Hello and welcome to another installment of #romancingthehome. Do you know that I have actually lost count of how many challenges we have had now?! I’m really enjoying it and this week is no exception, with an upcycle project.
Now, as you may know, Hubs has been out of commission due to emergency surgery, so there was no way I was going to be able to get to upcycle a new piece. While having this conversation with the ladies from #romancingthehome, Ramona reminded me that upcycling doesn’t just refer to furniture. It can be literally anything that you find a new use for. This got me to thinking: we have a good few of those, all in our little courtyard alone!
Can you spot them here:
1. Vertical garden
Yes, that vertical garden is made from a PVC pipe, an old bucket, some old pallet wood (to cover said bucket) and paint bought on clearance. I did a whole blog post on how Hubs created this piece last year (I’ll link it here for you) and I still love how easy it makes it to grow herbs. It’s the perfect solution for small gardens as well.
2. Wellington boot planters
If those aren’t cute, then I don’t know what is! We took our son’s too small boots, drilled some holes in them, and stuck some chilli plants in them. That’s got to count as a cute upcycle project, doesn’t it?!
3. Kettle planter
This is our old camping kettle. It leaks and I don’t know where the lid is… so, it’s now a planter. Pretty much the same as the boots!
4. The potting bench
Look closely. Can you see what we used to create this potting bench?
1. Pine work bench
You could really use any workbench that you can find, but this one is a plain pine one from a local hardware store.
2. Pallet
Do you see that backboard with the shelves. Look closer… do you see it now? It’s a pallet! Hubs literally took a pallet and secured it to the work bench. It was that easy.
3. Battens
We always have left over wood lying around from projects. These offcuts allowed Hubs to extend the pallet, to make sure that the backboard gave the illusion of being the same size as the base.
4. Chicken wire
He added chicken wire in the openings, just to add a rustic element and to complete the backboard. I want to try a creeper or mini hanging garden on it, so if you have any suggestions to tips, please let me know!
5. Sink
I wanted to add a sink into the worktop (even though it isn’t connected to a drain – a bucket works fine). It works well as a bucket – either for when we are busy in the garden or as an ice bucket to keep our drinks cold 😂
6. Castors
We added the castors, just to make sure that we could move it around easily enough. With our courtyard doubling up as an entertainment space, we wanted to be able to use the potting bench as a bar or a serving table, as the need arose.
And that’s it – A potting bench/bar/server! I painted the whole thing in the paint I had left over from the hutch project. Since I wanted a chippy look, I didn’t sand or prime first, I just slapped it on and added a bit of sealer on the top. Again, I wasn’t super precise because I wanted it to weather with age.
I really love the little upcycled touches that we have added to our little courtyard; it’s created another little space to welcome and entertain guests.
Now, I know that you haven’t had enough yet and I know that my #romancingthehome friends have created some awesome projects, so please go and check them out!
- Ramona – Ruffles & Rust
- Talia – My Shabby Shack
- Liz – Keep it French
- Kylie – Our Unique Home
Before you go though, share your favourite upcycled projects below! I would love to chat about them!
Until then, I’ll be waiting right here 😉
