RECLAIM, RESTYLE, REDECORATE

Who knew that decorating your home could be good for the environment?

REDUCE & REUSE - Keep furniture out of the landfill and support the 3 "R's". Reduce, reuse & recycle. Decorating costs effectively can start at home. If you are looking for just the right piece to complete your space, you may just have to step into the next room, the attic or the garage. Just because you have always used that small table to hold your telephone in the kitchen, does not mean it can't hold your glass of wine in the bathroom! Be imaginative and use pieces for other than their intended purpose and feel free to move furniture from one room to another. This is a great way to get organized and create new functional spaces.

(just missing the glass of wine!)

RECYCLE & RESTYLE - What about the bedroom suite handed down to you from your Grandmother? It comes with plenty of sentimental value but not much else. Why not breathe new life into it and treat it to a fresh coat of paint? You will create something that is up to date and that compliments your decor. With proper preparation, primer and paint your options are limitless! Not only will you gain appreciation for your new pieces, you gain a fresh new bedroom style. You will have also freed up some space where you were storing your dusty hand me downs. (And who couldn't use more space?)

(Primer done, paint next!)

RECLAIM & REDECORATE - Think outside the box! Your grandparent's old trunk does not have to stay in the garage. Reclaim it and use it as a coffee table in your family room. The storage is a bonus for videos, DVDS and magazines. Or, put legs on it and make it into a bench to sit on at your back door. You could use the storage to keep your family organized - gloves and hats in the winter and sun hats and sunscreen in the summer. An old wood ladder for example, from your uncle's apple farm could be a magazine rack in the family room, a one-of-a-kind pot rack above your island in the kitchen, a place to display photos in the den or a fun way to display and organize your high heeled shoes in the bedroom! Uncle Joe's ladder could also hold your towels in the bathroom or by the pool. Your creations will be inspiring!

(Very creative Susan!)

D.D.D. - Dumpster Diving Diva! It's quite acceptable these days to admit that you found your latest home decor find on the side of the road! This way of decorating is truly WIN, WIN! (and it is good for the environment too!) Sometimes you can hardly believe your luck! Sometimes your spouse may look at you differently! If that antique chair at the end of some kind person's driveway is missing its seat, just drop a flower pot into the opening and place your chair in your garden or at your front door and fill with seasonal colour. But just remember...don't wait to pick up that chair until after you pick up your groceries or it will be gone!

(Of course today this would be filled with cedar and holly!)

Here is a perfect example of a "D.D.D Find". The photo below is of a table that is almost the same as the table that my mother-in-law found beside a dumpster.

Here is how it looks today in my living room! What do you think?

Re-purposing orphan items is a great way to mix old with new and create your own personal style! Stylish solutions are everywhere, so open your mind, consider the possibilities, let your creative juices flow and have fun!

If you have a RECLAIM, RESTYLE, REDECORATE story, I would love for you to share!