want to share a few options for how to store knives. I think any of these three items would work for knife storage depending on your kitchen needs.

    Best Way to Store Knives

    Photo Credit: Container Store

    In Drawer Knife Block

    We don't have a great drawer to install an in drawer knife block but, if you had the space for it, this bamboo in-drawer knife block looks nice!

    Photo Credit: Target

    Magnetic Wall Bar

    Oftentimes, you see a magnetic knife holder in stainless steel but this one by, Schmidt Brothers Cutlery is Acacia wood. I love how it looks!

    Photo Credit: madeincookware

    Knife block without knives

    If you are looking for knife blocks that get rated well and is just a knife block without knives, this is it!

    Overall, I'm still so thrilled with this project. If you try it, let me know. I'd love to see.

    As I mentioned earlier, there are a few other projects in this series that you can check out.

    6 Amazing DIYS inspired by Anthro

    Stop by: Upcycled Treasures, The Gathered Home, Designer Trapped in a Lawyer's Body, Brave New Home and Delineate Your Dwelling to see more!

    More DIY

    • Rug cleaning at home
      How To Clean Rugs At Home
    • DIY Rolling Plant Stand (Plant caddy for later planters)
      Make This Rolling Plant Stand: Perfect For Large Planters
    • diy accent wall and banquette
      Installing an Accent Shiplap Wall in the Kitchen
    • drywall primer and drywall painting tips
      Tips for Painting Drywall including what Drywall Primer to Buy

    Keep In Touch...

    Sign up for my weekly emails to see new projects, plus what I'm doing behind-the-scenes.

    You can unsubscribe anytime. For more details, review our Privacy Policy.

    Thank you!

    You have successfully joined our subscriber list.

    .

    Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my link.

    About Ashley Mayes

    Founder & Creative Director

    Reader Interactions



    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    1. cassie

      May 04, 2015 at 5:25 am

      that looks fab and is such a great idea! i hate my knife block- it takes up way too much space!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 04, 2015 at 7:55 am

        Thanks Cassie! We are loving it so far!

        Reply
    2. Kristi

      May 04, 2015 at 8:36 am

      Absolutely BRILLIANT! LOVE this!!!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:08 am

        Thanks Kristi!

        Reply
    3. Katie

      May 04, 2015 at 9:59 am

      This is such a great idea and those skewers are freakin' genius! Now I want one of these in our kitchen!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:09 am

        You should totally make one! Your woodworking skillset is definitely better than mine!

        Reply
    4. Amy W

      May 04, 2015 at 10:20 am

      So clean and simple! And I love the look of all those skewers in there. Very cool DIY!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:09 am

        Thanks Amy!

        Reply
    5. Brynne@TheGatheredHome

      May 04, 2015 at 11:23 am

      It looks great, Ashley! I love the color stain you used too, and that shot from above with all the skewers is art in itself! 🙂

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:09 am

        Thanks Brynne. The stain was whatever we had in the cabinet (I think walnut though...wiped off fast so it didn't go dark).

        Reply
    6. Anima

      May 04, 2015 at 9:44 pm

      God, That is so damn cool idea. The bamboo skewers , I could never have thought of it. Genius 🙂

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:10 am

        Thanks Anima! You could also use little dowel rods, but you'd be paying more. Thanks for stopping by!

        Reply
    7. Jessica

      May 04, 2015 at 10:13 pm

      I ABSOLUTELY Love this DIY!...I wish I had power tools and a house...anyways, you did a GREAT job Ashley and I like your finished project (stain and casing) more than the original...So cool!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:11 am

        Thanks Jessica! I really like the Anthro version, but it was a bit rustic for my taste. I tried to make it a bit more clean/modern.

        Reply
    8. Julia@Cuckoo4Design

      May 05, 2015 at 5:58 am

      It's so cool and looks awesome

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:11 am

        Thanks Julia! We desperately needed somewhere to store the knifes, so it was a perfect DIY.

        Reply
    9. Jen @ Fresh Crush

      May 05, 2015 at 8:00 am

      Nice work! Great job on building the box -- you got skills, girl! I use bamboo skewers for my knives too, they are sooooo gooood! 🙂

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 05, 2015 at 8:12 am

        Thanks Jen! I'm not sure about having skills, but we are slowly figuring things out (trial and error!).

        Reply
    10. Katie

      May 05, 2015 at 8:44 am

      OMG!! I love this! What a great project and knock off!!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 06, 2015 at 4:02 pm

        Ha, thanks Katie! You should make one.

        Reply
    11. Jennifer @ Brave New Home

      May 05, 2015 at 2:11 pm

      Ahh, this is soooo cool! I'm kinda bummed I already have a knife block cause I totally want to make one of these. And love that you included a photo of yourself ; ]

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 06, 2015 at 4:03 pm

        lol, I guess you could give the current one some sort of epicycle and make one? I'm not looking my best in that one. =)

        Reply
    12. Kyla @HouseOfHipsters

      May 05, 2015 at 2:38 pm

      Seriously? So cool lady! Absolutely genius!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 06, 2015 at 4:04 pm

        Thanks Kyla! I really love it. =)

        Reply
    13. Corinna - For My Love Of

      May 06, 2015 at 8:59 pm

      This is so cool! Nice job figuring that out.

      PS can you put together a post on easing into using power tools and which ones are beginner friendly? The noise gives me jitters but I want to learn!

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        May 07, 2015 at 2:42 pm

        Thanks Corinna! You are the second person to ask me for a post like that. I feel like a superstar...lol. I'll put it on my to-do list but I only use the "easy" tools.

