10 Vintage Crafts to Make and Sell

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Square feature photo showing snippet photos of upcycle crafts in progress of being made. There are wine corks to make garland, cutting boards with stencils, spindle candlestick holders and vintage dishes and bowls.

Beautiful and affordable vintage crafts to make and sell in your online shop, at pop-up markets, craft shows, or vintage booth.

Below are ten make-to-sell crafts using a combination of old and new items. These are ideas for inexpensive handmade items with a vintage vibe that have sold well in my antique store booth.

Your buyers and market may differ but I hope these ideas inspire you to create a few handmade, beautiful items to sell for a profit!

1. Mason Jar Crafts

Mason jars come in many sizes and can be bought in bulk at most local stores. Decorate a few to make pretty storage containers to sell.

Here I used sea glass spray paint and aqua knobs for a beach feel. For a farmhouse vibe, try chalk paint!

Vertical feature image of mason jars painted with sea glass spray paint in aqua and sea foam green. They are topped with a decorative knobs in gray and aqua that look like sea urchins. There are six jars. Five in a metal vintage crate and one in the foreground in aqua blue.

2. Tart Tin Magnets

Pick up a few fluted tart tins to make magnets or ornaments!

You can purchase new tart tin in bulk like these on Amazon. Check antique stores or online stores like Etsy or eBay to find unique vintage molds!

Closeup up photo holding a round fluted silver tart tin filled with a spiral of spring boxwood greenery and a small yellow bird placed in the center to finish this beautiful spring magnet.

3. Yardsticks Crafts

Vintage wood yardsticks have a warm, rustic charm, and I love using them in my projects.

I pick them up at antique stores. They’re usually just a few dollars but if you don’t have antique stores near you, you can buy new ones at the hardware store and add a coat of stain for a similar effect.

Below is a thrift store frame updated by gluing rulers to the back and ruler box magnets for the holidays.

Photo of a square wide wood frame lined with vintage yardsticks. This rustic frame frame had a boxwood greenery wreath in the center and in the center of the wreath hangs a small porcelain light spring green birdhouse ornament.

Link to the tutorial to make these beautiful ruler box magnets here –> How to Make Ruler Box Magnets.

Closeup photo of a holiday magnet made from nailing together pieces of a vintage yardstick and adding holiday miniatures to the inside. This one has a small red lantern with a bow and two small bottle brush trees.
Available in my shop. Four digital craft files. Each shown in black with a vintage Paris-inspired label design. These graphics also come with three French striped ticking designs that work with the graphics. Design 1: Rue Saint-Rustique, Design 2: Rue Marcibel No. 14 Paris, Design 3: Boutique Parisienne 119, Design 4: Magasin De Fleurs, Estd. 1828. Available for purchase in my shop Craftidly Designs on Etsy.

French Label Bundle
Instant download - SVG cut files and PNG files for paper crafts, stenciling projects, and more! 

Shop: French Label Craft Bundle

4. Scrap Wood Signs

Comb your shed or garage for old 2x4s to make these fun stackable signs. Download the free SVG cut files to make them for different holidays.

Get the full tutorial with free SVG art file here –> DIY Farmhouse Wood Signs Made from 2 x 4’s – Free SVG Files.

Two finished wood block signs shown with EST. 1776 & AMERICA on them with two small american flags in the background.

5. Tiered Trays

Mismatched china, vintage tins, silver-plated trays, and other thrift store finds can be turned into beautiful and useful tiered trays!

Get more tiered tray inspiration here –> 6 Unique DIY Tiered Trays Made With Flea Market Finds.

Teacup Tiered Tray finished with a succulent in the teacup with jewelry on the tiers.

6. Decorative Cutting Boards

Old wood cutting boards have great character and can easily be transformed into pretty kitchen decor! I find them quite often at garage sales and thrift stores. These have been upcycled using stencils, acrylic paint, and a coat of polyurethane (optional).

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.

7. Wine Cork Crafts

Ask your family and friends to save up wine corks for you to make vintage-style crafts to sell.

Get more easy wine cork craft ideas here–> 12 Easy Must-Try Wine Cork Crafts.

Overhead photo of eight handmade wine glass charms. Each made with wine cork slices. Here I used the tops of wine corks that had the date or other symbol already stamped on the top of the cork. Shown is a cork with grapes, punning sheers, the letter R, a crown, a rabbit and the dates 2016 and 2018. Each is on a hoop earring finding with brass and amber beads for additional decoration. All of the cork wine glass charms are on a white background with two around the base of a long stem clear wine glass.

8. Flour Sack Towels

Hand stencil flour sack towels (often called tea towels) to sell.

Below are towels that I made using a rose pattern stencil. I cut this stencil with my Cricut Maker, but you can use any stencil you like.

For more details on this project, check out the full tutorials here –> Hand-Painted Tea Towels DIY – Free SVG Stencil Art.

Photo of three finished hand-painted tea towels with pink shades of roses hanging on a oven range handle.

9. Upcycled Furniture

In my antique store booth, small furniture pieces sell very well. I find a lot of side tables and shelves at garage sales and thrift stores but I’m always on the lookout for freebies!

For inspiration and ideas, check out some of my most recent furniture flips here –> 14 Clever Repurposed Furniture & Small Furniture Refresh Ideas.

Photo of a mid-century modern side table with storage underneath for magazines and spindle legs painted with a light gray chalk paint and three white racing stripes down the center. In a room with a red director's chair and a stack of books with a puzzle cube on top.

10. Salvaged Goods

Some salvage pieces from old homes and buildings like vintage corbels, and stained glass windows appeal to shoppers as is. However, other items like old windows, spindles, and decorative wood pieces may be better suited for upcycling projects. Below are a few ideas…

Keep an eye out for free items like broken furniture with turned legs or spindles on the side of the road. Thrift stores like ReStore are also great places to find salvage. They often have a bin of old wood posts and random decorative bits.

Old bed posts turned into beautiful candle holders.

Shown are three chippy white taper candle holders made from bed posts. In the front is a dark wood carved with vertical post top turned upside down to make a tealight holder.

Chunky baluster made into a rustic Christmas Tree base.

Shown is a chunky wood baluster that has been drilled to hold a 4 foot tall Christmas Tree. This is a wood salvage piece found at a yard sale and upcycled.
Vertical feature photo showing snippet photos of upcycle crafts in progress of being made. There are wine corks to make garland, cutting boards with stencils, spindle candlestick holders, hand painted rose tea towels and vintage dishes and bowls. Pinnable image to save to your Pinterest craft boards to come back to this post later!

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Horizontal closeup photo of four finished vintage clipboard frames with skeleton clips in dark brown with black and white urban architectural elements like stairs and building exterior clipped to them.

Learn how to make vintage-style clipboards!

Read More: How to Make Vintage-Style Clipboards

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