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Before & After: Dial D-I-Y With Vintage Phone Bookend Project

Gregory Han
Gregory Han
A Los Angeles native, Gregory’s interests fall upon the relationship between design, nature, and technology. His resume includes art director, toy designer, and design writer. Co-author of Poketo's "Creative Spaces: People, Homes, and Studios to Inspire", you can find him regularly at Design Milk and the New York Times Wirecutter. Gregory lives with his wife Emily and their two cats—Eames and Eero—in Mt. Washington, California, curiously investigating the entomological and mycological.
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published Nov 4, 2013
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(Image credit: Erin and Stefanie of Oh So Lovely for A Beautiful Mess)

I might belong to the last generation who grew up using these touch tone style handset telephones (aka, the Trimline). I see them pop up regularly at thrift stores, yard sales, and on eBay. They’re commonly found stored away in garages, attics, and closets, disconnected and forgotten. But check out this DIY reuse project, which transforms them into a useful decorative accessory with just a little spray paint and drill worthy of display today…

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(Image credit: Erin and Stefanie of Oh So Lovely for A Beautiful Mess)

Erin and Stefanie of vintage boutique, Oh So Lovely, recently produced this project for A Beautiful Mess, illustrating how to convert these communication relics of the analog age into vintage-style decorative bookends. You’ll need a heavy duty drill and an appropriately rated drill bit to make holes through thin metal strips and into each handset bottom before attaching one to another into a bookend base.

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(Image credit: Erin and Stefanie of Oh So Lovely for A Beautiful Mess)

More photos, materials list, and complete step-by-step instructions over at A Beautiful Mess.

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Before & After
DIY
Furniture
Reuse & Recycle