I feel like I've seen this exact TV cart a hundred times at my neighborhood thrift store. I'm usually pretty good at spotting a diamond in the rough, but I never noticed the potential in a piece like this. It's like melancholy in cart form, or melancholy on wheels to be precise, which is why I love this DIY makeover. It turns a bummer into a cheerfully classic bedside table.
Old, cheaply-made TV or media carts are ubiquitous at thrift stores and they're usually incredibly cheap, because they're just, well, sad. However, by removing the wheels (a TV on wheels? Really? Was that ever a good idea?!) and replacing said wheels with wooden furniture feet, a fresh coat of primer and paint, changing out the door knobs and adding a bit of flair to the doors with decoupaged decorative paper, this cart is saved from the trash and born again as a bedside table. And a really lovely table at that.
I also like this type of project because I have a hard time parting with money for bedside tables, which have a pretty limited purpose. I now see these old carts as blank canvases, and I'm kind of excited about it. Maybe I'm late to the party on remaking old TV carts into usable tables, but I'm glad I'm here.
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• Check out more details about this makeover and other DIY projects at Belle Maison
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(Images: Belle Maison via Better Homes and Gardens)
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Oooohhh! SO pretty. I love that lamp too.
I actually really like this idea (I wasn't sure I would, at first). Kind of makes me want to buy one of those sad little carts...
Great up cycle.
Amazing transformation from really ugly to lovely.
Wow wee! Great job! Paper can be so hard to line up and you did it perfectly. Love that green basket, too~
I feel like there must be plenty old cheap ones as big TVs are getting replaced with flat panels. I have an old Ikea tv cart that I'm turning into a litter box hideaway. I bet you could make a great kitchen cart too. So many options instead of going into a landfill. Yay repurposing!!
very clever! I love seeing those cheap-o particle board furniture be up-cycled into something once again useful.
Wow. I would not have even thought twice about that cart - not for a second.
Years ago I thought each piece of furniture was made for a specific function so I bought accordingly. My bedside tables cost $75 each and that was the cheapest I found. I'm smarter now. Really great upcycle!
Amazing! Turning literal garbage into something very cute, indeed! I agree with another poster, I kinda want to buy one of these little junkers now!
I am always so amazed and impressed by people who see the potential in something like this, and then actually follow through to complete it with totally professional results.
Usually I buy something with some grand idea, then it doesn't turn out like I'd hoped or I never get around to it and it ends up back at the thrift store.
This is a really great Before & After.
Wow. Good job saving that sad little stand.
Good job! To make something that nice out of such an ugly cart...Wow!
That is simply AMAZING. Fantastic work!
wow - i think i'm the one that tossed that cart out!! amazing redo...
This is a great idea. Beautiful.
Amazing transformation! Taking a piece that would surely end up in a garbage dump after sitting in the thrift shop for awhile and making it practical and useful again. Kudos!
Wonderful! I had one of those which I dropped off at Goodwill not too long ago. Now I wish I kept it. But I think they're microwave stands, that's why they have wheels. Mine was at least.
my favorite before-after yet!!
Any tips for properly painting a piece like this? What kind of prep work do you do to something that is cheap veneer/sticker over particle board? I live in Mississippi and the "antique" stores near me are usally full of junky pieces like this that are not solid wood. Thanks!
"a TV on wheels? Really? Was that ever a good idea?!"
Yes. Why would you put a teevee on wheels when you can mount it indelibly on the wall like any normal person? Or, as a friend of mine recently said to me, "Once you mount your teevee on the wall, it feels like you've given up".
Opinions vary, of course.
Also, aside from this being a great makeover, that lamp is teh awesome!
I wish I saw this earlier. I threw one of those ugly carts out months ago *sigh
I think the TV used to be on wheels so all your furniture didn't have to face it all the time. You could just wheel the TV into place for a show or two, then stick it back in the corner when it wasn't on. It's not a bad concept really.
Amazing makeover!
On one hand, this does look amazing. On the other tho', it seems like a waste to spend so much time and effort on something that, under all the paint, is still a cheaply made and flimsy piece particle board. I'd rather save my DIY efforts for something that's well-made and will last.
