Crafty Ways To Repurpose Old Cabinet Doors Around The House

According to data from Statista, United States homeowners spent over $1.4 trillion on home remodeling in 2022. This is such a common expenditure for a reason — even small switches like swapping hardware or painting the walls can completely transform the look of a space and help you feel more comfortable in your home — but many people don't consider everything that goes into a renovation before they get to work. Most of the time, effort and resources are delegated almost entirely to picking out new additions and hiring the necessary labor to tackle tougher jobs, but little thought is put into what will happen to the waste produced by these changes.

If you're looking to cut down on the amount of perfectly good material you have to send off to the dump, consider upcycling some of the pieces that are salvageable. A lot of the time, we choose to upgrade our spaces primarily because the old pieces look a bit outdated or no longer match our style, but that doesn't mean they're at the end of their life. Sturdy pieces, especially those made of solid wood, like cabinet doors, can easily be reincorporated into your next DIY project. Through this process, you'll not only reduce the amount of trash you're throwing out, but you'll also save some money on materials and have the chance to get more inventive with your creations.

Starting your morning off on the right foot with a mug of hot coffee or settling down at the end of a long day with a cup of tea can bring a bit of luxury to even the most mundane of schedules, but, oftentimes, our peaceful moment is interrupted by the view of a messy countertop or cabinet crowded full of unused mugs. To help prevent this, consider creating your own wall-hanging coffee station. Install a shelf onto an old cabinet door, add some hooks for your favorite mugs, and top with some decorative pieces to help finish everything off and add some interest.

Even if you don't host or entertain guests often, serving trays can have plenty of uses around the home, from simply sprucing up a plain dining table to transforming a plush ottoman into a sturdy surface. Before you run to the store to buy one, however, consider making your own using an old cabinet door and some handles. If you're going for a specific look, these handles can be purchased new from the hardware store, but you could also repurpose old cabinet pulls if you want to make the most out of materials you might otherwise be tossing in the trash during a kitchen remodel.

Life is hectic, and we can all use the occasional note to keep us on track and remind us of what's coming up soon. Chalkboards are the perfect way to accomplish this task, and they're surprisingly easy and inexpensive to DIY. To make your own chalkboard, all you need is a solid, smooth surface — like an old cabinet door — and some chalkboard paint. Give the surface a coat or two, allow it to fully dry, and you're ready to start jotting down little notes, daily schedules, and important reminders that can help to ensure your day runs as smoothly as possible.

Vases come in plenty of shapes and sizes, but most of them are designed to sit on a table or a shelf so you can admire your bouquet from all angles. If you don't have a ton of horizontal space, or you're worried about pets or kids knocking over fragile flower displays, a traditional vase might not be the best option for you. Instead, consider creating a vase that can attach to the wall out of an old cabinet door. This way, it's completely out of your path, but you can still enjoy some fresh greenery and floral accents in your home.

Even a tiny bit of organization can help to create a more functional laundry room, and this DIY is a one-stop shop for all your laundry day essentials. Attach a simple basket to an old cabinet door, then add some hooks or a bar for hangers at the bottom. The basket can hold your most-used items, like laundry detergent, scent beads, dryer balls, stain remover, and delicates bags, while the hooks or bar on the bottom can be used to hang delicates that need to air dry. Finish everything off with a decal, and you have a fully functional décor piece.

Wall scones are a great way to incorporate a classical touch and interesting lighting into your space, but more intricate options can be shockingly expensive for such a simple item. With a bit of help from a cabinet door, however, you can transform a sconce that feels too small or simple into something that looks like it better fits on your wall. Cabinet doors are typically taller than they are wide, so they're the perfect option to frame out a sconce with a similar set of dimensions, and there's plenty of room to play around with different paint colors and finishes to customize your look.

Even though sending handwritten letters is far from our main form of communication nowadays, it's still common to receive plenty of mail throughout the week. So much so, that it can get a bit annoying to have to sort through it all the second you collect it from the mailbox. To keep it from piling up on your counter, consider creating a designated space for mail out of a repurposed cabinet door and a couple of baskets. This way, you'll always know where to find those important items, even if you haven't had time to open every envelope.

Just about any flat object can be turned into a table with the addition of some legs, but cabinet doors are a particularly well-suited option thanks to the fact that they're designed to withstand plenty of wear and tear, scratches, and spills. If you want your table to be as low-profile and functional as possible, remove the hinges and handles from your cabinet door, fill any holes, and give everything a fresh coat of paint or sealant. If you're willing to sacrifice a bit of functionality in favor of interest, however, keeping the hardware on can result in a fun and quirky final product.

Cabinet doors can be painted on and used as a kind of frame, but why stop at two-dimensional art? Old cabinet doors can act as a perfect base for a mosaic art project thanks to their size, frame-like look, and sturdiness. Glue your mosaic pieces down directly onto the surface of the door, then fill everything in with grout as desired. Because it's meant to be thick and sturdy, the cabinet door will certainly be able to handle the weight of the glass and ceramic pieces you stick to the surface, especially if it's made of real wood.

Cabinet doors can be used as a base for plenty of different projects, but they also have a ton of potential to be incorporated as a decorative accent in other builds, too. If you have an existing backless bench that feels a bit drab, or you're looking for a way to spruce up an otherwise bland design you're working on, consider using cabinet doors as the back. This can be a great opportunity to mix and match different sizes, shapes, and styles you find secondhand, but you can also stick with doors that match if you just want to repurpose pieces from your own kitchen remodel.

Animal skulls are a trademark of western, rustic, and witchy décor, but, oftentimes, not much thought is put into their display besides proper preparation and where they are placed on the wall. If you're looking for something a bit more customizable and unique, consider mounting your skull to an old cabinet door. You can leave it like this if you're just looking for something to frame the item, but there's also plenty of opportunity to add flowers, paint patterns, or incorporate other decorative accents to create your own personalized piece of art.

Having a calendar on the wall is a great way to keep everyone on the same page about what's coming up, but there's no reason you have to go out and buy one new. If you have a scrap cabinet door, paint the middle section with chalkboard paint, then draw on a grid pattern and the days of the week using a paint pen. This will create a base for your calendar, so each month all you have to do is draw on the numbered dates and what important events and appointments you have scheduled over the next few weeks.

One of the most notable things about most cabinet doors is that they look quite a bit like a traditional frame thanks to their beveled edges. Because of this, they can easily be used as a substitute, so long as you're willing to apply your photo directly to the surface of the cabinet door rather than sandwiching it between the backing and a layer of glass. Get a photo printed that's the same size as the inner area of your frame — or cut one to size — and simply stick it down with some glue, Mod Podge, or even just mounting putty.

A cabinet door can easily be transformed into an organizer that can hold all of your laundry room essentials, but it can also serve as a collection point for items that you might otherwise lose track of. Attach a jar to a cabinet door to collect any coins, dollar bills, or any other miscellaneous items that might accidentally make their way into the washing machine after being left in a pocket. Add on a few clips to act as a holding place for solo socks — if you don't find their mate, try your hand at repurposing them, too.