Before throwing anything away, give it one last thought. Whether that’s an old car tyre or an empty jar, every item has upcycle potential.

In most cases all you need is a touch of imagination, plenty of inspiration and a few licks of paint.

Up for the task? We hunted down five things you probably didn’t know you could upcycle to get those creative juices flowing…

1. A cable reel

We salvaged this wooden cable reel from a skip and upcycled it into a creative feature for a child’s bedroom. We sanded and cleaned the surface before painting with Rust-Oleum Chalkboard Spray Paint in Black and doodling a street design with chalk pens.

2. A Grand Piano

This grand piano was given the upcycle treatment by Chris Whalen with Rust-Oleum Chalky Finish Furniture Paint and entered into our Make It Yours competition.

3. A Mirror

A cheap and cheerful, frameless mirror can be given a new lease of life with just a touch of creativity. Think about objects which can be used for a frame and colour combinations which will complement the room you intend to use it in. For this toy car mirror we used Rust-Oleum Mode Spray Paint in Pure Aqua. Fancy giving it a go? Check out our article on everything you need to know.

4. Miss-matched glass jars

Forget the uniform minimalist look. These upcycled jars which were entered into our Make It Yours by Flossy Frills look dreamy painted in various shades of Rust-Oleum Chalky Finish Furniture Paint.

5. A wooden pallet

We transformed this old palette into a side bar fit for any garden party. We sanded it down and gave it a good clean before using Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch in Dark Grey . We then painted a piece of MDF with Rust-Oleum Mode in Sunflower to create a high gloss finish for the bar top and fixed together. Ta-dah!

6. A clip on cord lamp

Blogger Cityscape Bliss cleverly upcycled a clip-on cord lamp, an old shelf bracket and some twine to create a quirky light feature. Metallic shades are perfect (and bang on trend) for this type of upcycle, try Rust-Oleum Metallic Furniture Paint in Bright Gold or Copper. 

7. A Suitcase

We added map detailing to this vintage suitcase and brought it up to date with a metallic and Chalkboard interior. Perfect for weddings and parties, suitcases of old should definitely not be forgotten!

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