Replacing your wardrobe doors? Here’s how you can upcycle your old ones!

Creative ideas for upcycling old wardrobe doors from DIY Homefit

If you are considering replacing your wardrobe doors this year, you may also be wondering what to do with your old doors. It seems a shame just to throw them out if they could be used for other purposes.

So in this article we look at five ideas for upcycling your old wardrobe doors, and adding some style and functionality to your home.

Shelving and storage

Your home can never have enough storage, but it’s even better if your storage solutions can be eye catching and unique. And there is a lot that you can do with old wardrobe doors to achieve that.

One option is to fix a door to the wall then add different storage elements onto it. For example, you could add hooks for coats, small shelves to display special items, or a whole array of baskets, hooks, hangers and magnets to hold a wide variety of kitchen items.

We also love the corner door shelf pictured below. This is from a website called Craftaholics Anonymous where there is a tutorial showing you how to transform an old door into a stunning corner shelf. The tutorial uses a standard internal door, but it could work even better with wardrobe doors which are often thinner to start with.

Create your own table

Another great use for old wardrobe doors is to create your own table. For a large coffee table you could simply use the door as the table top, attaching legs underneath. Then paint the door however you like to fit in with your colour scheme.

This concept could work equally well in a kitchen, for a large rustic-style kitchen table. Or if you have always wanted a kitchen island you could use a door as the countertop with kitchen cabinets underneath.

Build a daybed

A daybed is an ideal addition to a guest room. Similar to a sofa bed, a daybed can be used both as a seating area and a bed, with the sleep space forming the seating section of the bed. The design of a daybed can be very simple, with the key element being just a wooden frame underneath the mattress. This wooden frame could easily be made from one or more old wardrobe doors for a custom-built daybed!

A daybed is a practical choice for a small room, and could be the perfect way to upcycle your old wardrobe doors.

Do it with mirrors

If your old wardrobe doors also featured mirrors, there are many things that you can do to upcycle them. One of the easiest options is to repurpose your door as a freestanding mirror for either the bedroom, guest room, hallway or landing. 

As well as being useful in themselves, mirrors are also a wonderful way of brightening up different areas of your home as they pick up and reflect light around the room. They can also make a room look and feel much bigger than it actually is. 

So a clever positioning of mirrored wardrobe doors could transform an area of your home in an instant.

Garden Furniture

And when deciding how to upcycle your old wardrobe doors, don’t forget the garden! Some of the ideas we’ve already looked at – such as shelving and tables – would work equally well outside as in. For example, you could extend the shelving concept to make an outdoor bar : ideal for entertaining guests in the summer. 

Or if you are a keen gardener how about using your old wardrobe doors to make cold frames or vegetable trugs?

One idea we particularly love is this fabulous porch swing, from the website A Guy, A Girl and a Really Old House. The shabby chic paint effect, huge cushions, and the use of spindles under the armrests result in a unique but so comfortable piece of garden furniture.

We hope that this article has given you some helpful ideas about how you could upcycle your current wardrobe doors when it’s time to replace them. And if you need some inspiration for your new wardrobe doors, why not take a browse through our gallery of bedroom pictures, and start planning your new bedroom for 2024.

Remember to check back here soon for more home and lifestyle tips from DIY Homefit.