How to make a DIY Brass Pot Rail for less than $20

I’ve long dreamed of a French-style unlaquered brass pot rail in my kitchen. I’ve started a collection of beautiful copper pots and really wanted to display them functionally and beautifully so I set to work dreaming up this simple DIY pot rail! It’s affordable, and vintage and adds so much character to this little corner of our home!

diy pot rail

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Discover the Perfect Way to Display Vintage Copper

European-style kitchens are my absolute favorite! I totally droll over the deVOL kitchens IG all the time… There is just something about the simplicity… The way they mix soft wood tones with rough textured tiles, vintage brass hardware, and marble slabs… Almost every one of my favorite kitchen designs has a gorgeous French-style unlacquered brass pot rail displaying an assortment of copper pots and pans. Seriously to die for.

About 2 years ago I started a very small but deliberate collection of copper pots and pans. I didn’t have anywhere to display these pots so they mostly ended up shoved in a cabinet here and there. Many of them need to be re-lined so I haven’t used them for cooking. But I kept the collection knowing that SOME DAY, I wanted a big ole brass pot rail across the back wall of my kitchen!

Our home was built in the 2000s and is hardly the English cottage that I pretend it is, but I have been determined to “de-builder-grade” it one day at a time. I decided to look into some DIY pot rack ideas to see if I could find a style that would work in my kitchen. 

The space between our upper cabinets and the countertop isn’t big enough to fit a pot rail without looking bizarre, but we did have a weird section of backsplash that I wanted to disguise.

diy pot rail

It was one of those “desk” nooks that were popular in early 2000s kitchens… I have never used the desk space and plan to remove it when we do an actual kitchen reno… But for now, I thought it would be the perfect place to display my fave copper pieces.

My Affordable and Simple DIY Kitchen Pot Rack

diy pot rail

Because we will eventually be ripping all of the current cabinets and backsplash out, I didn’t want to spend much on this project.

I started troubleshooting some different DIY pot rack ideas such as using an inexpensive curtain rod or tension rod to create a DIY pot rail. The issue is that copper pots can be quite heavy and the last thing I wanted was the pot rail to bend or bow from the weight of the pots.

Ultimately, I discovered an inexpensive option was to source a small piece of brass pipe which I dressed up with finials and screwed directly into the backsplash. It has held up extremely well and has zero bending or bowing! Now I’m able to display my copper collection, open up storage space by finally displaying my pretty pots, and utilize a dead wall space in my small kitchen. AND all of this cost less than $20.

Why You’ll Love This DIY Pot Rail

copper pots hanging from a rail
  • Creates cabinet space: Like I said, I had been storing all my copper pots in my kitchen cabinet for years! I use some of them for cooking but some need to be relined so they were literally taking up precious cabinet space for a long time. This pot rail created so much space in my cabinets and was the perfect solution! Yay!
  • The Best Way to Display a Copper Collection: Any French cooking aficionado will know that copper pots are just as fantastic to cook in as they are beautiful! While not all my pots are totally functional (yet… I’m working on getting them relined!) I absolutely LOVE how they look. Copper pot racks are a great way to display the beauty of your pot collection!
  • Affordable: Always the best part for a penny pincher like myself… Many similar wall pot rack options online are going for hundreds of dollars! This easy DIY came together in about 20n minutes for less than $20!

What You Need to Create a Hanging Pot Rack

brass pot rail hooks

Thankfully, this simple DIY project requires just a few products and is very cheap and easy! 

Here I’ve included the exact specifications for the brass pipe I got from a company called Grand Brass… I have no idea what ips means exactly but this width will give you the look of my pot rail. In addition, it is possible to get the perfect length by ordering from Grand Brass… A custom size would cost so much more online!

How to Create Your Own Copper Pot Rack

diy pot rail

Step 1: Measure your space before ordering the length of pipe you want. Keep in mind that the finial end pieces are 2 inches long EACH and screw into the ends of your pipe. Because of this, you’ll want to subtract 4 inches from the total length of the pipe.

Step 2: Determine if you need to reinforce the length of the pipe. Some DIY’ers recommend inserting a stainless steel pipe into the center of your brass pipe to give it extra strength. The length of my pot rail was only about 2.5 feet so it didn’t bow even from the weight of my solid copper pots. If you have a longer length of pipe you may need to reinforce with a stainless steel rod.

Step 3: Depending on what you are screwing into you may need to use drywall anchors. We decided to anchor the pot rail screw directly into our backsplash. Instead of drilling into the actual tiles, we screwed the screw heads into the grout line. Because of the strength of the grout, we didn’t need anchors.

Step 4: Screw eye hooks into the wall and then thread the pipe through the eye holes. Screw finial ends onto the ends of the pipe.

Step 5: Hang pots, dried flowers, antiques, and other trinkets from the pot rail using S hooks. There are a million ways to style these beautiful pot rails.

Want More Home DIY Ideas?!

 

diy pot rail

I hope you enjoyed this DIY pot rail and can find a space to add this affordable project to your home. It really gives my kitchen a vintage classic charm that I love SO much! What are your favorite vintage kitchen ideas? Let me know below!

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