Upcycling and the Art of Refreshing Used Finds

Photo by Şahin Sezer Dinçer: https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-wooden-padded-couch-2264665/

It’s sad, but we live in such a throwaway society. Instead of mending and refreshing things, many of us throw them away and it’s such a problem for the planet. Everything from clothes to furniture is made with throwaway culture in mind, meaning it tends to be cheap and poorly made with materials that arent eco friendly because companies want to make a quick buck. When it comes to your home, instead of buying the mass produced, badly made chipboard furniture you can find in most shops these days (that’s bound to only last for a few years), why not look into finding really good quality used pieces? Furniture from the past tended to be made with real craftsmanship and out of fantastic quality materials like hardwoods. Its easy to overlook them as they might look outdated and in bad condition at a glance, but if you have some vision you can easily bring pieces back up to date. That way you’re being sustainable and not fuelling companies that produce things for throwaway culture, and you also get unique and better quality things for your home. It’s a great hobby and can be fun and satisfying to do as well, and you have somewhere to get arty and creative! Here’s how to get started when it comes to refreshing used furniture and how to go about it.

Learn About Techniques

Before you go in with all guns blazing, sit down and educate yourself on upcycling if this is new to you. That way you wont make mistakes that will waste your time or even destroy what you’re working on. If you use the wrong kind of chemical or pressure washing technique for example you might damage your piece of furniture beyond repair! Watch Youtube videos and even Tiktoks, read articles and books about how to treat different types of wood and how to use different tools.

Find the Right Pieces

First things first, start off with the right pieces. You can source old furniture in junk shops, on Facebook Marketplace and keep an eye out for house clearances- when people move or pass away, often the furniture is sold cheaply or given away to quickly empty the home. Take a close look at anything you’re thinking about buying or taking, turn down anything that shows signs of rot, water damage or woodworm as these types of pieces tend to be beyond repair. Look past the style and the condition of the surface of the wood as these are things that you can change and fix up! If you have a bigger budget, you could check out antique shops as it’s still possible to find things cheaply (or at least at the same price as you could buy a similar item for new in a shop). 

Invest in Some Tools and Materials

If you plan on upcycling a number of pieces, either for your own home or to start a side hustle then it’s so worth investing in some good tools and materials. Things like an electric sander, a power washer, an industrial staple gun, good screwdrivers and good quality paintbrushes are all worth getting stocked up on. Then you’ll want things like paint remover, good primers and the right kinds of paints, waxes or oils for the type of wood you’re working with. If you can find some good deals on furniture hardware like handles, furniture legs and other details in bulk then that could be worth spending the money on for your future projects.

Research the Styles

If you’re upcycling for your own home then you obviously can go with whatever you think looks good. If you’re upcycling to sell your pieces then more research will be needed. What kinds of things do people want? In some cases, people will want furniture that has been tastefully restored to look like it was when it was new. In other cases they might want good quality furniture to be completely transformed to look modern and fresh, which could involve painting, changing legs, hardware or even the function. For example, an old writing desk might be transformed into a tv unit. 

Upcyling furniture can be such a good hobby or side hustle to have, but to be able to properly refresh and repair things you need to go about it in the right way. So do your research, get the right tools and maybe start small in the beginning so you can get your bearings. By bringing used furniture back to life you’re doing your bit to help slow down the throwaway society that has become the norm for us all.