DIY Wall Shelves from an Old Medicine Cabinet

Do you love unique DIY home decor? Don’t throw away that old medicine cabinet– upcycle it into awesome DIY wall shelves!

My mom gave me an old medicine cabinet because she knows that I’m obsessed with DIY furniture projects. I loved all of the cabinet’s character, but the door had completely fallen off the hinges. Instead of throwing it away, I turned the base of the cabinet into awesome DIY wall shelves!

DIY Wall Shelves

Materials

– an old medicine cabinet

– lead paint swabs (Here’s why!)

– a rag

– a screwdriver

– water-based spray polyurethane

Directions

1. Before you even get started, test your medicine cabinet with lead paint swabs. In fact, I would suggest taking the lead paint swabs with you as you thrift, garage sale, or go to junk yards. You don’t want to take the risk of exposing your or your family to lead paint.

2. Clean the medicine cabinet with a wet rag. Mine had lots of dust, but it also had a lot of chipping paint. I tried to knock off all of the loose paint chips as best as I could.

3. Remove the front door of the medicine cabinet with a screwdriver. Lucky for me, my door fell off completely so I didn’t have to remove it.

4. After taking the pictures for this post, I decided that I would need to seal the entire piece with polyurethane to keep the paint from coming off even more. Apply according to package directions to seal your DIY wall shelves.

4. Accessorize it! I added a few books, picture frames (the “drum” art picture frame I made myself), and several knick knacks.

Now when you shop at thrift stores, garage sales, and even junk yards for one-of-a-kind DIY home decor, you can search for your own medicine cabinet to transform! Have you ever turned a “piece of junk” into a treasure for your home? If so, share your projects with us. We love hearing from you!

Update: Want to see what I did with the broken mirror part of the medicine cabinet? Check out how I upcycled it into an awesome magnetic board!