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Upcycle: Potting Bench

December 30, 2016 By Chelsea Lipford Wolf Leave a Comment

I don’t know if you’ve noticed this about me lately, but apparently I’m on an upcycle and repurpose kick. I really do love giving something new life! Especially when it comes to cheap or free furniture pieces. That’s where this large-and-in-charge potting bench comes into play.

Potting Bench Made from Old Entertainment Center

On a recent episode of Today’s Homeowner, we transformed a shed into a gardener’s potting shed paradise for homeowner Delores.

Potting Shed After Exterior Improvements

My task was to create a potting bench to go inside. My original idea was to find an old kitchen island or something similar on Craigslist or a local thrift store that could be repurposed. And that’s mainly because that’s exactly what I have in my shed. What can I say? I’m a creature of habit for sure!

Kitchen Island Being Used as Garden Potting Bench

But when I stumbled upon this beast at a thrift store for $40, I simply couldn’t resist.

Entertainment Center in Thrift Store

My best guess is it served as an entertainment center in its former life with all of the roll-outs and holes in the back for plugs.

Wooden Entertainment Center Before Upcycle

Another phase I’ve been going through is adding furniture feet to everything! Exhibit A. But in order for that to look ‘right’, I needed to remove the baseboard trim. So I started at the bottom using the same Trim Puller I used when I hung shiplap. It really does make it super easy and damage-free!

Removing Base Trim from Entertainment Center

From there the plan was to cut the middle of the top and lower it down, making it easier to pot larger plants. So that’s where we started. I say we because my dad simply couldn’t stay away from the power tools!

Danny Cutting Top of Bench with Circular Saw

Can you tell how happy I am about it?! He did allow me to make a cut or two. So I used a framing square clamped to the top to guide the circular saw and keep it straight.

Circular Saw Cutting Top of Entertainment Center

Then Dad made a horizontal cut at the height we wanted the middle section to sit at. Most of the cut was made with a circular saw. But he finished the cut with a hand saw and oscillating tool.

Cutting Remainder of Top with Hand Saw

After cutting the divider from the bottom of the top piece, we dry fitted it to make sure the height was appropriate.

Dry Fitting Top for New Potting Surface

We reused some of the cleats previously holding the roll-outs as the braces for the modified top.

As with SO MANY projects, a fresh coat of paint makes a world of difference! And this was no different. But before I painted, I installed the wooden furniture feet I picked up at the home center. I think they were about $4 a piece. Since this piece was so long, I needed to put one at each corner and 2 in the middle (one front and one in the back) for a total of 6.

Attaching Wooden Furniture Feet to Bottom of Bench

Then it was on with the respirator and paint sprayer!

Spraying Paint on Outside of Potting Bench

I only used one of the old roll-outs on the bottom left.

Roll Out Tray on Bottom of Potting Bench

Inside the cabinets on either side were originally shelves that could be moved up and down. I added baskets to help contain smaller stuff in one cabinet, but removed the shelf in the other cabinet to accommodate large bags of potting soil. (We kept the shelf around in case Delores’s storage needs change.)

Potting Bench with Drop Down Middle for Easy Planting

Besides the piece itself and the new furniture feet, the only other expensive was the new hardware on the cabinet doors and roll-out tray. I was even able to use paint they had leftover from painting the outside of the shed! So for around $75, we were able to give the homeowner way more storage than she had before as well as a beautiful place to pot and maintain her lovely potted plants year-round.

If you’d like more information on how this transformation went down, head over to my sister site to see the video of the process!

This is my last project to share for 2016 (even though it was actually completed in September!). But I’ve got a fun DIY project for you to build starting first thing in 2017 on January 1st! Hope you’ll check back in to see how we made a rolling toy cart! Thanks for Checking In and Happy New Year! ~Chelsea

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Welcome!

I’m Chelsea. DIY
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Thank Heaven for little girls!💕The best part of Thank Heaven for little girls!💕The best part of having daughters is getting to dress them up in clothes from my baby hood.😍🥰Not sure where Clara got her dark hair but it’s a fun change to have a baby with actual hair this time around! Doesn’t she look like a little baby doll?!
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#newbornlife #changingtable #babygirl #thankheavenforlittlegirls #mommasgirl #allpinkallthetime
Welcome home Baby Clara! We love you so much alrea Welcome home Baby Clara! We love you so much already!💕
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#welcomehome #familyofsix #babygirl #happybirthday #3girls1boy
Monogrammed washcloths and clear hooks was an inex Monogrammed washcloths and clear hooks was an inexpensive fix to a constant headache in my kids’ bathroom!🤯 As with many organization projects, hanging it on a wall makes all of the ugly go away!👏🏻
What simple fixes have you done around your house lately?Washcloths used here➡️ https://amzn.to/3bd9Gpv
Clear hooks here➡️ goto.target.com/zaGZ5x
She’s a Brick. House. Who went through mighty mi She’s a Brick. House. Who went through mighty mighty changes to get here!👏🏻Peeling paint was our nemesis on this project, but we eliminated it with persistence and determination. 👊🏻
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We took it a step further by waterproofing these bricks to PREVENT paint from peeling in the future. A fresh coat of matching house paint and it’s like it was always meant to be🥰
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All the details are in my latest blog post which is linked in my profile now! I know it’s not a project on everyone’s list but save it if you have a painted brick house or retaining walls around!
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#brickhouse #paintedbrick #bricksteps #homemaintenance #homerepair #diyrepair #diyhouse #diyhouseprojects #diypainting #ironhandrails #wroughtiron #wroughtironwork
Still pregnant over here🙃Just finished up these Still pregnant over here🙃Just finished up these concrete spheres and will have a video to share soon! I first discovered them visiting my sisters in Mountain Brook, AL. They seem to be used to keep people from parking in the yard along the street. But I think they are so neat just as yard decorations! What other purposes could they serve?
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#rainymonday #39weekspregnant #yardwork #paintedbrick #exteriorrenovation #cedarshakes #cornerhouse #lawndecor #yarddesign #yarddecor #yarddecorations
For my 4th baby, clothes become nursery decor. Bud For my 4th baby, clothes become nursery decor. Budget-friendly and practical. But how stinking sweet?! Most of these my sisters and I wore as babes 30 years ago😳Still trying to figure out the origin of the sweet blue dress though.🤔
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What have you reused or repurposed as wall decor in a nursery or other space? I just love personal touches like this!
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