SAVING THE PLANET-ONE SMALL UGLY PIECE OF CRAP OF FURNITURE AT A TIME.
WAY TO GO GIRL. THIS CAME OUT BEAUTIFUL. I TOO CAN NOW LOOK AT THESE AT THE CORNER THRIFT STORE AND SAY 'AH HA'!!
EVERYTHING ABOUT YOUR ROOM THAT I CAN VIEW LOOKS LOVELY. KUDOS MY DEAR, KUDOS.
wow! you have imagination and talent.
Sweet!
Very cute.
I loved my old TV stand on wheels, because I hated looking at a TV. I used to keep it in the closet. Works great if you only watch a movie every week or two. I would slide it out, watch, slide it back in again.
i like the lamp, too!
I love the idea of papering the doors. It makes changing out the hardware easier as it covers up extra holes.
Wow!
The before photo gives me flashbacks of my childhood. The 'rents didn't have AT.
Terrific! You did great!
This should definitely win the prize for MOST IMPROVED. So cute!
What?! Get OUT, that is so clever. It was hideous and now it's fabulous...great legs.
I wish I'd seen the potential in these carts before--that is really great. I never dare paint over particle board, afraid it'll come out looking worse than before. But this shows me differently...like SHERRIEAKIN, I'd be interested in tips for painting particle board.
Awesome transformation!
The TV stand on wheels made sense when we had those old heavy, boxy tube TVs.
To paint over really cheapo furniture with fake veneer, it helps to VERY lightly sand with a fine grade sandpaper. Sanding hard would just rip the cheap plastic veneer up.
When I've done it before, I also sprayed the piece with a primer specifically for plastic. Helps the paint adhere. No problems with flaking or bubbling after that. :) In my case I filled in holes and chips with wood filler, and that seemed to do fine too.
This is an awesome project, I love everything they did!
Love it!
That's awesome! I have this exact TV stand minus the doors. Think it had been my ex-boyfriend's mom's in the 80s? It's particleboard but it's really, really sturdy (weighs like twice what a comparably-sized IKEA item would) and I couldn't bring myself to get rid of it. It's my landing strip now, with shelves full of shoes and a nice basket on top for umbrellas and gloves. I've disguised its previous function pretty well, but now I really want to swap the legs out...
I never would have thought to do this! Such a clever idea! Looks fantastic!
Had to look at the "before" photo twice to make sure this was the right after - just too awesomely different. Very cool! Love seeing projects like this.
Fantastic transformation! Amazing that you could see the potential in that sad little cart.
And I wasn't going to BOTHER even looking further..but out of ho hum..I did..just now..wowwwwwwww..LOVE what did..and now I know I can purchase diff legs for 'redo's like this....and 'hey..it even looks 'mid century' ; )
Excellent. This is what upcycling REALLY is about, making a keeper from something that would otherwise end up in the landfill. Too many supposedly upcycling projects really just temporarily use trash to make one-time-use items that then become...trash. This, though, is inspiring!
So Sad to Genuinely Glad. Way to go.
Good job!
I can't believe you made that look good. That rocks.
Wow, that is genuinely impressive. My parents had that ugly thing when I was growing up, though they used it for a microwave cart and not a TV cart (as some others have mentioned was the case for them as well). I'm doubly impressed because I've made an attempt or two to paint furniture of a similar material/grade and had a heck of a time trying to get the paint to stick (roughly sanding the surface didn't help much, amazingly enough, and it kept bubbling up).
This is absolutely brilliant. It's one of the best Before & Afters because it took a lot of foresight to find great design in such a ubiquitously mundane item. So glad to not see that one person in the comments who "liked it better before". Great job!
Totally adorable! What a great redo!
Awesome way to keep junk out of the landfill. Love it!!
I do love before and after pics!
oh wow I think I have 2 similar looking office carts in the back of my shed, food for thought.
Really nice!
Fabulous! This is the kind of makeover that makes me delusional about my own abilities to makeover sidewalk junk. :-)
What Adriennella said...lol!
This is just too awesome!
wow i love this. when i moved into my apartment they had left this exact cart behind. i thought it was hideous so its currently hiding in my basement. this may just be my first spring project. I can always use more storage spaces. great post!!