It is fulfilling to the soul to create something new and beautiful out of an old or ordinary object. This is one of the reasons I love to “repurpose” old things. We do a lot of repurposing projects in our home from old shutters, old windows, picture frames, and sewing projects to painting projects galore.

There is so much fun in putting the imagination to work on a project. I never feel intimidated working with old stuff either. I’m far more relaxed in my creations. To make things easier for me and easy for my little helpers who love to be involved, I’ve learned to keep several things handy.

Painting supplies.

We organizing these according to type, size, style in bins. Small acrylic paints are in stackable baskets. Larger paint cans in large totes or on garage shelves.

Safety and Mess Prevention:  Because there is usually more than one person working on a project at a time, we have several sets of ear muffs to remove loud sounds, several goggles, and gloves. When working on a project just this evening, two of my daughters were sanding a mirror frame and they each had hearing protection and masks for the dust. For mess prevention, save all the newspapers, papers from craft stores that breakables are wrapped in, and old tablecloths, sheets, and shower curtains. These come in handy in multiple ways.

Important tools of the trade

An electric sander has been the best thing I’ve invested in for re-purposing items. Hammer, screw drivers of various sizes and several sizes of wire cutters. Metal scrappers in various sizes are always useful as are vises. Picture hanging kit with wire, saw tooth hangers, etc. always comes in handy, especially when re-doing a lot of frames.

Extras

Paint brushes of all shapes and sizes are important to own. I prefer the sponge tipped paint brushes, but I keep bristle brushes too.

Fun Stuff I love putting vinyl shapes and lettering on some of my projects. You don’t have to buy a large vinyl machine to make your own vinyl lettering. A Cri-cut works great for small projects. Ribbons and 3-D embellishments, door knobs, etc. are great things to have handy when working on these project. You don’t have to have a lot of workshop space to do projects. It’s nice, but not necessary. I’ve done painting both on inside and outside tables or will even throw down a drop cloth and white wash a frame in the middle of the family room.

You can have fun by inexpensively repurposing your own projects. Grab the necessary items a little at a time when your paycheck allows and start repurposing items today!

Shiloah Baker is a mom of seven, pregnant with #8, married to the man she's madly in love with. Exercise is her vice. She runs the Homemaking Cottage and homeschools. In her spare time she sews, crafts, writes and reads.

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