Category Archives:Furniture

05
Nov

DIY Furniture: Revamp an Old Dresser with Wall Paper

DIY Furniture Dresser

Next time you're changing up your decor, consider a DIY furniture redo before buying new.

My husband an I are kind of obsessed with rearranging furniture. One of our friends teases us that we've redone a room every time she comes over. Sometimes we make small changes, like moving things around slightly, and other times we completely rethink a space, adding new pieces or reusing older pieces in a new way. My rearranging obsession is why this DIY furniture project at Spoonflower really spoke to me.

Buying new furniture, of course, comes with a huge impact, right? Furniture is usually big, which means big carbon emissions shipping those pieces all over the world. And that's overlooking the impact of sourcing the materials, assembling them, boxing them, etc.

Barb Blair from Knack Studios shares how she transformed an old, boring dresser with a coat of paint and some custom wallpaper from Spoonflower. I love the simplicity of this DIY furniture project and the fresh, modern look of the finished project.

Spoonflower just started offering custom-printed wallpaper, but this project would also work with vintage wallpaper, if you have some in your stash or can find a roll online. The materials list for this project might feel long at first glance, but I promise that it's not that complicated:

  • Wallpaper
  • Shop towels (or any absorbent rags)
  • Craft knife
  • Frog Tape
  • Paint
  • Paint brush
  • Foam roller
  • Paint tray
  • Small tray for Mod Podge
  • Foam brush
  • Mod Podge
  • Sanding sponge
  • Scissors
  • Squeegee
  • Hardware Ruler

It's a long list, but I bet that you have a lot of these things in your stash already, right?

Ready to do your own DIY furniture redo? Head on over to Spoonflower's blog for the full tutorial, complete with plenty of images to help you follow along to the letter.

Posted:   |   Categories: DIY, DIY furniture, dresser redo, Furniture, furniture redo, Home+Decor, Living, Spoonflower, tutorial, wallpaper crafts
0
05
Sep

5 Wood Pallet Crafts: Weekend Project Ideas!

wood pallet crafts: succulent table

Need a fun weekend project? How about some good ol' wood pallet crafts to keep you busy and revamp your decor or your garden!

Wood pallets are becoming popular as craft materials, and that's because we use (and discard) so darn many of them. The trick to wood pallet crafts is making sure that the pallets you choose are safe for crafting, and then disassembling them while preserving the wood planks.

Tracking down wood pallets for crafting doesn't have to be difficult, but you do want to make sure that the pallet you're using has outlived its usefulness in the shipping industry. Don't just grab a pallet that you see outside a shop - businesses reuse them! Instead, ask the store manager if they have any pallets that are past their prime. Big box stores are a good place to start, especially home improvement stores that get a lot of big shipments. Don't be shy about asking - if you take an old pallet or two off their hands, they don't have to bother with disposal. Most big businesses like that have to pay for trash disposal, so you're doing them a favor.

Wood Pallet Crafts

upcycled ottoman

1. Upcycled Ottoman

This plush, upcycled ottoman might not look like it's made from wood pallets, but that's part of the charm of this project.

2. Pallet Planter

Transform an old wooden pallet into a vertical planter for ornamentals or succulents. You can also use this method to create an herb planter, but you want to be 100% sure that the pallet you're using is made from untreated wood. Click here for details on how to tell if your pallet is made from treated wood.

wood pallet bookshelf

3. Wood Pallet Bookcase Makeover

Transform that an ugly, pressboard bookcase into an heirloom piece with some sweat equity and an old wood pallet.

4. DIY Succulent Table Planter

Pallet wood planks make a beautiful outdoor table with a planter embedded right in the center. Wouldn't this make a magical spot for entertaining?

5. Pallet Desk

Want to get in on the wood pallet crafts craze but aren't super good at wood working? This pallet desk is easy peasy and very fresh. No wood working skills required!

Have you done anything fun with old wood pallets? Tell us about your favorite wood pallet crafts in the comments!

Posted:   |   Categories: DIY, Furniture, Home+Decor, Living, wood pallet crafts, wood pallet DIY ideas, wood pallet furniture, wood pallets, Yard+Garden
0
03
Sep

Spotted: Wood Pallet Bookcase Makeover

craftRECYCLED logowood pallet bookshelf

Got an old bookcase that needs a little love? You can cover it in reclaimed wood pallets!

If your house is decorated with pressboard furniture, you know that that stuff doesn't really hold up to wear and tear. The finish gets scratched pretty easily, and unlike real wood it doesn't have that classy distressed look. It just looks terrible. Rather than replacing an ugly, boring bookshelf, Riccardo Tamiazzo of Padova, Italy did this beautiful wood pallet bookcase makeover instead.

