Repurposing something is very satisfying and very rewarding. You give new meaning and new life to something old or broken and often the transformation is very clever and inspiring. Something quite interesting that you might not have thought of until now is that you can actually repurpose picture frames and sometimes in very unusual ways. If you’re curious or in need of inspiration, we have some projects that we’d like to share with you today.

One of the absolute easiest ideas is to make a picture frame key holder. All you have to do is take a frame without the glass, spray paint it and then screw in a few hooks into one of the inner edges. You can then put this up on a wall in your entryway or attach it to a cabinet. You can customize this key holder with the paint color of your choice if you want it to match the surrounding decor or to stand out.

Another really cool idea is to repurpose picture frames in order to make a unique candle holder. For this particular project you need three frames in total. First you remove the glass and you spray paint the frames. Then you put dabs of glue into the corners and you reattach the glass on all three. You also put bits of hot glue on the inner edges of the frames and then you glue them together vertically, as shown in the video. Trace the bottom onto a piece of paper, cut it out and glue it on. You can also use cardboard. Then you can fill this with anything you want.

An extra large picture frame can be repurposed into a pretty cool dry erase calendar which you can display in your home office or anywhere else you see fit. You can leave the frame as it is or you can paint it if you want it to better match your decor. What you’ll be focusing on throughout this project is actually the glass. You need to apply white vinyl strips and letters to make the grid and once that’s done you can fill each day/ square with a paint chip (which you apply to the back of the glass. That’s pretty much it. You can now write on the glass to make notes and wipe it clean when the month is over. Check out pinsandpetals if you need more details.

A large picture frame can also be turned into a lovely tray and the transformation would be pretty simple. The first step is to spray paint the frame. Then you take some wrapping paper and you glue it into the glass. When the paint and the glue are dry, you reassemble the frame and at the very end you add two handles in order to actually turn this into a functional tray. You can check out sweethings to find out more about this project.

A picture frame is also a very important part of this cool project from prodigalpieces. This shows how you can use the frame to decorate a shadow box and to add a bit of visual interest to it. First things first: the shadow box. You can quite easily make it from scratch using a few pieces of wood. You can stain them or paint them, depending on your preference. When this is done, you simply attach the frame to the shadow box, sort of like a front cover. Of course, the picture frame can be painted and customized as well.

Empty frames can be useful too. A really interesting way in which you can use them is to make a unique and cool-looking towel holder. It would be part of an abstract gallery of empty frames just so it doesn’t look out of place. You can mix and match different frames of different shapes and sizes, a bit like you see here, in this project featured on robolady.

Another idea is to incorporate picture frames into DIY furniture projects. It definitely sounds unusual and that’s what makes this such an interesting idea. This right here is a little pedestal table made using repurposed items. The bottom section is actually a repurposed lamp base and the top is a picture frame. They’re painted to match and the top also has a nice pattern on it. You can find out more about this project on richmondthrifter.

Picture frames can also be used as decorative accents for shelves and cubbies. A nice idea is to have bookshelves designed to match the proportions of the frames. It’s an interesting way to spruce up an otherwise simple furniture piece and you can pick frames that match your design style. Check out changeofsceneries for more details and inspiration.

Similarly to how you would turn a picture frame into a tray, you can also make a cupcake stand using two repurposed frames. To connect them you can use candle sticks in the middle and you can go with any style you want. Add more details if needed and don’t forget to pick a nice color for your new stand. If you want to find out more details about this project you can head over to confessionsofaserialdiyer.

If you replace the glass on a picture frame with chicken wire, you can turn the frame into a message board. This could look nice next to your desk but you could also put it on display in the entryway or somewhere else, based on how your space is structured and decorated. Go with a detailed frame if you want your message board to also look cool. Go ahead and paint it and customize it as you see fit. For additional details you can check out confessionsofaserialdiyer.

It’s not just pictures that look nice inside frames. Something really cool that we came across recently is this living succulent art piece featured on coolcreativity. If you’re interesting in creating something similar you’ll be happy to know you only need a few simple supplies for this project: a wooden box which you can put together yourself, a wooden frame, chicken wire, soil and succulents.

Four picture frames can be turned into a lantern, a project similar to the candle holder one we mentioned earlier but with a different shape and style. The idea in this case comes from myrepurposedlife and that’s where you can find all the details about this project. You need to add a base and some scrap wood in the corners. The top section is quite detailed here and you can get creative with this part of the design based on the supplies that are available to you.

An old picture frame can also a nice little detail that you add to certain fixtures around your home. For example, you can add a decorative frame around a towel holder as a way to make it look a bit more eye-catching and to turn it into not just a functional accessory but also a decorative item. This quirky and inspiring idea comes from thriftyandchic.

Another cute thing you can do is add some nice picture frames to the bathroom which is a space that often lacks character. You can display framed signs and images but you can also decorate a shelving box using a large frame and turn it into a storage piece that also looks quirky and awesome. Check out iheartnaptime for more details and ideas.