12 Ideas for Recycling, Replacing, and Reusing Furniture – GWC Mag

Whether you are starting anew in your first place and need some DIY tips for furnishing that place, or you have had your furniture for years and are ready for a change, there are a whole bunch of ways you can keep things cheap, environmentally friendly, and, of course, stylish!!

Furniture that you already have can be spruced up with a little know-how and just a few pennies and hours spent. You will be surprised at what a little tweaking can do to the vibe of your room.

If you need a little change, take a look at these fun ways you can upcycle, redo, and reuse household stuff and turn it into something practical, trendy, and cost-effective for your pad.

1. Broken Furniture DIY

One of the beautiful aspects of buying quality furnishings is that they tend to last longer. While a new wooden chair might cost more than the plastic version, for those with financial restraints, it’s worth investigating superior but less expensive secondhand options. Another great characteristic of wooden furniture is that the pieces, in creative hands, can become somewhat interchangeable. Widowed table legs might become new chair legs, wayward drawers could become shelving units, and a survived wardrobe door might transform into a coffee table. Check out these awesome ideas for 5 Types of Broken Furniture You Can Turn Into Fun DIY Projects!

2. Is New Furniture Good for Your Health?

Small changes really can make a big difference in your life. This is especially true when it comes to your health. But did you know that furniture can play an integral role in your comfort, mood, and even your well-being? Most of us spend a big chunk of our time in our homes, so it makes sense that they will have a large impact on our lives. From allergies to asthma and back problems, old furniture can negatively impact your life in ways you’ve never thought of before. If you have been thinking of making improvements to your home or just want to improve your health, then this is your sign to invest in new furniture. While it’s reasonable to be hesitant due to the cost, time, and effort that comes with upgrading furniture, it is a small price to pay for the numerous benefits that follow. Let’s explore if Replacing Old Furniture is Good For Your Health.

3. Old Door Knob Projects

From socks and old towels to sheets and teacups, creative folk have reimagined and repurposed almost everything you can think of. With a little imagination, it seems that nothing needs to end up in the trash or thrift stores, and the items that do can be rescued and given a new lease of life. Doorknobs are no exception. With shabby chick and farmhouse vintage being a home decorating trend, old doorknobs can find a place dotted around your house in the most unexpected places. Whether you want to show off your antique shop finds or upcycle a bunch of doorknobs you have lying around your place, here is a list of fun ways to reimagine the humble doorknob. Check out these 5 Fun Ways to Upcycle Old Doorknobs.

4. Pallet Furniture

Pallets are one of the great blessings bestowed by the gods of upcycling projects. There is perhaps nothing that can be rendered into such lovely, useful things as the humble pallet. Originally built to do nothing more than make shipping other things easier, pallets have become highly regarded as a source of reclaimed wood and the catalyst for eclectic patio furniture. While not everyone is skilled, patient, or equipped enough to churn out wooden works of art, it doesn’t take much know-how or many tools to make some attractive and practical things out of pallets. After making just a few cuts (if that) and banging in a couple of nails, it’s possible to make all sorts of charming furniture for the home and garden. Here are 5 Quick, Easy Projects for Novices to Make the Most of Free Pallets

5. Secondhand Living Room

Moving can be stressful! And moving into a new space that needs to be completely furnished can be crazy-making! But you don’t have to bust your pocketbook or get lost in the IKEA maze just to make your new digs presentable. Here’s how you can furnish your entire living room secondhand with a little DIY love. The first step is to scour Craigslist, Goodwill, local second-hand stores, trading sites like Yerdle or Lista, and neighborhood yard sales for secondhand items that might fit the bill, or shop your own home for old items that can be tweaked to suit your needs. If you’re game, you can even go dumpster diving for some unique (albeit likely dirty) finds! Learn all about How to Furnish Your Living Room with Secondhand Everything and a Little DIY Love.