        Reply
    14. Lori

      October 24, 2016 at 6:51 am

      Hi Ashley! Love this. I have the typical knife block...eh... I want this classy looking one! Putting it on the "to do" list!

      Would you consider sharing this at our weekly Dishing It & Digging It Link Party? We are live Sundays @4pm. We’d love for you to share your creative ideas.

      http://www.thestonybrookhouse.com/2016/10/dishing-it-digging-it-link-party-119.html

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        October 25, 2016 at 10:43 am

        Thanks Lori! You should totally add it to your to do list. It's pretty easy!

        Reply
    15. Deb

      October 27, 2016 at 7:48 pm

      I love this Ashley! Pinned! It looks fabulous in your kitchen too.

      Reply
      • Ashley Mayes

        November 03, 2016 at 8:49 am

        Thanks Deb!

        Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Think and Make Thursday Link Party- No. 38 | Little Red Brick House says:
      July 2, 2015 at 5:00 am

      […] Bigger Than the Three of  Us // DIYs Inspired by Anthropologie- DIY Knife Block […]

      Reply
    2. DIY Modern Floor Lamp says:
      July 21, 2015 at 8:38 am

      […] stores. Hence the title. If you missed out on last month’s store, Anthropologie, hit up this post to check the projects out. You won’t be […]

      Reply
    3. Best/Most Popular Projects and Room Reveals of 2015 - Bigger Than the Three of Us says:
      January 1, 2016 at 9:02 am

      […] Anthropologie Inspired Knife Block […]

      Reply
    4. 40 DIY Container Project Ideas To Completely Declutter Your Home | Architecture & Design says:
      January 1, 2016 at 2:24 pm

      […] 40. Knife Block […]

      Reply
    5. 52 Amazing Anthropologie Hacks and DIYs To Try - DIY Projects for Teens says:
      February 8, 2016 at 10:05 am

      […] biggerthanthethreeofus […]

      Reply
    6. 9 Inspiring DIY Knock-Off Projects – Love & Renovations says:
      February 15, 2016 at 4:01 am

      […] DIY Anthropologie knife block via Bigger Than the Three of Us  {2} DIY West Elm inspired tiled dresser via Love & […]

      Reply
    7. DIY Stacked Wood Lamp | Anthropologie Inspired says:
      March 18, 2016 at 11:27 am

      […] Bamboo Knife Block by Bigger Than the Three of Us […]

      Reply
    8. A Do It Yourself Father’s Day {DIY Gift Projects, Recipes and Ideas Dad will LOVE!} | Dreaming in DIY says:
      May 12, 2016 at 6:11 pm

      […] DIY Knife Block Tutorial – Inspired by Anthropologie | Bigger Than The Three of Us […]

      Reply
    9. 40 DIY Container Project Ideas To Completely Declutter Your Home – FYI Feed says:
      October 20, 2016 at 1:45 pm

      […] 40. Knife Block […]

      Reply
    10. 10 Rustic Fall Home Decor Crafts | Monday Funday - The Benson Street says:
      October 30, 2016 at 6:01 pm

      […] and White Pumpkin DIY by Hunt and Host Hello Fall! Burlap Art by My Life From Home DIY Knife Block by Bigger Than The Three Of Us Rustic Pumpkin Door Hanger by Cherished Bliss Ladder Shoe Rack by […]

      Reply
    11. Monday Funday 10/30 - Becoming Martha says:
      October 30, 2016 at 9:43 pm

      […] and White Pumpkin DIY by Hunt and Host Hello Fall! Burlap Art by My Life From Home DIY Knife Block by Bigger Than The Three Of Us Rustic Pumpkin Door Hanger by Cherished Bliss Ladder Shoe Rack by […]

      Reply
    12. Kitchen Reveal with Dark Cabinets and Open Shelving - Bigger Than the Three of Us says:
      November 28, 2016 at 2:21 pm

      […] with Double Convection Oven | GE Counter Depth Fridge | Bosch Dishwasher | Ductless Range Hood | Knife Block (DIY) | Sconces | Tile | Wood Floor (local mill – white oak) | Kitchen Cabinets (original) | […]

      Reply
    13. Awesome Anthropologie Hacks and DIYs says:
      May 26, 2017 at 6:00 am

      […] biggerthanthethreeofus […]

      Reply
    14. Cool Anthropologie Hacks - DIYCraftsGuru says:
      May 29, 2017 at 8:32 am

      […] biggerthanthethreeofus […]

      Reply
    15. Awesome Anthropologie Hacks and DIYs - DIYCraftsGuru says:
      June 7, 2017 at 6:52 am

      […] biggerthanthethreeofus […]

      Reply
    16. 52 erstaunliche Anthropologie Hacks und DIYs zu versuchen – DIY says:
      December 6, 2018 at 10:24 am

      […] biggerthanthreeofus […]

      Reply
    17. 10 DIY Christmas Gifts You Can Make For Your Dad says:
      December 18, 2018 at 5:24 am

      […] Discover the instructions at Bigger Than The Three Of Us. […]

      Reply
    18. Rustic Home Décor Ideas - That's What {Che} Said... says:
      April 2, 2019 at 7:21 pm

      […] and White Pumpkin DIY by Hunt and HostHello Fall! Burlap Art by My Life From HomeDIY Knife Block by Bigger Than The Three Of UsRustic Pumpkin Door Hanger by Cherished BlissLadder Shoe Rack by […]

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Bigger Than The Three Of Us - Family of Three

    Follow Me On

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

    Favorites

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Terms & Conditions

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Connect

    • [email protected]
    • Instagram
    • Facebook

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Bigger Than the Three of Us All Rights Reserved