Spring is in the air and it's also the last Tuesday of the month which means it's
Trash to Treasure Tuesday. Yippee!! My blogger friends and I put this together each month to inspire you. You'll see their work in a bit, meanwhile, take a look at this GIANT find. You're looking at a handmade, albeit broken cradle that needs to be loved on in another way.
When I first spied this at a ministry thrift store, I noticed it was not only HUGE, but made of gorgeous wood. I asked it if was available for purchase, but it was not for sale. They received it as a donation and used it to store all their donated pillows. I mean, can you imagine having to bend over this over and over again with a baby? Or, imagine having it take up space as a toe-knocker? I told the store that if they ever decided to part with it, I'd love to have a crack at it.
Unfortunately, this piece had been broken at some point, and eventually broke again. It looks like the counter-sunk screws were replaced with dowel and didn't do the repair well. So, a few months later, the store asks me if I'd like to have it. Um...yes!! The thrift store received an awesome donation of a display case from a closing store, so they needed this gone. Not only is it for a ginormous baby, but also is solid and
heavy. Just for the record, I am not the ginormous baby...ahem.
Funny thing is, I must be a magnet for these handmade oak cradles because I recently rebuilt
this other cradle, but kept it as a cradle with a modern update.
DIY TIME
Now, we need to have some DIY creative fun and break out the tools. {{yeah, baby!!}} As you can imagine, the first step is to disassemble this broken cradle. I use my putty knife to pop off the wooden plugs covering the screws.
You can see the dowel pins in the bottom edge that have broken. And, the crazy thing is, I found 6 more broken screws. I'm amazed that it still held together so well. Then, once I have it in pieces, I need to assess what in the world to do with these pieces. Literally, I have no clue what to do with the wood, but I figure that the pieces on their own would inspire me.
NEXT
My goal is to have as little waste as possible, so I take every bit apart. At the same time, I measure each piece to see what I can do with it. The two side panels taper down, but I did some calculating to make the most of it. Enter in my Rip Cut jig for my circular saw. I simply set it up to cut off the taller side. This leaves me with two tiny pieces of scrap. woot!
Then, that leaves me with two pieces. In order to make them match, I cut with my jigsaw and sand smooth with my sander.
Next, I add counter-sunk holes on the sides I cut so that I can attach the pieces together. After I assemble I fill the holes with plugs and sand smooth.
Likewise, in with keeping in the no waste mentality of this upcycle, I use the bottom platform rests and reattach them. After that, I use my jig again and cut the bottom from the cradles to fit my new build. I'm a happy mama!
THE FINAL BUILD
I don't know about you, but I just love building. Especially when the sun is shining, and I can be outside - even though I still long for country living. sigh... Finally, here's my broken cradle upcycled into a storage bin.
My storage bin is not only perfect for the entry, but also anywhere in the home. Fill it with pillows, blanket, towels, toys...you get the idea. Where would you use it?
Likewise, the size is nice and narrow, so it won't bust your toe off when you walk around it like that cradle. haha. I'm smitten with it and hope you are too.
If you'd like to make this a part of your home story, you can find it and much more available in
my online shop.
SHARE
As always, my goal is to inspire you and others too. Additionally, pin and share to spark the imagination in others. You can do it too!
Before you think I'm quitting, I'm saving the two end pieces for my next project. eep!
Take a gander over HERE.
Make sure you don't miss a beat and
sign up for my newsletter. Until next time!
- Artsy Chicks Rule
- Girl in the Garage
- Salvaged Inspirations
- Confessions of a Serial Do It Yourselfer
Also, more fun reclaimed builds like my broken cradle project:
