38 Clever Ways to Repurpose Old Kitchen Items

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Two vintage red handle kitchen mashers used as bookends with blue, red and light blue books in between on a shelf.

This collection of repurposed kitchen items highlights creative ways to upcycle everyday kitchenware and vintage finds into useful, one-of-a-kind pieces.

1. Baking Pan Message Board & Catchall

Repurpose a cookie sheet and tin bread pan into a lovely message board and catchall. To make one, grab an old metal cookie sheet and a loaf pan, drill holes, and attach the loaf pan with small screws.

I used chalkboard paint from Dollar Tree to make a chalkboard at the top, and you can also use magnets on this board. If you plan to use chalkboard paint, I recommend roughing up the surface with light-grit sandpaper before applying it.

Photo of a finished upcycle project, Baking Pan Message Board & Catchall. Cookie sheet with a bread pan attached to the front hanging on a paneling wall with a clock and tools nearby. Painted with chalkboard paint - reads "Dad's Fix-It Shop".

2. Shamrock Trinket Dish Made From Tart Tins

Repurpose a few heart-shaped mini tart tins to make shamrock trinket dishes. I used napkins and Mod Podge to decoupage my tins, but you could use acrylic paint. The stem is a wooden spatula with part of the handle cut off.

Shown finished shamrock trinket bowl made out of three heart tart tins and a wood spatula for the stem. Finished trinket dish decoupaged with green patterned napkins, shown on a white background. Below photo show the three tart tins used and wood spatula as a before photo.
Shamrock Trinket Dish Made From Tart Tins

3. Cheese Grater Flip Calendar

Turn an old grater slicer into a flip calendar by folding it in half and drilling four holes at the top—front and back. Laminate and attach month and date card with large binder rings. If you’d like to use the art shown, you can download it here.

Photo of a cheese grater upcycled to make a flip calendar. Rings hold laminated month and date card. Grater is silver and folded in half to make this upcycled flip calendar.
Cheese Grater Upcycled to make a Flip Calendar

4. Patriotic Pan Lid Flag Holder

Old enamel pan lids like these have so much character! I snagged these at the flea market to make this beautiful, nostalgic flag holder. This was an easy upcycle. I spray-painted the top lid blue (it was a worn-out beige) and decorated the bottom with permanent vinyl lettering that I cut on my Cricut before bracing it to a wood board.

Photo of two vintage pan lids, blue on top, white with red trim on the bottom. U.S. Flag inserted into the two handles. Pan Lids repurposed to make a flag holder which is shown hanging on a porch post with blue sky in the background.
Patriotic Pan Lid Flag Holder

5. Fluted Pan & Corkscrew Caddy

This simple caddy can be used for utensils or as a catchall for crafting supplies or other small items. The hole on this fluted Jello pan was small, so I glued a wine cork to the center using E6000 and added a corkscrew for a handle.

Photo of an old fluted pan with a wood handled corkscrew attached to the top for a handle. Finished catchall has scissors and colorful thread. In the background is a wire crate with colorful fabrics.
Fluted Jello Pan and Corkscrew Caddy

6. Cookie Cutters Framed

I love cookie cutters, especially vintage ones with unique handles. I pick them up whenever I run across them at a yard sale or flea market, and they’re usually only a dollar or two. If you have these in your kitchen drawer, why not frame and display them?

Photo of six vintage cookie cutters with red and green handles in a red frame on a counter.
Framed Vintage Cookie Cutters

7. Cookie Cutters Succulent Magnets

Turn cookie cutters into beautiful succulent magnets! Make them for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or to give as a gift to someone special. Find the full Cookie Cutter succulent magnet tutorial here.

Two Heart Shaped Succulent Magnets on metallic background

8. Gingerbread Cookie Cutter Candle Holder

These vintage gingerbread cookie cutters are just like the ones my mom and I used when I was a kid. I found these along the way, at antique stores. You’ll need about five vintage ones. String ribbon through the handles and tie them around a glass vase.

Photo of a tall glass container with five gingerbread man cookie cutters tied around it with a red and white ribbon and a candle in the center.
Cookie-Cutter Candle Holder

9. Cookie-Cutter Topped Mason Jars

Top mason jars with vintage cookie cutters and fill with candy to give as gifts or use them as pretty kitchen storage. Find more glass jar craft ideas here.

Photo of three large mason jars filled with pink and red candy. The top of the jar lids has a different vintage, red handled cookie cutter on it as an lid accent.
Mason Jars topped with Vintage Cookie Cutters

10. Salt Shaker Tassels

Turn a salt and pepper shake lid into a beautiful scrappy tassel. You can use ripped fabric or ribbon. Just tie it together at the top and secure it to the bottom of your shaker lid.

