Frugal Upcycle Furniture: Cabinet Designed by a 6 Year Old

Who doesn’t like a pretty furniture? I know I do, and so does my 6 year old daughter. Not long ago, one of my neighbors, threw-out a small kitchen cabinet. The cabinet looked like it had been a part of a really old country kitchen theme. Even though the cabinet was covered with dark  red apples, I thought, this would be the perfect cabinet for my daughter, so I asked my neighbor if I have it. He laughed and said “What that? It’s an old piece of junk, but if you want it you can have it.”

I replied smiling, “Thanks, I’m sure I can make good use of it.” Once home, I showed my daughter who equally excited when she first saw it.

“Oh Mom, we can make it so nice, kind of shabby chic nice,” she beamed. Although we have been busy with a lot of projects, I thought this would be one of the most fun. I also wanted her to have full creative control over how we would transform the look of the cabinet. She’s homeschooled it would also be the perfect project for a practical art lesson. During the first couple of days, I let brainstorm about colors. She had about 10 colors to choose from because I needed her to stick with the color options we already had in the house from other painting projects. The colors she chose were pink and gray. 

WHAT WERE OUR STEPS TO UPCYCLE THE CABINET?

1. Together we primed the cabinet.
2. The next morning we added the first coat of gray paint.
3. Then that evening after the gray dried we added the pink coat, and the next morning we repainted the pink and then repainted the gray in the evening.
4. Overall project time: 3 hours (not including drying time).
5. Total cost for us: FREE 😄

The best part of the upcycle project is that we completed the work together, and now my daughter adores her new cabinet.  The cabinet goes perfectly in her pink and white room.

Reader Question: What are some of your favorite upcycle projects?