DIY Ideas to Repurpose Old Doors

During a total remodel of your house, you may find yourself buying new doors to fit in with your sparkling new décor. Rather than toss the old ones, Oak Wood Doors have come up with some fun ways to repurpose old doors to create unique and affordable pieces for your home. Of course, if you haven’t got any doors spare and would like to repurpose one, you can easily pick one up second hand for about $15-$20!

Photo: tcdesigns1968.blogspot.com

Turn your door into a table

A door is a perfect size for a large family dinner table, or two smaller coffee tables if cut in half – it’s also a relatively quick and easy DIY project!

Clean the door to ensure it’s free from dirt and grime. Take out the handle and fill in using a scrap of wood. Fill the holes left behind with putty or wood filler.
If you want to change the color, strip off the existing color or paint using sandpaper or a chemical solvent.
Paint or stain the wood, leaving plenty of time to dry. Apply a layer of varnish or lacquer to maximize the table’s durability.
Flip the table over and attach the legs. Depending on the legs you’ve chosen, these can be screwed straight in, or attached using leg brackets.
If your door is panelled, an attractive way to level these out is to fill each panel with cut-to-size glass, or to cover the entire table with glass to provide a single smooth table top.

Photo found: PhotoBucket FriscoShabbyChic

Create a master headboard

Headboards can be expensive, particularly if you want to go for a majestic wooden one. Making a headboard from an old door is inexpensive and means you can create a personalised headboard which reflects the design of your room. As well as a door, you will need solid crown moulding and two wooden boards for the legs.

Measure the door against the head of the bed – it should be a couple of inches bigger either side. If it is any bigger, cut it to size using a power saw or circular saw. Make sure details like panelling are in the centre before cutting.
Take out the lock and tap in a wood block to fill the gap. Fill the holes using a mix of putty and sawdust.
Remove the paint using a chemical solvent or stripper, then sand down the table surface to ensure it’s smooth.
Measure out the length of the door and cut out the crown moulding in this size. The ends should be cut at 45 degree angles for a more professional look.
Glue to crown moulding onto the top edge of the door and secure into place using nails.
Clean the wood free from dust and paint in colours to match your room, or use a wood stain if you’d rather a more natural finish.
Screw the wooden boards into the back of the door, ensuring it will leave the door high enough as a headboard.

Photo: Kustom Creations

Make a corner book shelf

Corner shelves are a discreet, decorative way of storing the things in your house you don’t want to throw away, but don’t really have a space for. They take up less space than traditional shelves, and are so cheap when made from doors you could easily afford one to have in every room. As well as a door, you will need nails, six 90 degree brackets plus two 90 degree brackets per shelf, as well as untreated wood for the shelves.

Cut the door exactly in half length-ways using a power saw or circular saw.
Clean and strip the door off paint. Take out the lock and tap in a wood block, filling the holes left behind with filler.
Sand down the surface of both halves, ensuring the sawed edge is completely smooth.
Attach the doors together at a 45 degree angle, securing in place using the six 90 degree brackets evenly spaced.
Cut out shelves to fit the door measurements. These can be square, triangle or wood.
Measure and mark out where you would like the shelves to go – one will need to be near the bottom to prevent the shelves tipping over. Fix the shelves in using the 90 degree brackets.
Clean off any sawdust and stain or paint the entire shelving. Finish with a layer of varnish.