Close up of the metal top to an ordinary salt shake turned into a tassel. The tassel shows scrap fabric ripped into ribbon width in patterned red, blue and white fabrics knotted then secured underneath the metal salt shaker lid.
Salt Shaker Tassels

11. Muffin Tin Easter Egg Tray

Upcycle an old muffin pan with a little paint to use as a holder to display Easter eggs! Just give your old pan a scrappy coat of chalk paint and decorate.

Old muffin tin painted with light blue chalk paint and shown holding Easter eggs with Easter grass in each cup.
Muffin Pan Easter Egg Holder

12. Muffin Tin Wall Wreath

Or, turn that old muffin tin into a beautiful wreath. This is the same pan shown above. After my kids outgrew dying eggs, I reupcycled this pan by adding green velvet ribbon and a wreath made out of greenery garland.

Vertical feature photo of a muffin tin spring wreath with a porcelain birdhouse ornament hanging in the center.

13. Muffin Tin Key Rack

Turn a vintage muffin tin into a decorative key holder! These eight-cup tins are a little hard to find, but if you snag one, add a few hooks and turn it into a farmhouse-chic key rack.

Photo of a DIY key rack made from a vintage 8-cup muffin tin. The word K E Y S is in gold above with four gold hooks below.
Muffin Tin Key Hook

14. DIY Bird Feeders

Old pans, cups, strainers, and utensils can be repurposed to make bird feeder. Just leave a place for your feathered friends to sit and enjoy.

Shown is a vintage enamel pan in red and white hanging by it's handle from a tree with a large blue enamel cup with the handle facing out glued to the inside rim of the pan, filled with bird seed. The handle faces out on the cup for birds to perch on.

15. DIY Tiered Trays

Turn dishes, trays, and bake pans into beautiful and functional tiered tray storage. Find more DIY tiered tray ideas here.

Bundt Pan Tiered Tray - feature image in craft room filled with neutral spools of thread, twine and ribbon.
Tiered tray Made from a Fluted Pan and Wood Rolling Pin

16. Silverware Jewelry Organizer

Make this beautiful jewelry organizer from old silverware and a thrift store picture frame! Heat silverware in hot water and bend it around a curved object to make hooks. Drill holes in each and use small screws to attach them to a picture frame.

Photo of repurposed spoons and butter knives mounted to a ornate thrift store picture frame as a hanging jewelry organizer.
Vintage Silverware Hooks to Organize Jewelry

17. Spoon Handle Recipe Box

Decorate an unfinished wood box or spruce up an existing recipe box by adding a decorative spoon handle. Bend a spoon into an arch and drill two holes into it. Use small screws to secure it to the lid.

Photo of a finished upcycled recipe box. Box is painted antique teal with word "recipe" on the front with a vintage soup spoon used as a handle on the top. Recipe box in the center on a counter with bowls and cooking items.
Soup Spoon Handled Update to a Recipe Box

18. Glass Canister Mini Fairy Garden

Oversized glass canisters are great for pantry staples, but if you have an extra one, try this fairy garden idea filled with beachy miniatures. Find more inspiring fairy garden ideas here.

Glass Canister Fairy Garden

19. Teacup Gifts

Fill a pretty tea cup with chocolates and your favorite tea bags to give as a thoughtful gift. Wrap it in clear plastic and tie with ribbon to give as a pick-me-up or sunshine gift.

Photo of a pink floral tea cup lined with pink tissue paper and filled with pink floral wrapped chocolates and tea bags. Photo shows tea cup upcycled to give as a gift to add to a sunshine basket or any other occasion.
Tea Cup Gift

20. Teacup Sconce

Make a teacup chandelier or wall sconce by gluing pretty tea cups to your fixture using E6000 and adding flameless tealight candles.

Photo of an old wall candle holder upcycled into a pretty Tea Cup Sconce. Two teacups on a wall candlestick holder that has been painted pale pink and had crystal drops hanging from it.
Teacup Wall Sconce

21. Teacup Gnome

Make a teacup gnome! I saw this cute gnome at the antique store, and I had to snap a picture! This is a perfect idea for mismatched cups and saucers.

Tea Cup Gnome shown with a tea cup for a hat and saucer for base. Gray beard with bead nose and a small grouping of red flowers in front.
Tea Cup and Saucer Gnome

22. Pretty Soap Dispenser

Turn a vintage syrup dispenser into a pretty soap dispenser. I gave this one a fresh coat of sea glass spray paint and used my Cricut Maker to make a stencil for the word ‘wash’. This dispenser is so cute, and it brings a little vintage vibe with it.

