Or it costs almost nothing to just move your stuff around.
I’m an avid trash-to-treasure kind of gal. Whether I’m searching through thrift shops, hunting yard sales, or cruising my neighborhood to see what people have kicked to the curb (yes, I am that person!), I keep a very open mind. My ultimate mission is to uncover gems that can either serve their original purpose or be transformed into something entirely new.
This approach has turned me into a bit of a collector of weird and wacky, but I’m not just hoarding stuff for the sake of it. Every item I gather is a potential puzzle piece waiting to be repurposed into something extraordinary, displayed as a warm memory, or stored until its purpose is revealed. Last weekend, one of those creative reuse opportunities finally presented itself.
Let me give you some background regarding our rental house. Built in the 1980s it is less known for its storage space and more known for the lack of care the landlord puts into it. As in past rental houses we knew we could add storage and functionality with a bit of ingenuity. Seven years ago when we moved in, we embarked on a mission to transform the eat-in dining area into a functional place instead of a vertical space for housing stuff. We installed a row of off-the-shelf cabinets to add storage space to our miniscule kitchen and added some open shelving above, envisioning a space that would be practical. Beauty and style were never a factor back then. Fast forward to the present, and it’s safe to say our vision got a bit… well… cluttered. The shelves were overflowing, and if you looked closely, you’d spot the telltale bow on the bottom left shelf—a clear sign that we’d overindulged in the “stuff” department.
Last weekend, it was time for a change. The wine fridge had become a relic of the past, used to hide things I didn’t want on the counter. I didn’t even remember how to adjust the temperature anymore. It had its day, and that day passed.
When one of the open shelves needed replacement, a trip to the hardware store revealed a frustrating truth: the exact size was nowhere to be found. The whole setup had devolved into a mess, begging for a redo. It was time to give our much-loved space a new lease on life!
I enlisted the help of a couple of trusty sidekicks, and together we embarked on an exercise to shake things up. First on the chopping block was the wine fridge – and let’s just say it was a good thing we did, because the horror show behind it was not for the faint of heart!
In its place, I rescued a sad little shelving unit from the entryway. It was one of those super-cheap particleboard deals with a cardboard back, the kind you buy when you’re either broke or not ready to commit to nice furniture. (Short tangent: I’m rarely ready to commit to nice furniture. My style can best be described a “early marriage” or “trashy chic. A friend once said that I was eccentric. I told her that I was eclectic, but I was striving for eccentric.) But I had a plan to give that poor shelving unit a new lease on life. I lugged in my box of mystery paint. I purchase small sample pots of paint from the return rack at Lowes every month or so, they are a whopping $2 steal! It turns out that people pay $7 for paint samples, slap them on the wall, decide they hate them, and then return them. I’ve learned to sweep in on Tuesdays to buy up whatever is on the rack when the Monday returns start rolling in. I don’t even bother checking the color. Color I can change, the price can’t be.
And boy, did last weekend’s project hit the jackpot with that mystery paint! We sorted through my Box O’Paint to find this fabulous red color. It was just what this little shelving unit was begging for.
Next up was the backsplash. My late husband and I spent four decades globetrotting, or, in our case, America-trotting, mostly tent camping or glamping our way around the United States, leaving no stone unturned—or, in our case, no tile unpurchased. National Park selling tiles? Snapped it up! Cities, states, regions, parks, you name it, if they were selling tiles we were buying. Relationship Goals!
Fast-forward to the present day, and now I have a sea of ceramic memories. Each tile is a remembrance of our time together. They are a story of our travels. The weekend mission? Create a backsplash that is part scrapbook, part treasure map, and 100% conversation starter. It is a blend of nostalgia, creativity, and practicality. We created an unconventional backsplash that would make even the most seasoned interior designer scratch their head, rub their chin, and say, “Well, I’ll be tiled!”
How does one choose a color scheme for such a varied and colorful collection? I looked no further than my trusty Costco canister set. Why a canister set, you may ask? Because, like my tiles, they are varied and colorful. Just like me.
Now, how to get them on the wall, temporally? How does a renter, who may or may not live in a place long term stick a tile to a wall? Why, Dollar Store double-stick foam tape, of course. Nothing says cheap yet classy like sticking memories to the wall with something that costs less than a cup of coffee. This backsplash screams, “We’ve been almost everywhere” and whispers, “I’m incredibly thrifty.” What is the total cost of wall mounting a bit our life story? A whopping $2.72.
The open shelving tells its own story, each item quietly tells stories of our adventures – ours and my mom’s. From the hand-carved wooden dough bowl to the lovely Murano glass vase, the wine glass filled with antique marbles, the Gauti-inspird cordial glasses that bring a hint of whimsy, and the carved figurines from Africa that remind us of far-off lands, the shelf is a canvas of memories. The top shelf holds plants propagated from other plants, expressing that life is about growing and discovering. Paired with the Zen paintings I created years ago, the entire display reflects who we were as a couple and who I am today.
PS. I’ve still have to paint the toe kick. I’m debating over white to match the cabinets or mix up some matching red paint from my hoard of $2 paint. We used all of this color.
who needs fancy home improvement shows when you can cruise around your house, gathering memories to display? Sometimes, the best design comes from what you already have in hand.