Wooden dowels are small cylindrical rods of wood, which are mostly used in ensuring the alignment and fastening of the pieces in any kind of construction. It is commonly employed in many woodworking projects for securing the parts together.

It is seen that wooden dowels are often underused and are even discarded along with other leftovers used in a project. However, a wooden dowel has many other uses rather than simply fastening the pieces together. They are a highly versatile material that can help with any kind of construction project. Below are some of the important uses of wooden dowels.

Extra Shelf Support

Wooden dowels can act as a good support for newly installed shelves in a bookcase, and you can use them for offering support to bookshelves that are used to store bulky, heavy books. Moreover, when affixed to the structure of the shelf, a wooden dowel will prevent it from sagging down due to excessive weight.</p>

Ribbon Wrapping

Dowels, with their perfect cylindrical shape, are ideal for wrapping up ribbons for storage. Often, ribbons can get unfurled which makes it increasingly difficult to wrap. Wooden dowels can be used as a rack for wrapping ribbons by attaching it to a backing board. Besides ribbons, a wooden dowel can also be used to perfectly hold wrapping papers and many other items that are difficult to store normally.

Cord or Rope Dispenser

Wooden dowels can also act as a cord or rope dispenser. This requires a little modification to the dowel, which can be done by attaching the dowel to a wooden disc or a scrap wood piece. The modified dowel can then be used to spin up large spools of rope or cord for use in your home.

Roller

Wooden dowels can be used as rollers for a variety of applications due to their cylindrical shape. A dowel can be used to flatten out any material such as contact paper and foils. The perfect shape will ensure that the material will flatten more evenly making it perfect for its intended use.

Curtain hangers

Wooden dowels are excellent for use as curtain hangers rather than using a steel rod. They are much cheaper than going for steel or other rod materials. You just need to ensure that the dowel has the proper width for supporting the weight of heavy curtains.