17 ways to recycle old household items

Restyling your home? Before you haul the old stuff into the skip, check out these crafty ideas that turn 'rubbish' into gems.

Wooden blocks

Scrap or salvage? It’s fairly easy to evaluate whether to toss or scrap wood. Assuming it’s real, rule out rot, disintegration, insect issues and water damage - no one wants to combat mold! If none of the above are a problem, salvage it. And if you’re assessing floors, remember you can refinish them, if your budget allows, or disguise wear and tear with an area rug.

How to reuse them: Consider creating a stylish treatment for an accent wall, like the one architect Dan O'Connell helped create for the Omni Hotel bar in Indianapolis. The blocks were cut down and arranged on the wall, with stunning results. From afar, the layered pieces are often mistaken for chunks of tile or stone, says O'Connell.
Damaged chairs

Scrap or salvage? Old and imperfect chairs need not become instant candidates for the skip. If there’s damage to the legs, but the back is in decent condition, you can have it repaired or repurpose the piece.

How to reuse them: 'Chairs are one thing I see out on the curb a lot,' writes Cristin Frank of Eve of Reduction. Frank transformed a discarded chair into a scarf rack by using a jigsaw to separate the back from the seat. A little sanding, drilling and hardware installation turned what could have been junk into a stylish, one-of-a-kind storage solution.
Windows

Scrap or salvage? If the windows are painted and your home was built before the 1980’s, be wary, says Laura Foster-Bobroff, an old house remodeler and home improvement writer. Lead paint is a real problem, she says, adding that erring on the side of caution, she always tells people to assume houses built in the 70’s or earlier will contain lead paint. In that scenario, it’s best to replace the windows with new, energy-efficient ones.

How to reuse them: This ingenious coffee table is made of two apple crates and an old window. The editors at Shelterness note that the thicker the window you start with, the more the table will be able to withstand. Its attractiveness belies how fast and inexpensive it is to construct.
Old baby furniture

Scrap or salvage? Safety concerns mean that most vintage baby furniture should be used in a different room (especially if it’s wood and can be disassembled) or donated.

How to reuse them: Cristin at Eve of Reduction took an old baby changing station and turned it into a desk. The disassembled parts didn’t come with hardware, so Frank attached her own with wood glue. Next, to make room for a desk chair, Frank used a jigsaw to convert the second shelf into an open storage unit. Small L-brackets were used to create the shelf corners, and to attach the vertical piece to the desk’s underside. Visit her blog for more photos and a detailed step-by-step.
Wood pallets

Scrap or salvage? After checking pallets for bugs and decay, Karah Bunde of The Space Between, looks for a stamp of HT, meaning the pallet was heat-treated, rather than chemically-treated. She prefers to work with heat-treated wood but says it really depends on the project. Another thing to pay attention to are nails.

Karah says, 'When I want to use an entire slat, I make sure there aren't more than three nails attaching it to the 'body' of the pallet. It's too hard to pry them off if there are.' Don’t feel like prying out the nails? You can use a saw to cut off the slats.

How to reuse them: The possibilities for reusing pallets are endless, but this beautiful rustic door trough, wrapped with jute and filled with flowers, is a perfectly low-cost way to dress up an entryway. Visit The Space Between for more photos and a detailed step-by-step.
Mismatched chairs

Scrap or salvage? If you find you’ve inherited mismatched chairs or already own your own set, don’t automatically sign them away to the bin, especially if they’re in good condition. If they’re sturdy, they may be prime candidates for a revamp.

How to reuse them: If you have a lone chair, or several mismatched chairs, Some Man’s Trash blogger Alisha Galbraith has a solution for you. Starting out with a single chair and one that had no seat, Galbraith and her husband traced an outline for the seat using the intact chair, then cut a new one from plywood. 'I used some foam batting as a cushion, overlapping the edges to staple it in place under the chair,' she says. 'Next, I covered the foam batting with my fabric, making sure I had enough to go under the chair, and then stapled the fabric in place.'

Generally, a single yard of fabric is enough to cover the seat. Galbraith recommends Fabric.com for cheap, cute, upholstery fabric. The final step: Re-attach the seat and voila, two chairs become a sweet set!
Taps

Scrap or salvage? 'Unless you know that the [tap] works and parts are readily available, don't try to salvage these,' says Kenny Grono, President of Buckminster Green LLC, a residential remodeling company in Philadelphia. 'Yes, the metals used were often superior to today’s [taps], but if you can't get a washer for it when it starts to drip, that's no solace.'

How to reuse them: If you choose to replace your old tap, get inspired by this unique coat and hat rack from OldBarnRescueCompany that features old porcelain faucet handles affixed to a reclaimed wooden door.
Toilet bowl and tank

Scrap or salvage? A new low-flushing toilet will save you money on your water bill, a good reason alone to consider scrapping an old toilet. Hairline cracks in the porcelain? A definite toss, as those cracks can become a very big problem down the road. Otherwise, minor cosmetic issues may make a case for leaving things as-is and investing your efforts elsewhere.

