Thrift Flip Idea: Goodwill Wall Shelf

finding the right piece at the thrift store

When I am out thrifting, I try to keep an open mind. You never know what you might come across while at your local thrift shop. Most thrift stores get new inventory each day due to donations people make.

One isle I love to look through is the wood decor section. Goodwill often has all of the wooden pieces in it’s own section. That’s where I found this cute wood wall shelf for only $2.99!

You can shop for thrifted finds while only spending a few dollars. Frequent your local thrift stores throughout the month. Join the trend and find some great deals!

The following post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click and then buy something, I will make a small commission at no additional cost to you! Thank you for supporting my blog. full disclosure here.

This post is sponsored by Dixie Belle. All opinions are my own!

supplies

Here are the simple supplies I used to upcycle this ordinary wooden wall shelf into vintage inspired home decor.

• Umber Silk Chalk Mineral Paint
• Wood U Bend Decorative Trim
• E6000 glue
• hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Rub n Buff in Grecian Gold and Autumn Gold mix
• synthetic paintbrush
• Scrubby Soap for clean up
• thrift store wooden wall shelf

step by step tutorial

If you are a thrift flipper, then you might not need the step by step instructions. It’s always good to see how others complete their diy thrift flips! Our own creativity can be stirred as we see the projects others are working on!

prepping the piece for painting

The first step I took in this thrift store makeover was to clean the wooden shelf. I used a damp micro fiber cloth and wiped away the grime that accumulates on home decor pieces.

Next I gave it a quick scuff sanding with a fine grit sanding pad. The paint on this piece wasn’t shiny so I knew the paint would adhere well. The light sanding just insures the paint will stick!

Then I wiped off the little bit of sanding dust to create a dust free surface for paint.

adding decorative touches

This wood wall shelf is probably from the 90s. The lines were similar to what I remember when I was decorating our home back then!

I wanted to add an ornate detail to the front edge of the shelf so I grabbed some Wood U Bend decorative trim I had leftover from an old window I transformed into wall decor for our front porch.

attach ornate trim

Wood U Bend is a fun product to work with. It’s made from wood and can be formed to different shapes, even around corners!

The product needs heat to make it bendable so I grabbed my hair dryer! Once the decorative trim is softened from the heat, I laid it on the table to flatten it out. Then I cut the section to fit the front of the shelf with about 1/4″ extra on each end.

Then I cut sections for the sides. The extension on the front will hide the cut edge on the side pieces. Once both sides and the front were glued on, I cut off the excess.

Wood U Bend can be cut with a utility knife or Xacto knife. You can even use scissors like I did! It’s easy to attach to the shelf. I used E6000 glue with dots of hot glue every few inches on the surfaces.

E6000 glue takes several hours to dry and cure and the hot glue holds the trim in place during that time. You could also use painters tape to hold the trim in place while it dries and cures.

paint the shelf

Next up, let’s paint the shelf! I love to hold a paintbrush and create a whole new look for outdated home decor! I waited til the next day to paint the shelf.

Two coats of Umber Silk All in One Mineral paint was all it took to create a gorgeous rich chocolate brown to this shelf. I like to use a quality paintbrush for a smooth finish. This is a gorgeous rich brown color that I also used on a stool for my craft room.

BTW, Silk All in One paint does not need to be sealed making this step so easy!

apply Rub n Buff

Once both coats of paint were completely dry, I added another decorative element to this ornate wall shelf. To inhance the detailsl on the decorative trim, I applied Rub-n-Buff in a mixture of two colors: Grecian Gold and Autumn Gold.

Mixing two colors of Rub n Buff is a great to use up colors that aren’t your favorite. You can create a new color by mixing and in doing this, you don’t waste the whole tube of Rub n Buff just because you don’t like the color!

I used the side of a small artists brush and lightly brushed over the details on the trim. I added it slowly until I had the look I wanted.

Rub n Buff does not need to be sealed so once the gold color is on, the project is complete!

clean the paintbrushes

Let’s clean the paintbrush and the small artists brushes. Scrubby Soap is a citrus based soap with a built in scrubber made to clean paint brushes. I also discoved it will clean brushes I used for Rub n Buff!

Scrubby soap can also be used to clean your hands without harmful chemicals.

Simply get the brushes and the soap wet, rub the brushes over the soap, and let the Scrubby Soap scrubber do the work! Rinse the brush clean, wrap it in a paper towel and allow it to dry with the bristles slanted downward.

attaching the shelf to the wall

The original brackets for hanging the shelf were in great shape. All I needed to do was to add molly fixutre to the wall and hook the shelf into the mollys.

Check the back of your shelf and hang appropriately. If you are not sure how to hang your specific shelf, take it into your local hardware store and they will show you what kind of hardware to use!

YouTube video

I have a video showing you how I gave this Goodwill wall shelf an update. The video includes other projects that I am sure you will enjoy watching!

final thoughts and potential variations

Thrift shopping is so much fun and it’s also a great way to decorate your home on a budget. Second hand shops have unique home decor items that you can’t find in the big box stores.

Plus shopping at these stores help to save the landfills on our planet. We live in such a throw-away culture so I celebrate purchasing old items and upcycling them into useful pieces for our homes.

You might even sell the items that you upcycle. My hubby and I sold our thrift store makeovers for years in a vendor booth. It felt good to be productive in my 50’s and it was a wonderful creative outlet.

As a YouTuber I share my thrift hauls on my channel to inspire others to shop at thrift stores. I am a conscious thrift shopper aiming to purchase items I will actually use. Hop over to YouTube and subscribe so you don’t miss the thrifting hauls and makeovers!

wall shelf upcycle variations

• paint the shelf in a solid color to coordinate with your decor
• add pegs to create another decorative element
• use a stencil to create a fresh design
• transform a thrift store shelf into a cubby wall shelf
• update a wall shelf with fabric

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