Blanket Ladders & Other Ladies In a Corner (Including Baby)

In this post I share how we made a blanket ladder to solve an awkward corner issue. It was super simple and only cost $5!

Corners Aren’t Just for Baby or Old Ladies

We all know from Dirty Dancing that “nobody puts Baby in the corner” (I’m not sure WHERE Johnny thinks she was supposed to sit in the tiny table configuration, but that’s neither here nor there….) 

Since I’ve already gone down a rabbit trail let me share another little detail about tables and corners. I once went with my high school Bible study to sing Christmas carols at a nursing home.  Maybe the directors were concerned that there didn’t appear to be any Mariah Careys or Whitney Houstons among us, because they took us to the Alzheimer wing. I guess they figured the patients wouldn’t be too traumatized by our singing because they would most likely forget soon enough (ha!)….Well, after we sang a few songs we went around to “mingle” with the patients and spread some holiday cheer. In one corner there were two women sitting back-to-back in their wheelchairs. The one lady had a box of tissues in her lap. She continued to pull a tissue out of the box and throw it over her head so it would land on the lady behind her. (How’s that for making your own free entertainment? Although based on the fact that her friend said “Get me AWAY from her!” I’m thinking this wasn’t being enjoyed by both parties (just a guess….).

On the opposite corner of the room I went up to a woman sitting at a table in her wheelchair. She’s in the corner (see this story DID have some sort of connection to the aforementioned topic, it just takes me a while to get around to it!) and the table is pushed up to her. Being my naive 14-year old self, I say “Merry Christmas!” and she says “Will you help me? I am stuck and can’t get out!” Her comment makes complete sense. “You ARE stuck in that corner, aren’t you? Alright, well, let’s just slide this table this way….and….” Across the room a nurse comes full barrel RUNNING….”NOOOOO!!!! DON’T LET HER OUT!” 

Oops! (Props to the lady in the corner. She pulled a fast one on me! She had been stuck in that corner on purpose!) 

Solution for Decorating a Corner 

But anyway…..regardless of whether you have Baby in a corner or a cunning lady in a wheelchair, some corners in your house are tricky to decorate on the cheap. 

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Chairs look nice, even large house plants. But I bet you would have trouble finding either of these things for less than $5. (If you can, I want to go shopping with you!) 

My solution for adding something to one corner of our living room was: a blanket ladder. 

(Now I know you have probably seen a lot of these. Maybe even seen some tutorials. But I can almost guarantee that none of those posts included an anecdote about caroling at a nursing home…Ahem…..one just has to wonder about me sometimes! Ha!) 

Not only is this an inexpensive way to decorate a corner, but it’s also a good excuse to display favorite blankets, quilts, table linens, etc. Get those beauties out of closets and drawers and put them out where you will see them and use them! 

Materials Needed to Make a Blanket Ladder

Here’s how we made this cutie! 

All you need to make one yourself is:

• nail gun (nails for nail gun, obv) If you don’t have a nail gun, I also like the easy way Ashley at Cherished Bliss put hers together!
• safety glasses
• tape measure
• trusty pencil (go for the “Ferrari” of the pencil world, my friend; these are the bomb diggity) 
• handy helper (Note that I was the handy helper….Mr. Pear Tree Home took the reins on this one!) 

How We Assembled the Blanket Ladder

Just cut the pieces to the lengths that work. 

Our long (side) pieces were 84 inches and the ladder “rungs” were 14 inches wide. We spaced them 11 inches apart. 

Now, I had every intention to paint this little blanket ladder (and I probably will?), but I’ve actually been digging it just the way it is with the natural wood….(and not just because I’m being lazy…I legitimately like it that way!) 

What about you? Do you struggle with empty corners in your house sometimes?