How to Repurpose Household Items With Flare

If you’re looking to elevate your home’s design flare, you can do so without having to invest a dime. With a creative eye and some out-of-the-box thinking, you can use a variety of existing household items—or flea-market finds—in brand-new ways, breathing fresh life into overlooked objects and adding a unique personal style to your dwelling.

The sky’s the limit when it comes to repurposing decorative and/or utilitarian objects, but the design pros at Martha Stewart offer the following ideas as inspiration to spark your creative juices.

Turn a plate collection into wall art. Have a set of decorative plates handed down from your great aunt? Or happen to stumble across a set of prettily painted lunch plates at an estate sale? There’s no need to hide them away until the right occasion surfaces. Instead, creatively group them and mount them on a wall, showcasing their artistry for all to admire every day.

Turn a quilt into a headboard. Do you have beautiful quilts and blankets tucked away in the recesses of your linen closet? Choose your favorite and put it on display instead. A beautifully crafted quilt can be hung at the top of your bed as a stylish headboard instead.

Put books to creative use. In today’s interior design circles, books are no longer relegated to bookshelves. Take a few of your most interesting titles, stack them horizontally, and use them to elevate a small lamp, vase or crystal candy dish. This strategy not only provides height to help showcase some of your favorite things, it also displays the artistry and history of treasured book jackets.

Use vintage items for counter storage. Think beyond the wooden bowl or metal canister and use vintage ceramics or glassware to house everyday objects on your kitchen counters, from your wooden spoon collection to your favorite cooking oils to fresh produce. Such unexpected pairings give new life to old-fashioned china and ceramics and turn ordinary kitchen tools and cooking supplies into a design statement.

Use fancy trays for bed and bath. Put silver serving trays to everyday use for attractively housing items in your bedroom and bathroom. On your bureau, use a beautiful tray as a catch-all for jewelry, perfume, candles or lotions. In the bathroom, use a tray to organize cotton balls, cotton swabs and makeup brushes that you’ve gathered in lidded glass candy jars. This strategy will enhance the luxurious feel of your bed and bath areas.

As you can see, the options for using existing items in new ways are limitless. Use your imagination and a little bit of trial and error to see what creative and stylish ideas you can come up with. With no cost involved, it’s easy to switch gears whenever the mood strikes.