I am back with part 2 of the antique radio repurpose. What antique radio you say?

Well, over a year ago I started making over an antique radio that I found at the thrift store for just $12.99 so if you are a new subscriber, you probably have never seen the start of this project and, if you've been a subscriber for a while, you've probably forgotten about it or given up hope that you'd ever get to see the finished project.

I did finish it not too long after I started but I just couldn't get motivated enough to put together the post and video for Part 2. 😩 I've finally kicked myself in the but and gotten it done and I'm ready to share!

Repurposing an Antique Radio Part 2

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You can see Part 1 here: Repurposing an Antique Radio Part 1 - Cleaning and Gutting

When I left off, I had removed the chipping veneer sections, gutted and cleaned the radio cabinet, made shelves, and painted the inside.

To finish it, I added wheels, created a pull-down shelf for prepping drinks, made doors for the bottom section of the radio cabinet, painted and refinished the outside, and added a fun detail to it!

You can watch the video for Part 2 below:

As a reminder, here is what this antique radio looked like when I brought it home. You can see it was in pretty rough shape with chunks of veneer missing and a bunch more bubbling up. The cords inside had already been cut so there was no way to test it to see if it worked, it clearly didn't.

When I left off in the last video, I had covered the inside top and bottom surfaces with 1/4" plywood to cover the holes that were left and I added a middle shelf where there wasn't previously one.

I wanted the top portion of the inside to have an area to prep drinks, chop lemons, etc. so I designed a pull-down door with a scrap of 1/2" plywood.

I used piano hinges to attach it to the radio cabinet and folding support hinges so that you can pull it down to reveal a surface that is even with the shelf and it will stay closed when you fold it up.

I painted the inside black, stained the shelf, and attached the new folding prep surface.

The bottom of the radio cabinet was recessed and I wanted to add wheels so we could display it like a regular radio but easily turn it around to get to the bar.

I used scraps of 4x4 posts to fill the recessed area but I made them just long enough so the bottom of the cabinet doesn't touch the floor and the wheels are basically hidden.

I used the wood that was originally covering the back and cut it in half to create two doors. I liked the old label that was still attached.

Then I painted the back and portions of the front black. You'll see in a minute why I didn't paint the whole door.

I painted the areas where the wood wasn't in the best condition and stained the wood that was in good condition.

I used Mod Podge to add the Speakeasy poster to the back for a fun touch.

I found the wooden cabinet pulls at Habitat and used Rub n' Buff on them. It has a very Art Deco feel to me with the pulls and the poster 😍

I also used Rub n' Buff on the three wood dowel pieces and the metal pieces where the radio dial was. I painted around the labels under the knobs. Even though they are very faded and hard to read, I just couldn't bring myself to paint over them. Lastly, I reattached the original knobs.

We recently moved our dining table out of the dining room and transformed it into a lounge area and that is where we now have this repurposed radio bar.

The only thing I don't like is that the shag rug interferes with spinning the radio around easily so it may get moved eventually.

Here is the inside.

Here is the view from in the new lounge. You can see we moved the dining table just outside the dining room.

We used to have our computers set up on the dining table but it was always a mess and we had to move everything out of the way when we wanted to eat. So, we set up a desk for two downstairs and now we have the lounge. It's right outside the kitchen so when one is cooking, the other can sit in the lounge and visit.

What do you think?

If you enjoyed this old radio repurpose project, you may also like these!

Repurposed Vintage Radio Planter

Repurposed Vintage Radio Night Light

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