Storage With Character: Vintage-Crate Shelves
Stash lotions, potions, shoes and curios in cleverly reinvented wood crates
I live in a loft in Brooklyn, a recent transplant to Greenpoint (love my neighborhood!). I work as a freelance writer, blogger, stylist, gilder, and crafter. I curate a daily personal lifestyle blog called the Haystack Needle (http://www.thehaystackneedleonline.com). I'm also one half of the shop Cabin 7 (http://www.shopcabin7.com) — a collection of gilded objects for the home. I started out in magazines, working in the home department of Real Simple magazine and later worked as the home editor of Redbook. I love to scout cool finds for the home — everything from an amazing loveseat to a green laundry detergent that really works. I'm a new mama to our baby girl, Juniper, who amazes me every day with her curiosity for life and big smiles.
I live in a loft in Brooklyn, a recent transplant to Greenpoint (love my... More »
It's amazing to think how packaging has changed over the years. We drink our milk from cartons and (hopefully) recycle endless numbers of plastic soda bottles. But back in the day, glass bottles and wood crates packaged up milk, soda and more. These crates have hung around for decades, and they're now considered vintage treasures for decorating with an industrial edge. I love the idea of repurposing vintage crates as shelves. Reusing something in a new way is the ultimate form of recycling. Here are a bunch of ways to put those wood crates to good use.
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| Small spaces: Shops have to make smart use of every inch of space to display their goods. I love this clever display at Caribou Baby in Brooklyn. The shallow wood crates are the perfect shape and size to display their apothecary selection of products. |
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Nested together: The owners of Caribou Baby found their vintage crates at Brooklyn local source Kings County Salvage.
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Apothecary display: If you're lacking a medicine cabinet, you could use a couple of wood crates as wall shelving to house your collection of lotions and potions. I love the way pots of cream are stored in the slotted soda crate at Caribou Baby.
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The great grid: If you can score an entire lot of matching vintage crates, create a wall grid with them for one eye-catching storage piece. I love the idea of storing your shoes in these wood crates — the solution would look neat in a mudroom. UK shop Bailey Home & Garden sells these vintage crates, but they're easy enough to find stateside. Etsy is a great online source for hunting down vintage crates.
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Kitschy display: Many vintage crates come branded with a logo that definitely adds to the kitsch appeal. Fasten one crate to the wall as an instant display case for your collection of glass bottles, trinkets, vintage postcards — you name it.
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Modern minimalist: Wait, did I say modern? Yes, we are talking vintage crates, and those are traditional terracotta pots. But if you take a vintage crate and simply add a few plants with one eclectic object you love, the spare style feels very contemporary-cool.
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Jewelry keeper: Many of these vintage crates come with a grid of wood slats inside to keep the glass bottles from breaking. Turn the crate on its side and you instantly have little shelves within the box. Add a couple cup hooks and your imagination, and you'll create a pretty display piece for all your jewelry — from bangles to necklaces.
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Window box: In my last apartment, I had a big sunlit windowsill. So I decided to turn my vintage soda crate into an instant window box. I loved the way the plants looked peeking out of the crate.
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Open bar: A worn vintage crate makes the perfect container for storing your favorite liquors. You'll instantly create the feel of an old speakeasy with a rustic wood crate keeping your bottles at attention.
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Build a bookcase: If you're a renter and want to minimize the holes you put in your walls, you can create freestanding shelving with wood crates of the sturdy and boxy variety like these vintage crates with metal edges.
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Unexpected colors: You'll sometimes find vintage wood crates (often old soda crates) in a different color. These vintage Seven-Up crates are one of my favorite examples — the red typography on white looks rad.
More: How to Make a Rolling Storage Crate
More: How to Make a Rolling Storage Crate
Comments
eleandmac Repurposing, I love it!
20 months ago · Like
nassaumary Sadly, there are no pics of how people have used them in their homes. The first picture has inspired me to swap out upper cabinets in my unfitted kitchen!
20 months ago · Like
Jen Jafarzadeh L'Italien nassaumary: Actually the window box idea is straight from my apartment. It's true that most of the photos are from shop sites (to help people looking to buy crates for themselves), but I think the crates in these photos are propped and styled in ways that people would use at home.
20 months ago · Like
Ideabook published on Oct. 8, 2011.
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