6. Sustainable Decorating

Moving into a new place is pretty exciting not only do you have a space that’s all your own, but you can also have some fun decorating it to reflect your personal style. Decorating is how we add our personality to a space, infuse it with our unique energy, and make it feel like home. These days, there are so many cool decorations and accessories you can buy to adorn your home. Before you get too carried away, there are some things you may want to think about especially if being green and natural are priorities to you. You’ll also want to consider your budget and what you can afford to spend right away. So here are 10 Sustainable Ways to Decorate Your Home That Will Save You Tons of Money and help you in your home decorating journey.

7. Old Chair Projects

An old chair can mean many things. Some are still sturdy, bastions of the booty, and prepared for continued service. Some have wobbly legs, in need of minor surgery just to do a lesser job of their previous version. Others, as can happen to even the best of us as we age, get wobbly all over and lose control. Again, that’s life, and the life of a chair. The great thing about aging chairs is that they often have so much character, a lifetime of memories and marks. They might have ornate legs, unique backs, or special wood. That’s why when it comes to old chairs, perhaps with decades of service behind them, it’s important to let them ease into the twilight years with grace. Brush up on How to Repurpose, Recycle, and Reuse Old Chairs.

8. Upholster Old Couches

Sometimes the old sofa and loveseat, even the easy chair, just give way. The stuffing in the cushions gets overly flattened. The once springy seat sinks. The internal framework might break when the kids (or adults) plop too much. Then, we are left with a huge piece of furniture to thwart efforts to minimize our waste stream. Luckily, there are ways to repurpose much of what we find in an old piece of furniture, and OGP has covered some of those ideas before. Whether it’s a decrepit chair or a spent mattress, there are clever ways to extend the life of, give new life to, the items we replace. But, today’s topic is how to deal with a single part of dearly departed furniture: the upholstery. Here are 7 Ways to Repurpose Upholstery Fabric From Old Couches.

9. Thrify Decorating

Moving can be a strain on a budget, and decorating a new home just might not be in the cards. Or perhaps you are craving a change from the same walls and accessories but can’t justify buying all-new decor. Well, decorating your home doesn’t have to break the bank. With a bit of recycling, repairing, thrifting and just using your imagination, you can transform a space into a scene deserving of a page in a magazine. If you are ready for the challenge, have a look at these 10 Easy Ways to Decorate Your House or Apartment Without Buying a Thing.

10. Old Door Projects

Old doors make for fantastic projects, but they aren’t a type of garbage that most of us create regularly, if at all. They are more likely material that we’d have to seek out (check into salvage businesses), but they have real potential for making characterful pieces of furniture. While they don’t come in many shapes (sizes do vary), they are a sturdy version of a very common form in construction: the rectangle. When we start to think of old doors like beautiful slabs of wood, their potential grows exponentially. They can be so much more than what hangs on hinges. Plus, with that in mind, the paint, keyhole, inlays, and other typical door features become qualities to work with, to be accentuated in whatever an old door becomes anew. Be inspired by these 7 Awesome DIY Projects for Old Doors.

11. Old Window Frame Projects

There is something glorious about an old frame window, the paint peeling back a little, the panes distorted with errant brush strokes from who knows when. Essentially, anyone remodeling or updating an old house gets rid of the windows because we have much more energy-efficient versions now. Old-frame windows don’t even meet the specs of most county building inspections anymore. Because of this, they can’t legally be repurposed into new homes, at least not as windows. So, the question becomes: what do we do with these super cool relics? And, the answer is DIY projects! Here are 7 DIY Projects for Old Frame Windows.

12. Old Mattress Ideas

Some of us are just at a point in life where we want to keep the comforts we are accustomed to, specifically a good night’s sleep. Of course, the key to a good night’s sleep is the mattress upon which it happens. Some of us like them firm, others springy. We might like pillow tops or memory foam or any one of the other inventions that have, in recent years, made sleeping much more of an experience than a necessity. With the need for a good mattress, however, comes the need to occasionally replace the old one. While the question of what feels warm and cozy may have been addressed with the purchase of a new mattress, a new question remains: What to do with the old one? Read on to learn more about How to Repurpose, Recycle, and Reuse Old Mattresses.

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