How to make a creepy wall-mounted guitar/ukulele holder

Here's a little something I made for Charlie a while back, but when I finished he said it was creepy. I put it away, thinking I'd come up with a non-creepy idea for all the materials.

Last night, though, while I was making dinner I kept moving his ukulele around to keep it out of splatters way. When things got to the point I could just leave them to simmer I went and dug out the creepy antler plaque and hung it up in the fishing lodge. Out of my hair, finally it has a home.

Materials: Unfinished wood plaque, naturally shed antler tines (found as dog chews at a feed supply, but available on eBay as pictured), wood screws, strong craft glue, paint, sawtooth hanger

Here's the quick and dirty how-to:  Measure the slimmest part of the ukulele neck. Figure out the width of the neck plus the radius of the base both antler tines. Mark then drill 2 holes that distance apart. Paint the plaque; I went with kind of a trophy/plaque motif. Apply glue on the flat end of the antler and a dab around the drill hole on the front side, center the antler tine over the hole and screw it in place. Make sure, if the antlers curve, you have the curve pointing up. Repeat with the second antler and voila! You're almost finished! Let the glue dry, then attach the sawtooth hanger at the top of the back. Now it's ready for hanging. Then all you have to do is proudly display your ukulele!

If you're interested in learning to play a ukulele, but aren't sure about investing in the instrument, might I suggest this $23 DIY version? It may not be the fanciest instrument at the luau, but it works and sounds pretty good!

If you're wondering about the rooster on the back, it's a painting by Charlie's long-time friend Robert Childers. Robert (aka Dracula Bob) played the role of both groomsman and drummer at our wedding. We have 3 of his paintings, and each one is amazing: Skulls here, Banjo Player in our kitchen, and the other one I don't have a picture of.