Photo of an upcycle syrup dispenser used as a soap dispenser. Painted with seaglass aqua paint with the word 'Wash' on the side.
Soap dispenser

23. Pretty Daisy Sifter

Upcycle an old sifter to make a beautiful decor piece. Strainers, sifters, or mesh pan covers will work for this DIY. I found this old sifter at the antique store, but you can purchase new ones here on Amazon or find vintage ones here on Etsy.

To make the appliqué, I started by drawing a daisy design onto the strainer with chalk. Then I used yarn and a wide-eyed needle to stitch the design.

Photo of a daisy image being threaded with yarn onto an antique round strainer.
Daisy strainer

24. Old Strainer Turned Holiday Wall Decoration

Give an old masher or strainer a holiday touch!

Photo of a vintage strainer with a red handle turned into a holiday wall decor with poinsettia floral picks, red berries, pinecone and a small red bird sitting above.
Old strainer turned holiday wall decoration

25. Pastry Cutter Organizer

Turn old pastry cutters into an organizer or recipe card holder. To make one, drill pilot holes into a small wood tray and secure the pastry cutter to the sides with wood screws or glue.

Photo of a finished upcycle project using three pastry cutters. Pastry cutters are upside down in a wood tray painted kelly green with a white feather stenciled on the front. This is an organizer for recipes, cards and notes.
Pastry Cutter Organizer

26. Jello Pan Wreath

Upcycle a copper jello mold or fluted pan into a beautiful wreath. Paint your pan if you like, then hot glue flowers on and add ribbon to hang!

Photo of a wreath made made from an ornate jello tin. Tin filled with yellow gerber daisies and orange daisies as accents hanging by a wide orange and white wire ribbon.
Fluted Pan Wreath

27. Jello Mold Pumpkins

Copper jello molds come in many shapes. If you have a matching pair, why not turn them into a fall pumpkin decoration? You can find these beautiful molds at antique stores, flea markets, and online. Here are a few I found on Etsy—Copper Jello Molds.

Photo of two pumpkins made from four copper jello tins on a wood table. pumkins are decorated with fall faux leaves and a wine cork for a stem.

28. Plastic Tumblers Silverware Caddy

This versatile caddy works well for dinner parties or as a caddy on the picnic table. Find the full DIY Silverware Caddy tutorial here.

Closeup of a silverware caddy made from faceted plastic cups on a counter.
DIY Silverware Caddy made with Plastic Tumblers

29. Mosaic Tray

Give broken plates new life by repurposing them into a beautiful tray. See the step-by-step mosaic tray tutorial here.

Photo taken overhead of finished blue and white Mosaic Picture Frame Tray shown on a glass table with a succulent and two candles on the left-hand corner of the tray.
Ceramic Plate Mosaic to make a Decorative Tray

30. Broken China Jewelry Pendants

Or, make keepsake pendants for yourself or to give as gifts! Find the full china plate pendants tutorial here.

Two pendant made from the same rose pattern broken China Plate. One is larger on a black silk cord and the other is diamond shaped on a string of fresh water pearls.
China Plate Pendant Jewelry

31. Butterfly Whisk

Upcycle a wire whisk into butterfly art for your garden. To make one, snip one of the whisk loops in the center with wire cutters and curl the ends with needle-nose pliers to make the antennae. Next, string 28-gauge stainless steel wire (from the hardware store or link to it here on Amazon) and wrap the whisk with colorful beads.

Above picture shows how a finished butterfly made out of a whisk with beads strung across in blue and shades of red. Bottom picture shows a wire whisk.
Butterfly Wisk

32. Spice Rack Greenery Station

Who says spice racks are just for spices? Turn your old spice rack into a propagation station. Find more propagation station ideas here.

A vintage spice rack from the thrift store painted aqua blue and holds six vintage spice jars with plant cuttings hanging on a wall. The spice rack has been updated with brass pull on the two drawers and a pretty key like embellishment at the top.
Plant Propagation Spice Rack

33. Cheese Grater Windchime

Repurpose an old cheese grater into a beautiful windchime. I used a copper pipe from our garage and cut it down to size using a handheld pipe cutter, then I set the pieces in a vice so I could easily drill holes into them. For sparkle, I added a few crystals salvaged from an old chandelier.

Photo of finished wind chime with a cheese grater top and copper pipes and crystals for chimes. Hanging outside on a bright sunny day with a green field in the background.
Cheese Grater Wind Chime

34. DIY Garden Mushrooms

Gather a few old kitchen bowls and glass jars to make the whimsical garden mushrooms for the yard. Find the full DIY Garden Mushrooms tutorial here.

