This recycling project will inspire you to repurpose old things

Striped kitchen banquette seating around round wooden table

(Image credit: Lara Winter)

Home decorator Lara Winter is one of Ideal Home's new Open House contributors, sharing her thoughts on revamping a 200 year old cottage to make it right for modern family life. See the rest of her articles here.

Let’s be honest: decorating your home can feel like a constant chorus of “buy this, upgrade that, here’s a brand-new must-have.” Exhausting. And also… expensive. Personally, I’d rather save my money (and my patience) by giving old things a second life. It’s cheaper, it’s fun, and it makes your home feel like you, not like a showroom.

Plus, there’s something ridiculously satisfying about looking at an object and thinking: “let’s see… what ELSE can you be?” If you haven’t tried it yet, give it a go. Trust me.

Your home is basically a treasure trove

Before you even think about hitting the shops, just have a little wander around your house. You probably already have loads of things that could be brilliant with the tiniest tweak.

That old wooden ladder gathering dust in the shed? Lean it against a wall and suddenly it’s a chic, rustic clothes rail. A vintage trunk hiding in the loft? That’s a coffee table with storage. You’re welcome.

A single random dining chair? Put it next to your bed with a lamp and a stack of books and suddenly it’s a charming, slightly eccentric bedside table. (Honestly, the more mismatched, the better.)

And tea towels. Hear me out: They make surprisingly gorgeous art. Frame a pretty one and suddenly you look like someone who shops at tiny independent galleries instead of the home aisle at Sainsbury’s. Same for leftover wallpaper or fabric scraps. Stick them in frames and voilà: instant, affordable art with personality.

Old curtains? Don’t bin them! Turn them into cushion covers or rip them into fabric ribbon for gift wrapping. This is where you get to look effortlessly crafty without actually trying very hard.

The bathroom vanity I haven’t done… yet

a neutral bathroom with a large vanity unit. mirror and antique shell-style wall lights

So, I keep seeing people turn old dressers into bathroom vanities, and they always look amazing. Painted, sealed, sink plonked on top. Suddenly the whole bathroom looks boutique-hotel chic.

Have I done it myself? No. Is it absolutely on my one-day list? Oh, 100%. I’m just waiting for the perfect dresser…and the perfect burst of motivation.

My sofa-banquette makeover (my favourite repurpose of them all!)

Striped kitchen banquette seating around round wooden table with Christmas decor on the walls

Now, here’s the project I have done - and I’m really proud of it: turning our old sofa into banquette seating. Yes, a sofa. I basically decided it wasn’t allowed to retire yet, even though it’s over 12 years old and has moved with me since I was a student (I even dragged it all the way from Germany to the UK).

Instead of sending it off to sofa heaven, I completely dismantled it, to give it another life. I saved the seat cushions, reupholstered them in fabric I actually love and turned the backrests into the padded back of the banquette.

At one point my kitchen looked like a crime scene involving foam, rogue staples, and a confused staple gun. But honestly, the result is SO worth it. Now we have cosy, custom banquette seating for basically no money, and I get to feel ridiculously smug every time I sit there.

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Green living room with book-laden shelving and cream sofa — (Image credit: Lara Winter)

Why Repurposing Is the Best

Repurposing isn’t about being frugal in a boring way. It’s about being clever. Creative. A bit cheeky, really.

Your home doesn’t need everything new to feel fresh or stylish. It just needs pieces with stories, whether they’re from a car boot sale, your nan’s attic, or your own pile of “random things I swear I’ll use someday.”

So next time you’re tempted to click “add to basket” just stop for a sec. Look around.The perfect thing might already be sitting right there, waiting to become something completely new.

Lara is originally from Germany, where she studied Special Educational Needs before moving to England in 2016. She now runs the instagram account What A View Cottage which has over 240,000 followers, who tune in to be inspired by her modern take on rustic style.

Lara has always had a creative streak and the urge to experiment with colours and different layouts made her rearrange the furniture of her childhood bedroom constantly. These days she lives with her husband, their two sons and their fluffy, ginger cat Gizmo in a modern cottage in Wiltshire. She loves to create cosy, lived in spaces with lots of texture and the use of colour. Her specialty is to give rooms that cottage feel with a modern and sometimes unexpected twist and she's not afraid to mix interior styles.