Tutorial: Turn an Old Playpen into a Launry Sorter
by Cristin Frank, author of Living Simple, Free & Happy: How to Simplify, Declutter Your Home, and Reduce Stress, Debt & Waste
Hi Green Upgrader readers! I'm Cristin from Eve of Reduction and I'm thrilled to announce that my debut DIY book, Living Simple, Free and Happy is now available for purchase on Amazon!
This guest post is one stop on my virtual book tour. This means, if you go to the book tour page and leave a comment, you can win a copy of the book (mailed to US residents, digital copy if winner lives outside the US). If you go ahead and purchase a copy (thank you!), please leave a review on Amazon and let me know on the landing page of my blog tour, you will be entered to win a free, online upcycling consultation with me, Cristin Frank.
And with that announcement I want to share an upcycling project that will help organize and simplify your life: upcycling an obsolete playpen into a lights and brights laundry sorter.
Anyone born before 1980 will probably recognize this wooden playpen from pictures of their toddler years - or the movie Back to the Future. Yeah, no one wants these any more. Well, except me...and maybe you by the end of this tutorial.
A neighbor of mine was getting rid of this playpen, so I took it off her hands before it became landfill fodder. I put it down in my basement and the next time I went down there, I was like, "What's that awful smell!" Yikes, this thing smelled so musty, to the point of reeking. The good news was, I was planning on hacking it up, which meant it would be in small enough pieces that I could seal it in a large black garbage bag with some kitty litter. The clay litter absorbs moisture and smells wonderfully and can save many old, musty pieces like suitcases, too.
I cut up the playpen into 8 sections so that they could be reassembled as two, four-sided laundry sorters.
You'll notice that I'm making 2 structures, each with 4 legs, but there are only 4 casters. To remedy this, I positioned two casters as the back legs, then repurposed a crib spindle to use as the front legs of the laundry sorters.
Because there were so many cut edges, and now the miss-matched wood from the crib spindles, I painted the laundry sorters to bring it all together.
Next, I reused a fitted sheet to make the laundry bags. This worked out great because I reused the fabric and elastic, plus the casing for the elastic was already sewn.
Click here to get the sewing pattern for the laundry bags.
The last detail was adding a bottom onto the sorters. I fully intended to cut up the original particle board bottom that came with the playpen, but the sorters left a very tiny ledge for them to rest on the inside and from underneath, I'd have to cut around the added front legs. I decided it would be easiest to simply use the remnants of the fitted bed sheet to tack down a fabric bottom. The fabric was really easy to work with.
If you like DIY projects that are easy, inexpensive, reduce waste and add beauty and function to your home, please check out Living Simple, Free and Happy on Amazon. It is also available at bookstores, home improvement stores and craft stores nation-wide.
The book includes 10 upcycling tutorials that take easy to find furniture items and transforms them into customizable, organizational solutions from your home.
What else do you get?
- Simple techniques that eliminate clutter and keep it from returning
- A personalized plan to help you reclaim your time
- Practical (and profitable) ways to sell unused items in your home
- Tips to eliminate debt and curb consumption
- Dozens of exercises that help you identify and honor your talents, values, and goals
Please remember to leave a comment on my blog tour page to be entered to win a copy of Living Simple, Free & Happy. There you also see my blog tour schedule and can check in to learn more about upcycling, simple living, decluttering and writing a book.
Please know that I look forward to reading each and every comment, and Becky, thank you so much for being a gracious book tour hostess!