Three DIY mushrooms made with thrifted glassware and decorated with glass gems, lit up at night with solar lights.
DIY Garden Mushrooms

35. Flour Sifter Holiday Centerpiece

Turn an old flour sifter into a holiday centerpiece! Just place floral foam inside the sifter and add greenery. Decorate with vintage holiday cookie cutters and other decorative items.

Vintage tin flour sifter shown turned into a centerpiece with festive holiday greenery, pinecone pick, fabric wrapped candy cane, gingerbread man cookie cutter with a star cookie cutter hanging on the side.
Flour Sifter Holiday Centerpiece

36. Cutting Board Signs

If you have an old wood cutting board, don’t throw it out—stencil it to add a pop of color to your kitchen!

Two wood cutting boards from the thrift store given a quick sanding and a fresh update with acrylic paint and stencils. Shown is a tall wood cutting board with stenciled ferns and small white flowers. The second cutting board is wood with a wide ring wood handle and a Farmer's Market round stencil in white with a rooster in the center. Around both are the store bought stencils.
Decorative Stenciled Cutting Boards

37. Pan Lid Plant Hanger

Turn an old pan lid upside down and add a dollar store chain to make a hanging plant shelf.

Old glass skillet lid turned upside down and hung on a porch by three chains with a yellow pot of flowers sitting on it. This upcycled flower pot holder also features a humming bird bell accent hanging from the upside down handle.
Pan Lid Plant Hanger

38. Frying Pan Planter Upcycle

An old frying pan and mismatched lamp base were combined to create this one-of-a-kind planter. Finished with an aged patina, the transformation highlights how unrelated thrifted items can come together to make something new and useful.

Vertical image of my finished Frying Pan Planter Upcycle on a cement step, filled with flowers.
Star divider used has two hand drawn lines with a star in the center, used as a content break and signals new or different content below. This doodle style illustration is in a medium charcoal gray.

– MORE TO EXPLORE –

Thrift Store Upcycle Ideas + DIY Sign Ideas + Repurposed Yardstick Crafts

A closeup photo of a wooden wall curio showing just the painted drawers in a weathered aqua near a set of aqua sun faded book with a terracotta pot with a plant on it. On the shelf above the drawers is two tiny mugs in deep blue and red berry with tiny succulents.
Round man in the moon sign - Vintage style stenciled sign with a black cat singing, sitting on a knotty branch with pumkins below. The moon man face take up more than 3/4 of the round sign with the cat in the left corner. The colors are light gray for the moon, darker gray for the man face on the moon and black silhouette style for the cat scene. This fall sign was stenciled using cut stencil vinyl cut on a Cricut Maker 3.
Photo of a metal topped piece from a yardstick with three grommets and jewelry wire hanging from them with peach and amber beads and a tiny vintage skeleton key in the center in brass to match the vintage ruler piece. This closeup shows the beauty of found items, bits and pieces that can be turned from a craft left over to a beautiful statement pendant.
A closeup photo of a wooden wall curio showing just the painted drawers in a weathered aqua near a set of aqua sun faded book with a terracotta pot with a plant on it. On the shelf above the drawers is two tiny mugs in deep blue and red berry with tiny succulents.
Thrift Store Upcycle Ideas
Round man in the moon sign - Vintage style stenciled sign with a black cat singing, sitting on a knotty branch with pumkins below. The moon man face take up more than 3/4 of the round sign with the cat in the left corner. The colors are light gray for the moon, darker gray for the man face on the moon and black silhouette style for the cat scene. This fall sign was stenciled using cut stencil vinyl cut on a Cricut Maker 3.
DIY Sign Ideas
Photo of a metal topped piece from a yardstick with three grommets and jewelry wire hanging from them with peach and amber beads and a tiny vintage skeleton key in the center in brass to match the vintage ruler piece. This closeup shows the beauty of found items, bits and pieces that can be turned from a craft left over to a beautiful statement pendant.
Repurposed Yardstick Crafts

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Renee shaver June 27, 2023 Reply

    How did you attached cookie cutters to Mason jar lids.
    Thanks

    1. Dawn Stewart June 28, 2023 Reply

      Hi Renee! For the spade shaped cookie cutter I drilled two holes into the mason jar lid and used wire over the handle to attach it to the lid. For the round cookie cutters I drilled two holes (through the cookie cutter and the mason jar lids) and used long screws with a small hex screw bolt on the end.

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