I never knew recycling could be so much fun. Between repurposing my food scraps with bokashi and revamping old furniture, I’ve been truly enjoying my green journey.
Filling a Need
While my daughter was away at camp, I set out to find the right night stand for her room. Actually I was looking for quite a few pieces of furniture to serve odd functions, but this day I was most focused on a night stand.
I’ve visited moving and estate sales, but didn’t find what I wanted until I went to the local Good Will store (similar to the Salvation Army).
I saw a two-piece TV stand. I wasn’t quite sure how the two pieces worked together, but I was only interested in the smaller of the two pieces. If I were at an estate or garage sale, I would have negotiated the price down, but since it was Good Will and my money is going to help the less fortunate, I forked over the $25 to purchase the smaller of the two pieces.
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Colors and Execution
Because I only had a few days in which to prime, paint and polyurethane this item, I had to come up with a color scheme quickly. She wants to repaint her room and isn’t quite sure of the color scheme, so I decided to use neutral colors that would go with almost anything. I opted for gray and white.
After several coats of paint and a little sanding (the drawer kept getting stuck), here’s the finished product. While my husband was picking her up from the bus, I was adding the finishing touches and placing it in her room. She loved it!
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What I like about recycled furniture, is the freedom from stress. If you spend thousands of dollars on brand new furniture, there’s a low stress level associated with it. In the back of your mind you’re cognizant of the cost and there’s always the concern of protecting your investment.
With second-hand, recycled furniture, there’s a different type of respect. My family knows the amount of time, effort and love I put into recycling the furniture and they treat it better than if I had spent thousands of dollars. Plus, if the furniture gets ruined, I know how to go out and replace it at minimal cost.
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Nice job, Felicia! I also love recycling furniture – and just about anything else, for that matter. A little creativity often eliminates the need for cash and you’re so right about the level of stress with new/expensive compared to low-cost stuff. So, are you keeping your eyes peeled in your travels for things you might turn a profit on?
Thanks, Crystal.
Yep, I’m always on the lookout for old furniture in need of fixing. The only problem I seem to be having right now is that in order for me to make a profit off of the revamped furniture, I’ve got to sell it and not keep it for myself. So far I’ve put each piece of furniture to use, but I would eventually like to sell pieces.
I’m still in the learning and experimenting stages. I have a chair that I’m thinking of not only painting but reupholstering. I figure I’ll make mistakes on my own furniture so that when I finally get around to selling things, it will be worth the price.