5 Favorite Ways to Use Reclaimed Wood

What can you do with old wood? Here are 5 great ways to use reclaimed wood to add salvaged style to your home decor.

Salvaged, old wood has time-earned character that can’t be imitated. With a little reviving, it’s patina can add beauty to your home decor by using it in many ways. Today I’m going to share my 5 Favorite Ways to Use Reclaimed Wood ( and none of them are for firewood).

I’m joining a couple of my Lifestyle of Love friends today to send reclaimed wood ideas your way. This group loves everything vintage, farmhouse, repurposed and antique! We’re sharing what we love to inspire your home decor ideas. If you hopped over from County Road 407, I’m sure you enjoyed hearing about Cindy’s sentimental reclaimed wood pieces; that lady always make me smile and she’s got a heart of gold:) I’ll have the rest of the inspiration at the end!

To enjoy more of our Lifestyle of Love series, see HERE.

5 Favorite Ways to Use Reclaimed Wood

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“Saving” Old Wood

First off, my comment about using reclaimed wood as firewood is no joke. Mr. Fix-it’s first impulse is to burn any old wood. Must be a primal man thing? He wants to clear the pile, or maybe he just likes making fires?

Whatever the reason, I have to rush in and say “noooo….that old wood is valuable!” I’ve learned it’s wonderful to have old wood pieces available when a project idea comes up. It’s much easier to use an old piece of wood for a repurposing project than trying to make a new piece of wood look old. My advice…when you come across some old wood, take the nails out and store it somewhere so you’ll have it when you need it. It’s valuable!

Use Salvaged Wood Boards as Shelves

The easiest way to use reclaimed wood pieces is to enjoy them as rustic shelves. Sand them smooth, so you don’t get any splinters and seal them with a water based poly, like THIS. Purchase shelf brackets that coordinate with your design style and add the boards on top.

We’ve got reclaimed wood shelves in our kitchen and in our bathroom and I love their beautiful patina from the top and from the bottom. The shelves may not be perfectly level, but when you love vintage style, that comes with the territory!

Use Reclaimed Wood as a Table Top

If the top of your piece of furniture has seen better days (cracked or stained), applying reclaimed wood can add beauty. You can lay boards side by side, or create a design as art. Sand the boards smooth so you won’t get splinters and seal with poly.

The repurposed coffee table we DIY’d years ago is still one of my favorite projects. We used salvaged wood from when our garage roof collapsed. Glad something good came out of that fiasco!

“From Vintage Roof Rack to Cool Coffee Table”

Use Old Wood to Line the Back of a Cupboard

To add an interesting backdrop to a cupboard or shelving unit, apply old wood horizontally or vertically. It will make the piece so much more interesting and will give you a more unique foundation for your styling.

We added vintage reclaimed beadboard to the back of a simple roadside wooden shelf and created a great piece of useful furniture. The character of old wood adds so much interest to a ho-hum piece of furniture!

“How to Decorate to Thrift the Look, Vintage Lakehouse”

Build a Piece of Furniture With Reclaimed Wood

If you have the DIY skills, building a piece of furniture from salvaged wood means you’ll have totally unique furnishings in your home! A pile of worm and insect designed log pieces were built into a unique and handsome headboard for our son’s room. Headboards are a fairly easy build and can really show off the beauty of old wood.

Attach Hooks to a Length of Salvaged Wood

Another super easy way to show off the beauty of reclaimed wood is to simply attach hooks or hangers to it. It can provide function and beauty to your home’s decor.

Leftover 1/2 log lengths became a unique way for our son to store his guitars by adding simple hangers.

“Woodsy Bedroom Makeover Reveal”

Repurpose Reclaimed Wood into Home Decor

Old wood can make anything look good! From simply cutting a shape out of the old wood (like a Christmas tree) to lining up the boards together to make a charger, repurposing salvaged wood makes anything beautiful.

Reclaimed wood doesn’t have to only be boards, either. Parts and pieces of old furniture also have the old wood patina and can be repurposed in so many ways.

Here are a few projects made out of reclaimed wood to inspire you to create!

I bought these cute reclaimed trees from a local shop, but what could be easier? The chippy paint really makes them;)

“Repurposed Wood Lath Runner” made from the lath we dug out of our Fake Farmhouse bathroom remodel. {“Vintage Modern Bathroom Remodel Reveal”}

“DIY Repurposed Candlesticks with Sheet Metal Shades”

If the small, dowel rod handle on your shop-class vintage tool caddy is ho-hum, replace it with a beefier reclaimed chair leg piece!

“How to Upcycle Vintage Metal Trays into a Tiered Stand”

“DIY a Junk Styled Tiered Tray”

My stash of old spindles from chairs and tables gets used all. the. time. I’ve told the men in my family that no…they can’t be burned, despite the fact they’re taking up room in the garage. They are valuable for so many projects! They’re the perfect handle for old tool caddys and make the perfect spacers for tiered trays.

Shop for old spindles HERE.

Hopefully I’ve convinced you to fall in love with reclaimed wood! Once you start looking for it in curbside piles, basements and garages of estate sales and the neighbor’s burn pile, you’ll start hoarding it like I do! It’s a valuable material to have on hand, and can be used so many ways! (So why do I still need to convince Mr. Fix it after all these years???)

For more reclaimed wood ideas, visit Debra at Common Ground next. The potting bench they created is so cool; think I need one of those in my life! The rest of the inspiration is down below.

Thanks so much for reading 5 Favorite Ways to Use Reclaimed Wood! If you enjoyed your visit, be sure to become a Lora B Insider (for FREE) to keep the ideas flowing! (see HERE).

pin, share, and enjoy the rest of the inspiration!

Sharing at these lovely parties:

Farmhouse Friday

New Upcycle Ideas

Vintage Charm

Tuesday Turn About