Using reclaimed wood for DIY projects gives them a personalized, cozy touch. Wood can be utilized in all different ways to add to every room in the house, from bedroom to kitchen and even outdoors. With woodworking comes permission for customization. Plans and templates become opportunities to let your creativity shine through. These ideas are simply starting points for all of your energy and innovation.
1. Headboard
One of the easiest projects to start with, a DIY headboard adds a ton of character to a bedroom. Different sized scrap boards can be painted, stained, or left unfinished and secured with smaller pieces of scrap wood mounted perpendicular on the back of the piece.
Staggered boards make a jagged edge that screams rustic, while cutting boards to the same height with the help of a good saw provides a clean line. For a twist, trace a curved design with chalk on the back of your boards and use a jigsaw to bring it to life. Completely individualized to your taste, your headboard has the potential to add real character to your space.
2. Wine Rack
Who doesn’t appreciate a space to store your favorite alcohol?
As a starting point for your wine rack, select a sturdy board, preferably about an inch thick or more. Mount small shelves down the front, and use over sized nails or screws into the shelves to hold your bottles in place. Again, you have unlimited options for painting, staining, and decorating.
As this is a substantial piece, especially full of wine bottles, ensure that you take care to secure it to the wall using plastic anchors and screws rather than picture hanging nails or less substantial tactics. You want your bottles and your rack to stay intact.
By Libbie B
3. Wood Wall
Do you love the look of paneling but want to jazz it up a little? A wood wall might be the perfect option. Different colors and shades of scrap boards are nailed horizontally onto a wall like tiles. Small nails are nearly invisible from a few steps away and offer a glint of industrialism up close.
You might choose to paint the wall an unassuming or relatively dark color underneath, just in case there are gaps between boards. This is one of the considerations that come with using pre-loved wood scraps and repurposed pallets.
4. Pallet Coffee Cup Holder
Not a wine enthusiast? Not to worry. A pallet makes the foundation of a solid mug holder that doubles as a display piece. Take care when making your pallet coffee cup holder to firmly secure hooks to the front of the wood with screws.
You have the option to stencil, paint, or stain your wood. Your hook selection can be all uniform or mixed for a more eclectic look. Take care to mount extra boards to the back of your piece at the top and bottom, increasing its depth, to stop any protruding screws from scratching the wall behind it.
5. Kitchen Island
The middle of the kitchen floor makes the perfect stage for a DIY kitchen island. Tall and skinny or wide and substantial, it’s up to you. Four posts are secured under the top, with a shelf mounted a couple feet up from the floor to add stability and storage space.
Whichever size you go with, be sure to coat the top with a couple coats of kitchen wax so your surface is ready for food prep. You don’t want stead juice getting caught in the grain of unfinished wood, and marinating at room temperature in the middle of your kitchen forever.
6. Jewelry Holder
She’ll be thrilled with the real estate and customization options that a homemade wooden jewelry holder offers. Feel free to use different pieces of scrap wood to create the face. You can chalk the back and cut into whatever shape you choose with a jigsaw.
You can also mount a shelf on the bottom with a couple brackets, and screw hooks onto the face for hanging necklaces, rings, and bracelets. You might decorate the entire piece or build the frame and let the recipient pick paint, stain, stencils, lacquer, or hooks for themselves.
Reclaimed wood brings a host of options to DIY projects. Let your imagination run wild, but remember to be practical about the foundation of your projects.
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Bio: Paul is an avid woodworker and the editor in chief of a website Woodworkboss.com. Through his site, Paul aspires to help fellow woodworking enthusiasts to pursue this hobby or even turn it into a successful career, all of that by sharing informative tips and guides about woodworking.
