25 Inspiration Ideas for Recycling and Upcycling Around the House

 

25 Inspiration Ideas for Recycling and Upcycling Around the House

 

I’ve been busy this week working on a couple of furniture pieces.  You know, sanding and staining and oiling, but today I’m showing you none of that.

All that work and I’m going to show you a bunch of inspiration pics instead.  🙂  These all came across in my Facebook feed this past week,  and all were submitted by people who just wanted to show off what they’re doing in their own homes.  It’s all about upcycling, recycling and repurposing.  Not everything has to be new.  A bit of nostalgia and well made pieces can go a long way to personalize a home.

First up, someone turned an old headboard into a shelf.   Apparently this is from an old waterbed .

An old gumball machine  is now filled with colorful wooden spools of thread.

An old gun cabinet makes a great display for a stack of old quilts.

An old needlepoint chair seat was dismantled and reframed as wall decor.

An old wooden ironing board now serves as a shelf, holding a washboard, scissors and clothespins.

My old wooden ironing board was painted with a wine bottle.  I didn’t even think to make it into shelves.

This porcelain doll head is getting a second life as a planter with an  air fern head of hair.

An old mailbox is getting a second life as a bread box.

A rack originally holding pool cues is the perfect spot for this broom collection.

Another gun rack holds a collection of rolling pins.

This kitchen island was made from their Dad’s old tool bench that was in his garage.

Can’t find the perfect vanity, consider using an old dresser.  This one was found on Facebook Marketplace.

You can find my dresser to vanity conversion here.

An antique sewing machine cabinet has been converted to a unique, one of a kind, range hood.

Did someone say sewing machine drawers?  Check out mine here.

An old table top was added to an industrial cart to make the centerpiece of a beautiful outdoor seating area.

Another old table top caps off this vintage washing machine.

This would have been an apartment building/ nesting box for a bunch of chickens and has now found it’s second life as a well stocked library.

I do love a good upcycled coffee table, this one is from an old goat wagon.  Look on the right side and  you’ll also see the tail end of a bicycle table and a pulley lamp in the corner.

You know I’m all about the upcycled coffee table.  Check out my gallery of over 25 more coffee tables to tweak your creative bone.

Clip pictures and other mementos onto an old crib bed spring.

Another chicken nesting box has found it’s way into the kitchen.

Here is my own chicken nesting box which I originally put in my middle son’s house and it later moved to a playroom where it holds a menagerie of farm animals.

This photo was posted showing off the upcycled fire extinguisher lamp but I love, love the cubby hole shelf with all the clay pots and  hose sprayers.

An old classroom wall map is now wall art.

A wooden crib end is now the backdrop for a portrait wall.

Clip vintage pictures onto wooden hangars for this wall gallery.

These vintage tart tins and jello molds have now found a second life as a  decorative wreath.

 

And lastly we have this stack of old suitcases stacked in the body of an old bureau.  It looks like the tops of a couple of the suitcases form the upper pull out shelves.

Hope you found lots of ideas and inspiration.  Keep these in the back of your mind the next time you hit up the flea markets, estate sales and thrift stores.

Until next time…