How to reuse them: If you do decide to junk your toilet, consider using it outdoors, as Mike at Blue Velvet Chair did when she turned a tank into a planter, decorated with mosaics.
Floorboards

Scrap or salvage? Wood represents the largest percentage of construction debris, reports the National Association of Home Builders Research Center in America. Which is a shame, since it’s so utterly versatile. When Mary MacVean was renovating her home, the sheer volume of scrapped wood encouraged her to approach her designer about finding ways to reuse some of what no longer had a place in the upgraded home.

How to reuse them: MacVean’s favourite recycled solution is a built-in desk that her contractor was able to fashion out of pre-sanded floorboards. The floorboards were affixed to plywood backing to create both the desk top and drawer fronts. They also could be nailed, but MacVean’s contractor preferred glue, and says it is stronger.
Crates

Scrap or salvage? The same rules for assessing wood materials apply to crates. Most bugs can be eliminated with a thorough cleaning, but if you spot termites, toss it.

How to reuse them: If you’ve seen the coffee tables designed with crates, or the wall units cleverly constructed with crates stacked one atop another, this is an idea that’s an entirely new breed of animal, so to speak. Julia Custer Norris’s elevated feeding station turns a single wooden crate into a stylish dining solution for taller dogs.

For detailed instructions, visit designsponge.com.
Cabinets

Scrap or salvage? An older home’s cabinets are often more sturdily constructed than prebuilt options and a makeover for the doors can cost a lot less than replacing them entirely.

How to reuse them: If your building plans require you to remove cabinets, repurpose your surplus in the garage or basement to create more storage space.

Kids at home? Take a look at this idea from Jen at iheartorganizing. She took an old cabinet door and with a little chalkboard paint, created a menu planning board that can be wiped clean week-to-week.
Old dishwasher

Scrap or salvage? In general, it pays to buy new, energy-efficient appliances rather than trying to eke out a few more years from the old ones, says Andrew Schrage, co-owner of Money Crashers Personal Finance. Even still, certain conditions can make upgrading a no-brainer.

Some key things to look for: Water that won’t get hot, a rusted bottom, a cracked interior, or pooling after a wash cycle, which could mean the drain is damaged.

How to reuse them: There are a few really great ways to reuse your old dishwasher. Give the surface a facelift and use it to store or dry dishes, remove it and use as storage or extra workspace in the garage, or, if you like to craft, consider repurposing an old dishwasher as a spraypaint booth.
Sinks

Scrap or salvage? If you’re renovating your bathroom and find yourself with a sink that’s screaming for a reglaze, be careful, says Kenny Grono, at Buckminster Green, LLC. 'The coatings that people apply to ‘refinish’ sinks (and tubs) have a tendency to fail.' Moreover, if your sink has cracks, or is plainly just too small for your liking, think green and find a place for it in your garden.

How to reuse them: Arlene Brenneman took a plastic bird bath base, filled it with concrete to make it sturdy, and sat an old pedestal sink atop It, creating a garden gem that’s whimsical, wild, and pretty thrifty.
Mattress springs

Scrap or salvage? Got a rusty old mattress spring? Mattress springs are an oft-scrapped material you would be surprised to learn have plenty of crafty uses.

How to reuse them: Donna at Funky Junk Interiors took a rusty mattress spring and literally cast a spell on it, turning an object many would trash into a beautiful, rustic message board. Visit her blog for the exciting tutorial and must-see before-and-after shots.
Doors

Scrap or salvage? If you’re ready to close the door on an old door, consider using it elsewhere in your home. Yes, with some serious sanding and a little paint, you can save a door from dumpster-doom. Wondering if you should keep a certain door? Figure out its value by determining if it’s solid wood core or hollow wood core. When safety and privacy are important, it may help to know solid wood core doors have higher fire ratings and are better at keeping sound contained.

How to reuse them: Karah Bunde at The Space Between details how to create this door-turned-message board on her blog. If furnishing your home is a bigger priority, take a peek at her post on how to turn a door into coffee table.
Shutters

Scrap or salvage? Unless they’re covered with peeling paint or clearly worse for wear, unneeded shutters pack a lot of upcycling potential.

How to reuse them: Missy from So You Think You’re Crafty took a few old shutters and a small side table with a marble top and turned them into a kitchen island. After sawing down shutters to the proper height, Missy used screws to create the middle and top levels of the island before applying a strong adhesive to affix a marble table-top to the surface.
Dressers without drawers

Scrap or salvage? Off the bat, you might see no reason for hanging onto a dresser with missing or damaged drawers, but if you have a pool, a dresser offers perfect patio-side storage.

How to reuse them: Jennifer and Kitty O’Neill, authors of Steampunk Chic: Vintage Flair From Recycled Finds, round up ideas for turning your deck into a coastal retreat. Taking a dresser with no drawers and applying a coat of white paint gives it a beachy feel, while the shelves of the dresser serve as the perfect spot to store towels and flip-flops. Visit their blog for more clever DIY projects.
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