5 Pinterest Projects I Actually Plan on Doing

We all do it… well, those of us who use Pinterest at least. I’m talking about pinning projects we know we will never actually attempt. You know what I’m talking about. 

An entire wall covered in paint sample chips. A legless chair hung and used as a plant shelf. Sometimes we just pin things we think are cool or beautiful. But other times, we (and by we I mean me, but also maybe you) pin things that we absolutely plan on re-creating. 

This post is about those things. Here are five projects for the home that inspire me to create/re-create.

The best thing about re-creating a project, in my opinion, is that you can stay true to the original or completely diverge from it. It’s all about putting your own unique spin on the things that inspire you.

1. Book Chandelier

Shortly after I discovered Pinterest in 2012 (yeah, that’s right, I discovered it, which basically means I invented it), I came across this amazing chandelier made out of books and have been smitten with it ever since. It quite likely is my favourite pin of all time. Some book-lovers think it’s sacrilegious to use books for anything other than reading, but not I. I mean, there are millions (billions?) of books out there in the world. I don’t even want to know how many are thrown out or destroyed every day. So, instead of chucking them, why not repurpose them and then hang them from the ceiling of your home library? The reason I have yet to tackle this project is that I don’t have a home library… yet.

2. Farmhouse Table

I had originally pinned this project thinking the top is reclaimed barnwood, but it actually is made out of stained 2x6s. I’ve mentioned before my love of barnwood, but it isn’t always easy to come by. My aunt and uncle had access to a bunch of it when they lived on a hundred year old farm, but they’ve since sold it and now live on another property where there is no barnwood, but there is old fence board. My extremely handy uncle recently built a table out of the fence board and my hope is for a table of my very own… one day. Again with the one day! But, alas, our current house has a very small dining area and I’m actually happy with the table we have there at the moment. It was an Ikea buy that I refinished myself — one of my first DIYs many years ago. You can actually see the finish in the background of my vintage-inspired mounted key project. Eventually we will need a bigger table though and the pictured farmhouse table is exactly what I want.

3. Painted Clawfoot Tub

It’s surprising that I’ve been blogging here for four years and have never mentioned my admiration of Sarah Richardson. Back when I had cable and thus had HGTV, I religiously watched all things Sarah, including season three of Sarah’s House, where she bought and renovated a century old home on 50 acres of land… basically my dream renovation. I remember how excited she was when she bought the pictured tub at an antique sale for $200. And then she painted the outside of it yellow and blew my mind! Since then, I always knew I would one day do the same, but instead of yellow I’m leaning toward a charcoal grey exterior against a backdrop of pale grey-blue walls and black and white penny round tiles. This is all for my future home, of course.

4. Entrance Bench

My Real Life Home – Mudroom/Laundry Room board is awash with pins of built-in entrance benches. Why, you may or (most likely) may not ask? Because my current laundry room was basically built to suck. It’s super small, both the garage door and kitchen door open into it – they even overlap each other and bang into the washer and dryer! But I improved it a few years ago when I turned the room’s closet into a place to sort dirty clothes and hang clean ones to dry as well as added several storage shelves, hooks for hanging, a place to store our shoes and made a no sew laundry sack to hang on the back of the kitchen door. Still, I could only do so much and dream of a day when I have a slightly bigger (or at least better designed) mudroom and laundry room. For an organized freak like me, there is nothing sexier than built-ins. See below.

5. Built-In Reading Nook

Of all the projects featured in this post, this is the one I might be able to accomplish in my current home because I actually have room for it… in the stairwell! I’m all about using every available space and an empty stairwell wall below a window is just begging for some built-ins… with a sliding ladder. I couldn’t find a pin that had both stairwell built-ins and a ladder, possibly because it’d be pretty dangerous… and possibly not to code. But who cares if a ladder on wheels on a staircase is a deathtrap? I need one.

Bonus: Tree Dresser

I consider this project a “bonus” because I’ve already done it. Plus, I actually knew I wanted to paint a tree on the dresser I was refinishing for our nursery before I ever saw it on Pinterest because I’m obsessed with trees… obviously. I did the whole “hey I have a cool idea and I wonder if someone else has already done it so I can be further inspired” thing that Pinterest is also great for. I’ve actually now done this project twice and I know I keep saying I’m going to be posting another room reveal soon – which will feature the second tree dresser – but the problem is taking photos of the room. You see, I do all my blogging and picture-taking during nap/quiet time, but the dresser is in my toddler’s room so… yeah. Until the time comes when I can keep my beloved first child from photo-bombing the ever loving shit out of her bedroom’s photo session, we will all just have to be content with the following photo of the original tree dresser. Sigh… I feel content. Don’t you?

Is there a Pinterest project you’re just itching to tackle? Have you already tackled one? Have you come up with your own, 100% original project and then pinned it only to inspire countless other pinheads? (I totally just made that term up and am absolutely certain I am the first person to use it.) Share your projects and projects-to-be below!

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Posted on June 26, 2016