Whether you have won a sports, contest, or collection of military medals, you may be interested in sharing your achievements with your friends and acquaintances. After all, your medal probably symbolizes hours of effort and sacrifice and deserves to have a special place in your home or office! If you have a medal you want to display, there are some creative options to make your prize look stylish.
Hanging medals
Hang the medal from the display shelf with the hanging hook. Buy a display shelf with hanging hooks attached to a wooden strip that runs under the length of the shelf. Many large boxes and online stores sell these and call them wall shelves with coat hooks.
If the shelf is large and heavy, consider using screws and plastic drywall anchors instead of nails to hang the shelf. Consider how to display medals that cannot be hung on hooks. Framed medals and buying display stands can be good options. Screw a small hook into the bottom of the wood shelf to create your own hanging shelf. These hooks are small and can be fastened by hand.
Create a wall with sporting goods. Drive nails directly into the handle of a wooden product like a baseball bat or hockey stick, then hang it on the wall with a picture hook. Tie a string to the ends of a metal object like a golf club or tennis racket, and then hang the string from an easel nailed to the wall. Slide the medal ribbon onto the wall-mounted sporting goods for a fun display!
- You can hang the medal directly on the tree, such as a baseball bat, or buy a small hook that can be easily screwed into the tree by hand.
- Bike medals can also be attached to wooden boards and displayed on the edge of a tire hanging on the wall!
- Tie the medal ribbon to the blade of the skate and hang it on the wall with the hook in the photo
Create a china medals hanger by transferring common household items turn unexpected household items like old crib rails into stylish, low-cost places to hang medals. Hang the crib on the wall and use a wall hook like the one on the bathroom door to secure the towel to allow the bar to move horizontally. These can be screwed directly into doors or walls with a power drill. Tie the medal to the rail on the crib rail.
- Shadow boxes are also a great way to physically protect and store your medals.
- Consider following military protocols when placing military medals in the camera. The highest Medal of Honor is usually placed in the upper left corner.
Show off your medals in glass jars. Place the medal inside the jar with it facing out. If the medals are attached to long ribbons, gather the ribbons, pull them to the center of the jar, and stack the medals along the inside of the glass. This is a good option if you don’t want to win a medal. It is convenient to keep the bottle on a table or shelf.
Consider adding a set of battery-powered LED lights to the can to illuminate the display. These lights can be purchased at stores like Target in the home decor section.
Put the medal in the military coin box. Buy military coin boxes online from craft stores like Michael’s or online from stores like Amazon. You can place your medals on the shelves arranged inside the case.
- If the medals are attached to ribbons, you can remove them or simply push them behind the medals.
- The coin case is covered with glass to protect the medals from dust!
- Consider placing medals by color or size to create an organized display.
Create a framed medal collage
Disassemble the medal you want to display. Collect the medals, remove any attached ribbons and pins, and start dismantling the medals you want to display. You will need to create a flat surface on the back of the medal for easy attachment to the frame plate.
Consider using a flat-blade screwdriver to remove the plaque from the trophy to include in the collage. It’s a great way to display trophies in a compact way that doesn’t require shelf space.
Only include medals that you can change. You probably don’t want to remove ribbons and pins from historic military medals.
Buy a large frame and cover the lining with a cloth from medals supplier. Remove the cardboard or wood from the back of the frame. Wrap the lining of the frame with a durable craft fabric like woven or canvas and carefully fold the edges to the corners of the board. Use staples or a hot glue gun to attach the cloth to the lining of the frame.
- You can also reuse old frames that may be in your neighborhood. You don’t need glass in front of the frame, so you can just throw it away.
- Consider painting the frame to match the medals and walls of the house.
- Cover the frame’s lining with a cloth and reattach it to the frame.
Be very careful when using hot glue guns as they can get very hot. Touching the tip or glue may cause accidental burns. Keep a paper plate or newspaper under the glue gun to protect the table while you work. After installing the medals, dry the glue to fully harden and hang the new medal collage in a special place.