16 March

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I love shopping at thrift stores.

I shop for myself (sometimes clothes, sometimes home decor) and I shop for vintage items to resell in my Etsy shop Little Boho Cottage.

I also shop for candidates for thrift shop flips. Sometimes I upcycle things by just giving them a coat of fresh paint, other times I repurpose them into something entirely different and sell them in my handmade Etsy shop LVC Handmade.

Today I'm sharing some of those upcycled and repurposed thrift shop flips!

Thrift Shop Flip DIYs

I see vintage letter holders like these often (this picture is from one of my hauls) and they are usually not made with the most attractive wood so they are nice to paint.

It's easier to paint them if you can take them apart. Either way, be sure to clean and sand so the paint will adhere.

I painted everything before I reassembled it.

I painted it "Bahama Sea" and then hand-painted the words on this one but if you have a Cricut (or similar) you could cut them from vinyl or make a stencil.

This is an example of upcycling. It serves the exact same purpose as it originally did, it just looks better doing it! 😁

Here's a different kind of mail holder you might like:

Upcycled Mail Sorter

This pedestal bowl is another example of upcycling.

This is also from one of my thrifting hauls.

I used the same Bahama Sea paint and then distressed it a little bit.

I see old trays a lot at the thrift stores too.

I didn't do much to this one to give it a new purpose (aka repurposing).

I cleaned it up, drilled a few holes, and made it into a magnetic memo board!

I used some yellow polka-dot ribbon and added a magnetic clip. It is perfect for your grocery or to-do list!

It would also make a unique picture frame.

Cake pans and candlesticks are another common thrift store find.

You can repurpose them into tiered trays. Use E-6000 glue or if you have wooden candlesticks you can screw them together.

I stamped the words "Store, Stash, Organize, and Hold" around the outside of this one (you could do this with a Cricut or stencils too).

Here's another one without words.

And here are a few more using different kinds of pans:

Colorful Tiered Tray Made With Baking Pans

Angel Food Cake Pan Pedestal Tray

I found a roll of vintage tickets (not really a common thrift store find but this would work with old dishes too).

I used some chicken wire (also thrifted) and an old door knob to make a cloche!

I added some pretty green ribbon and a laser-cut, wooden skeleton key.

Jello molds are also not too common but I do see them.

I used these to make cute photo stands or table place card settings.

I also added some to an old chippy piece of molding and used it as a vintage desk organizer.

If you find a globe that's not vintage or super cool, they are fun to make things with!

This is half of one that I mounted to some reclaimed fence boards and made a fun sign.

I made a frame with some colorful vintage molding, and then went through my letter stickers and used all different letters (serial killer style 😂) to spell out "Love Makes the World Go 'Round."

What do you think?

Do you like to repurpose old things and give them a new, sometimes totally different life?

If you're new to upcycling and repurposing, then you may be interested in my ebook, The Ultimate How-To Guide For Thrift Shop Flips. It goes over EVERYTHING you need to know from where and how to find good stuff, to what to do with the stuff you make, and even includes several projects to make with common thrift store finds!

Click the link to learn more about the book.

Or, you might like The Upcycler's Ultimate Guide to Painting. It teaches you how to paint ANY surface and goes over ALL of the different kinds of paint that are available and even covers some problems you may have and how to fix them!

I hope that you enjoyed this post! If you did, please consider sharing!!

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Comments by Blogger

Kim@Snug HarborMarch 16, 2014
Tania: I noticed that in your etsy shop you list a lot of "vintage" items. Can you tell me how you decide something is "vintage" or not? Just curious because my daughter is going to start selling things on Etsy and we were wondering how to determine that. Thanks for your help!
UnknownMarch 17, 2014
I love your upcycling - the mail holder is really cute. You did a great job.
ANNEMarch 17, 2014
Sweet! Love the cloche and the mail holder - that blue is divine!!

Great projects!
UnknownMarch 17, 2014
Oh my gosh you're amazing!
Tutorial on the chicken wire cloche please???
XOXO
Vicky HuntMarch 18, 2014
Wow Tania! I love it all...:) I especially love the tray turned magnet board....very creative! Thanks for sharing your projects!

Vicky
BritniMarch 20, 2014
Wow, these are absolutely gorgeous! Thanks for sharing on the weekend re-Treat link party!

Britni @ Play. Party. Pin.