Upcycling is awesome
A 50’s wardrobe, with an attached chest of drawers, is vintage gem –practical, spacious but a little dull for a kids room. Before rushing off to Ikea and getting brain-fried with their instructions, consider upcycling this old faithful friend. Upcycling is the magic way of changing old or discarded materials into a stunningly beautiful work of art. It’s fun, it’s exciting, crazily creative, exceedingly ecological, terribly trendy, tremendously thrifty (unless you decide to gold-leaf the wardrobe) and awesomely artistic.
Upcycling awakens the creative genie in you, stimulates your grey cells and activates your imagination, paramount if you plan on becoming the queen or king of this speciality. To take this piece of furniture (or another one) to the next level, make sure it’s clean and dry before painting it. Choose a bright colour to instantly make it more cheerful.
You can also cover it with wallpaper remnants. Use normal wallpaper paste and apply it as usual.
Collages with old strip cartoons, kids’ books or magazine pictures will give the old lady a total makeover. Dilute some PVA school glue with the same amount of water and mix thoroughly. Apply it with a brush to individual collage elements. Then press the elements into place on the wardrobe. When your work is finished and dry, protect it with a varnish.
The bravest upcyclers might decide to paint a whole fresco. If they are old enough to hold a paint brush, ask the kids to help. The decoration on our wardrobe is a picture from the adventures of Tim Botté et Greta la grue (Tim in Boots and Greta the Crane), travelling with their friends, painted in acrylics. The only problem was that the recipient of this wardrobe loved painting it so much, that he refused to call it a day, always wanting to add new characters.