He uses a piece of cut PVC to cover the top of his shelf, but if you want to use less plastic, you could just finish yours with a clear coat of resin or even a water-based wood finish to keep this project plastic free (aside from the plastic in the bookshelf you're revamping, of course). If that rustic look isn't your thing, you could also use some VOC-free paint to update your old shelf.

Tamiazzo shared the details of his wood pallet bookcase over at Ikea Hackers along with lots of additional photos. Click here for more!

When that cheap pressboard furniture starts to go, it's so tempting to replace it with new, cheap pressboard furniture, and I love that this project not only revamps an old bookcase but you end up with something unique and sturdier than what you started with. It's kind of an eco double whammy, right? This wood pallet bookcase uses reclaimed materials to divert waste from the landfill while avoiding a trip to the store to buy something new. Win-win-win!

You could also use this technique to re-cover other ugly pressboard furniture, like a desk, tabletop, headboard, or nightstand. I'm eyeing my boring sewing table right now. What furniture pieces would you like to reface with pallet wood? I feel like this project idea has endless possible iterations!

Posted:   |   Categories: DIY, Furniture, furniture revamp, Home+Decor, Living, wood pallet, wood pallet bookcase, wood pallet bookcase makeover, wood pallet craft
0
12
Jul

Spotted: Mysterious Wine Cork Chair

Cork Chair

Makezine's Laura Cochrane spotted this gorgeous cork chair at Lynmar Estate winery in Sebastopol, CA.

The cork chair's origins are a mystery. What's under all of those reclaimed wine corks? Did they cover an old chair that was past its prime? Did the build some sort of frame to cover? Cochrane wasn't entirely sure.

Whether it's made fro all corks or corks covering some kind of frame, I also wonder about what they used as an adhesive. There don't seem to be any physical materials holding the corks together, so they must have used a wood glue or maybe epoxy. It would have to be something strong to hold up to all of the drunken winery patrons having a sit-down on it, right?

This cork project may be a mystery, but if you want to get your cork crafting on, here are a few ideas for you:

wine cork heart

Do you have a favorite project for crafting with corks? Do you know more about the mysterious wine cork chair? Tell us about it in the comments!

 

Posted:   |   Categories: cork chair, cork crafts, DIY, Furniture, Home+Decor, Living, wine cork chair, wine corks
0
25
Jun

Spotted: Upcycled Ottoman from a Wood Pallet

craftRECYCLED logoupcycled ottoman

We love a good pallet project around here, and this tufted, upcycled ottoman is rocking our socks!

Allyson at Domestic Superhero made this ottoman from a reclaimed wood pallet. It's kind of a beast of a project, but the results are so stunning, it's totally worth it.

There's a bit of debate about whether wood pallets are safe for crafting. The short version of the debate is that pallets are sometimes made from treated wood, and some tests have found bacteria like e. coli on wooden pallets. The treated wood is really more of an issue if you're using the pallet wood for something like growing food or building a tabletop that you'll be directly in contact with.

As for the bacteria issue, that almost seems to come down to comfort level. We come into contact with bacteria every day, and you have to decide if you're cool bringing a pallet into your home that may or may not be harboring bacteria. People craft with pallets all the time, and I'm yet to run across a story about someone getting sick from doing so.

If you want to make your own tufted pallet ottoman, here's your supply list:

  • reclaimed wood pallet
  • circular saw (if you need to cut yours down like she did)
  • sand paper
  • plywood cut to the dimensions of your pallet
  • hammer and nails
  • pressboard cut to the size of your pallet
  • foam batting that's the size of your pallet's top plus enough foam to cover the 4 smaller sides
  • enough fabric to wrap the pallet completely (don't forget to account for the heights of both your pallet and the batting when you're measuring!)
  • tufting buttons, upholstery needle, and thin cord
  • spray adhesive
  • drill
  • enough batting to wrap the pallet completely (don't forget to account for the heights of both your pallet and the batting when you're measuring!)
  • staple gun
  • wooden legs, mounting brackets, and paint or stain
  • piece of muslin and hot glue to cover the bottom of the pallet (optional)

Whew! That's a doozy of a list, but this is a dramatic transformation! Once you've got your supplies together, click here for the full tutorial!

Posted:   |   Categories: Craft Recycled, crafting with wooden pallets, DIY, DIY ottoman, Furniture, Home+Decor, Living, pallet craft, pallet ottoman, upcycled ottoman
0