Home decor: cabinet door crafts
After remodeling, most of the old stuff gets thrown out, but that's a pity, since a lot of throw-away items can be made into other nice things. Have you recently replaced your cabinet doors? Don't toss out the old ones, use them to make some fabulous new items for your house. Make a toy box for the kids by using one large cabinet door for the bottom, two large cabinet doors for the front and back, and two small cabinet doors for the ends. Simply nail or screw the doors together and the toy box is complete. You can make a lid by hinging another large door on top. Paint if you want, or leave as is.
Five doors of the same size make a great planter holder. Set a large potted plant down in the box surround the base of the plant with Spanish moss, then place on the front porch or deck. Or, line the box with heavy plastic and place soil and plant directly in the box. Leave the hardware attached for a really unique look to your plant holder. A matching box can be made and used for a magazine rack, an umbrella stand or even a wood box beside the fireplace.
Remove the handle from a cabinet door and use the door as a wall hanging. Cut a picture of wild animals out of fabric then outline the picture in braided cord, or glue a leftover piece of wallpaper to the cabinet door. The wallpaper can match the room where the wall hanging will be. For a child's room, place a picture of a favorite pet in the center of the wallpaper. Glue bows to the corner of the picture, then a large, beautiful ribbon that hangs down from the top of the cabinet door. Or glue miniature ceramic bones around the border, then place the picture in the middle. Use a peel-and-stick cloth hanger to hang the project on the wall, or attach hanging hardware on the back side.
A very simple but handy thing to do with old cabinet doors is to make shelves. Hang brackets, then place the cabinet doors on the shelves. If the cabinet doors are flat on the outside, place the outside of the door upwards on the rack. If, however, the doors have an inset, that won't be suitable for setting certain things, so place the inset down and paint the back side of the cabinet which will now be the tops of the shelves. Of course, you can place the doors with inset upwards, then you'll have a unique set of shelves for setting collectibles.
Use four tall doors and one short door (without the hardware) to make a cute night stand. Attach the four doors together at the corners, then glue the small door on top. You can use an additional small door, without the hardware, to put in a bottom. You can even go a step further and hinge the fourth door, making it able to open and shut for storage.
Screw four large dowels or four legs to a cabinet door to use as a little table for kids. Attach shorter legs to more doors to make small stools to go with the table. Use this same technique to make a foot stool by attaching a foam pad to the top of the stool, then covering the pad with fabric. Attach a skirt to hide the legs. Make an upside down "U"-shaped shelf stand for behind the commode, by attaching three narrow doors together. Use the stand for storing extra bath tissue or room deodorizer. You'll think of many more ideas in the future, so don't throw away any of those old doors!