I've always loved creating things from other people's trash.
Not necessarily trash such as milk jugs and packing peanuts, although that has happened - But more like items that people are planning to take to the Goodwill or broken pieces that people are trying to offload in their yard sales for $1. Growing up, my dad and granddad were always into thrifting/bargain hunting/picking, so naturally, I became rather fond of it all and begin doing it on my own as a sort of hobby.
Today's piece is one of my favorite pieces that I've made thus far. I stumbled across this beautiful 120mm missile crate at a giant junk sale. There were mounds upon mounds of junk in this guy's front yard, but way back in the corner I spotted this crate, you guessed it, full of junk. Since it was fully functional and in great shape, I asked the guy what he wanted for it and his almost instant response was, "$20 with everything in it". I wasn't interested in the crap inside, nor was I willing to pay $20, so I thanked him and started to walk away. Suddenly he spoke up, "well how much were you hoping to spend? Let's dance!". After taking a moment to think, I told him I was hoping more in the $5 range - after all, it's just an old crate. He wasn't willing at that price, so he responded with, "how about we meet at $10?". I was a bit stunned that he was willing to drop it $10 in that instance, but I could also tell that he wanted it gone - So being the obnoxious bargainer I am, I told him I would do $7 and he could keep the stuff inside...He fumbled around in the crate for a minute, pulled out a couple of hand saws and said, "fine, $7 it is, but you can keep all the other junk!".
Fine by me!;
Needless to say, I was a happy shopper that day.
Crates in this size and conditions with the markings visible can be sold to the right person for $25 or more, but of course, I had bigger plans. This needed to be more usable in every day life.
Later on, I came across those random pieces of steel in a free box and snatched them up to use as legs. I also happened to have a spare piece of glass at the house that turned out to be perfect for this piece.
Upon arriving back home, I got to work!
This was the simplest project ever - All I did was a bit of surface prep such as cleaning and light sanding, being careful to leave the words in tact. I then brushed on a coat of BLO (boiled linseed oil). Once dry, I waxed the entire outer surface, screwed on the legs and set the glass atop the crate. That's it! Super simple.
Amount invested: ~$9
Amount sold for: $200
BOOM! Easy money!
Be sure to check out the previous parts to this series - Part 1, 2
Alright guys, I hope you all enjoyed this original content! If you did, please feel free to upvote and follow! And as always, if you have questions or advice for me, please leave them in the comments.
Congrats! But I have to disagree with you : you can't say it was easy money, it required an open mind and a visionary eye to figure out the potential of this crate. 200 were not the value of the crate, it was yours! Beautiful work!
I guess that's true.
But it was still pretty easy! Haha ;)
Thanks so much, @adriatik!
I love how you are creating art out of old, used items! You are inspiring me to do more with my art. Well done!
Thanks, @itsallasong! :)
Nice bit of up-cycling there mate. :) and nice profit. :)
Thanks, man! Too bad it wasn't Alts, amirite? haha
You know it mate. You've probably earned more in crypto from this post than you did from selling on the crate. :)
It's true! Especially with the sbd pump!
Amount invested: ~$9
Amount sold for: $200
Almost spat out the imaginary water I was drinking when I read this last line.
Haha This was by far my favorite and easiest flip!
You're inspiring me to give this repurposing thing a shot :D
Do it!
Is the glass fastened? I've been wondering the same with the previous two projects.
Not fastened , but there are rubber bumpers underneath the glass to keep it from sliding.
Do you know of any adhesives that would work? I picture a some sort of yellowing glue that would look like crap. Something that dries transparent?
Seems like there would be something....hmmm.
The other option would be to drill holes in the glass and use nuts and bolts with those thicker runner washers on each side of the glass - drilling glass takes a bit more patience than I have yet to accquire, though, soo...
Holes would work, but then you have four bumps on the surface. Not the best for when your drunk friend puts his drink down.
Exaaactly!
Wow, what a great result! In my opinion there is no trash, no garbage, just things not in proper place. I'm also interested in furniture repairing. Once I found standing shelves at the trash can, and immediately took with me. It was so ugly that nobody needed it, but I saw the final result in my mind. Now this is in the bathroom and looks fine with that dark green color.
Agreed!
Oh how cool! I am glad to hear that others are doing this same thing.
lol
for $200 thats about 70+ times gain
i think you should be starred in bater kings the discovery channel show
I was pretty happy that day! :D
Barter Kings? I haven't heard of it. Maybe I'll check it out soon!
Sure
wow, a good post, a table that looks this unique ..! thank you for sharing some unique images. a great work of art 👍👏👏👏
Thanks, @simarhaban!
This is a beautiful piece, very well done and what a creative eye!!
Thanks, @noboxes!
I do fancy this table a lot! Its true, with the right creative mind, able to use your hands, you can turn all kinds of "trash" into cool stuff.
Hey thanks, @paw88!
I think you would go crazy in our warehouse. We buy and sell antiques and collectables as a business. We have done shabby chic furniture over the years...upcycling unwanted furniture. We sell alot of architectural items for repurposing and alot of industrial machine age items to Steempunkians. LOL! Love your ideas and creativity...a piece of art.
That sounds way cool! I love places like that. Where are you located?
Thanks @tesscooks4u!
We are located in Duncannon Pa. My husband has been buying/selling all his life. I quit nursing to help him with his business. We sell some online, Ebay - Picks4u but I have not been good at listing items.
Very cool! If I'm ever in the area, I'll look you up!
Wait...Picks for you? Do you sell on Amazon, also?
No, we don't sell on Amazon, just ebay and etsy. Its Picks4u and we also have bargainspickt4u on ebay. I gotta get busy and start listing again. I have been focused on my cooking. Take care and have a wonderful day.
Ah ok. I will take a look!
If you look on my post you will be able to see a couple posts I made for shabby chic furniture.
indeed to make the creation of waste materials in the recycle must have good skills. not easy for me to
A little creativity goes a long way! You don't need much. :)
You have vision when you see a piece of someone else's junk. You see possibilities. Beautifully done.
That, I do! Thanks, @cecicastor! :D
Great articles.
Our society is so obsessed with "throw away and replace" rather than "repurpose and reuse". It is a shame. I see a lot of good items being thrown out by neighbors that I simply don't have the room to bring in and repurpose.
That is something I plan on changing once we move to our land (7 acres in the country). By then I will have more time on my hands as I don't have to keep a 40+ hour a week job and can focus more on life and enjoying it.
I have been someone that worked with their hands most of their life and doing stuff that is more "white collar" is simply not for me. Repurposing other people's trash is a great way to turn a nice profit while keeping my hands busy and learning new skills (I am more of a metal works guy so wood is a new one for me).
Thanks for the inspiration here. Keep up the great articles, a lot of us live vicariously through them.
I knooooow! I have this same problem.
Working with my hands is something that I have always loved. I've never been the type to be confined to a cubicle..
Thanks for your incredible comment, @triverse! Good luck on the move!
That is one of my favorite pieces you've made!
Well thanks, @lifes-a-donut!
wow! great work what a turnover
Hey thanks, @doitvoluntarily! Truly appreciate you swingin' by! :D
Thanks for the nice post and useful contribution
Welcome!
That's awesome work. Interesting @rigaronib.
Thanks, @dragonking!
Thanks for sharing re-purposing and recycling - Part 3 post. It would be very creative one. I saw past both of parts. Absolutely you've great skills & effort for this.
Resteemed.
Thanks so much, @madushanka!
Beautiful work. I love old wood.
Thanks!
It's nice, well done
Thanks, @pardeepkumar!
Thanks!