Make It Your Own: Our Favorite Furniture Hacks

The best thing about decorating is making your space your own. Furniture hacks make that even more true. Even if you already have a home full of beautifully crafted, personally selected pieces you love, you can find ways to customize, upcycle and DIY for an even more tailored touch. Some DIY furniture hacks are about taking something old and making it new again with creativity and care. Others do double-time as multipurpose pieces when you need to choose furniture for a small space. 

 

Rainbow Refinishing

 

Nearly any piece of furniture that feels tired ¬– even if it's still in great shape ¬¬– comes back to life with a little refinishing. Let yourself be playful, imaginative and bold with refinishing. Wood stains come in all the traditional colors, of course, but you can also experiment with rich cherry purple hues that still match darker wood furniture. Golden stains brighten up accent pieces, too. 

If you want to make a statement, special order furniture paint in bold hues, like blue, green or orange. Colored milk paints give you a whitewash look with a dash of color. Spray paint goes on bright for a modern look that will attract a lot of attention. 

Repair your furniture as needed, then strip the old finish off with sandpaper or a chemical stripper. Apply a coat of paint or stain and let it dry before applying another coat. For spray paint, use a gentle, consistent back-and-forth motion that pivots from the elbow. Make sure to stay outdoors or in your garage with the door open when working with chemicals. 

 

Coat Cubby

 

If you have kids, this one is a must – and it's as easy as repurposing a bookshelf. Nearly everyone has an extra set of shelving in a spare room or tucked into a corner that isn't used for much. If you don't have one in your home that you're ready to move, you can select one of any shape or color for this easy furniture hack. 

Take everything off the bookshelf and give it a good dusting with eco-friendly cleaners and a soft cloth or paper towels. If you see little nicks in the finish, now is the time to touch them up. For darker, wood-inspired colors, use a paint marker or a special furniture marker, available at your local hardware store for just a few dollars. These work just fine on laminate bookshelves, too. 

Now, turn the bookshelf on its side, so that instead of longer horizontal shelves, you have cubbies that look like lockers without their doors. If your kids are little, a smaller bookshelf is good. For bigger kids or adults, you might want to remove one of the side panels of the bookshelf – which would be the bottom of the cubbies – so you can mount the entire cubby on a wall at whatever height you choose.

Use hand tools or small power tools to attach new hooks to the interior back wall of your old bookshelf. Now, your family can hang coats, purses, hats or scarves in a dedicated location by a door. It's a far more substantial look than just drilling hooks into the wall, plus it gives you a top shelf to decorate, too.

 

Plant Life

 

Fill your home with beautiful greenery using simple DIY furniture hacks that give plants a place to live among your favorite furnishings and other decor. There are so many of these hacks that the only limit is truly your imagination. Our favorites are the ones that repurpose everyday home accessories in unexpected ways:

• Grab a wine rack and turn it sideways. Find glass jars to place inside the openings and fill with your favorite ferns or cacti. This is beautiful and surprising on a hutch, table or patio.  

• Repurpose a spice rack to hold shot glasses full of tiny plants, like baby spider plants or mini aloe. Spider plants grow roots in this set-up with just water – no soil needed.  

• Take an old curtain rod and install it on a wall at any height. Use buckets and S-hooks to create a living wall, full of dimension and greenery. Play with height and depth based on your room.  

• Bring seasonal lanterns in for the winter and turn them into terrariums to allow a green space indoors when it's cold outside. When the weather warms up, plant them outside to grow.  

 

Create Sofa Islands 

 

Reversible sectionals were made for anyone who is a DIYer at heart. These incredible sofa set-ups usually come with all sorts of fun options. A couch has a traditional arm at one end, but the other end is open so you can use the couch as a modified chaise or set up the detachable chaise alongside it. Flip the chaise in one direction or another to play with end details. Ottomans are usually part of the mix here, too. Place yours as a footrest, use it as a table or push it against a wall to make another seat with a lamp and side table nearby. Reversible sectionals are amazing in their versatility -- just make sure to measure so you know you'll have enough room to play. 

 

Make Your Own Desk

 

Desks add an air of seriousness to your home. Even when you select a contemporary style, they're usually the place for paying bills, doing homework, working extra hours after you leave the office. Make your desk fun, whimsical, and still super-functional with this easy furniture hack. 

Just take a set of 3-drawer dresser or old nightstands and find a slab you love to place between them. You might look for a live-edge piece of wood. That's the wood that looks like it's still part of a tree, marled with knots and burls and gorgeous grain. You might want something simpler, like a straight-cut piece of pine or a reclaimed piece of wood you source locally. When all is said and done, you'll have easy-reach drawers and a unique surface for your laptop or papers. Plus, it feels good to work in your own space.