What To Do With Old Shutters

Are you looking for a project to do with old shutters? Then this easy DIY is for you! This project is so easy, that you can do it in a day. Let’s get to it!

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Pinterest graphic with text overly "repurposed old shutters" with an image of a shutter that was repurposed into a light and staged with a brown chair, an organ stool with knickknacks and a dress form with an apron on it

Today is Thrift Store Decor Wednesday and I am joining some of my repurposing friends in sharing fun upcycled and creative projects for you! Be sure to read through to the end of this post and see the amazing projects from the whole team!

old shutters galore

No kidding, we have and run across shutters all the time in this business. Auctions, barn sales, estate sales, and even a yard sale or two.

Hubby even has a friend who keeps his eye open for old shutters for us.

We’ve made several types of projects out of them but one of my faves is a wall sconce light. In fact, I made some for our home to bring more light into the living space. They’re on timers so they just automatically come on and turn off every day.

It’s the little things in life…..

Let’s get into the project.

pile of supplies for old shutter project laying on a table including drill, light kit, pliers and heavy wire

list of supplies:

step one:

Old shutters are usually filthy, so clean them well before painting. I scrubbed it outside with Dixie Belle White Lightning mixed in a bucket with hot water. A brush helped to loosen all the yuckiness and some of the flaking paint. Then I hosed it down to rinse it.

A day in the sun and this old shutter was dry and clean!

I chose Miss Mustard Seed milk paint in Shutter Gray – it just seemed appropriate! The shutter needed two heavy coats with a bit of touch-up here and there.

step two:

Using a flat-edge chef’s knife that I only use in my workshop, I chipped away some of the paint by scraping the flat edge of the blade along the wood. You’ll see in the YouTube video below that the paint chips away so easily.

step three:

Dixie Belle’s Best Dang Wax is a water-based, easy-to-use furniture wax. This wax has no smell, it’s easy to clean the wax brush and the wax is just plain easy to use!

I applied it with Dixie Belle’s wax brush (Best Dang Brush) to apply the wax in a very thin coat. After allowing the wax to dry for about 15 minutes and I used the same brush to buff the surface just a bit. I was able to use the same brush because I barely added any wax with it and the wax had dried on the brush.

So easy, right??

shop for Dixie Belle products by clicking the image below!

step four:

The next step is to attach the sconce light fixture to the old shutter.

I decided to show you how to attach the wall sconce light through a video. It seemed easier to show you rather than tell you here on the post.

Be sure to hop over to the video – I’ll give you step-by-step instructions to add the light to your old shutter! Feel free to subscribe to our channel while you are there – I would love for you to join our reinventing journey! 😊

close up view of wall sconce light attached to an old shutter

step five:

It’s time to add the hanger! This old shutter wall sconce light fixture is meant to hang on the wall but you could also lean it into a corner of a room. If you do that, take precautions so that no little ones could knock it down and hurt themselves.

Also, if you have a Roomba…..well, let’s just say you should hang it on the wall!!

I cut a section of the heavy wire approximately the width of the shutter plus 16-18″ The wire is meant to show as part of the design of this old shutter light fixture.

If you want the wire to be hidden, attach it to the back with eye hooks and a shorter piece of wire.

lady using a power drill to attach screws on a vintage shutter

Pre-drill holes and then use 3/4″ wood screws (mine are black and have a head-on them like a washer) and screw them into the top of the shutter.

If your shutter is loose, put the screws in the outermost section of wood, not on the inside section of the shutter like I did. The outermost section on my shutter wasn’t in great shape so I put the screws in the interior section of the old shutter.

Don’t insert the screw all of the way, allow a bit to stick up. Then wrap the wire around the screw at least two times, then finish screwing the screw all the way in.

I used my needle nose pliers to twist the wire into a curly cue. You’ll see how I did that in the video. This adds a whimsical touch to the old shutter light fixture, don’t you think? Of course, you can skip that step if you don’t like it!

YouTube video for you!

There you have it! What do you think? I love it so much!

staged scene showing old shutter light that hangs on the wall with a wood chair, a green stool, a footstool with a blanket and a Bible, wall art, and a dress form with a back wrap apron hanging on it

how to decorate with an old shutter

Let’s think of some ideas where this light could be used in your home!

  • as a single light with a side chair that is near a wall (like in the image above)
  • a pair of them on either side of the living room or dining room windows
  • a pair of them on either side of the master room bed
  • a single shutter in a child’s room
  • near an entryway

That last idea, near an entryway, gave me another idea! Add a basket to the old shutter with some hooks as a drop-off for keys, gloves, or mail!

how to hang an old shutter light fixture

This shutter has some weight to it so be sure to use a strong hook made to hold the weight of your shutter. Attach it after finding a wall stud or use a molly. By all means, hang this shutter securely to the wall!!

I used a command hook rated for the weight of my shutter light after I sprayed painted it in a bronze color.

side view of old shutter turned into a hanging wall light fixture with a wood chair, an organ stool and a dress form with an apron hanging on it

Edison bulbs for a vintage feel

Old shutters repurposed into a light fixture looks so vintage (it is vintage!!) so of course, the light bulb needs to look vintage as well. Amazon has tons of Edison bulbs available now and they are not nearly as expensive as they were when they first came out.

close up of sconce light attached to an window shutter showing ways to use old shutters

vintage bulbs for old shutter light

Here is a selection of bulbs as well as some other wall sconce light fixtures for you to choose from for your next light fixture from old shutters project!

full staged view of old shutter repurposed into a light, wooden chair, dress form with an apron, organ stool, foot stool with a blanket and a Bible on it, wall art and hanging lights in the background

so glad you stopped by!

It really means the world to us that you stop by here for our projects and tutorials. We hope you are inspired to make some of the projects we share for your home. If you do, can. you let me know? Comment below and let me know about your project!


the projects continue!

This post is part of a blog hop I did with some of my repurposing blogging friends! Be sure to visit their posts to see the fun projects they have to share with us!


We would also love it if you joined our journey via email. We don’t sell email addresses and we only send 3-4 emails per month letting you know about our projects! You can sign up below and I will send you a fun freebie!

Pin the image below to your home decor and repurposing idea boards! Just click the pin button at the top left corner!

Pinterest graphic showing home decor including a repurposed shutter with text overlay "what to do with old shutters" ReinventedDelaware.com

Thanks for joining our journey!

Thanks so much for joining us for this post! Join our journey so you don’t miss any fun projects, tutorials, and inspiration we share with you each week! You can follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. We share even more inspiration on Pinterest!

Until next time…

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34 Comments

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Thanks Maryann! We all need more lighting, right?? 😊

  1. I had a moment and accidentally sent you a message instead of leaving a comment! Please ignore that. I just wanted to say I love your project and it looks amazing!

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      I saw the email! Thanks so much – I appreciate all the kind words! Have a great day!

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Thanks Kim! I love upcycling an repurposing especially when it’s something so practical like a light! Isn’t Dixie Belle an amazing chalk mineral paint? Happy painting!

  2. Love this. Funny I have an antique shutter that hass it’s chippy goodness but I feel it needs to be a bit brighter. I feel guilty painting it. Maybe I will lighten it with a wash.

    Love the light addition and th inspiration you always share.

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Thanks Cindy! I totally get it about being guilty about painting it – a wash is a great idea! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  3. This is such a cool idea, Cindy! I love the way this project turned out!

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Isn’t it a fun project? So glad you enjoyed it!

  4. Shutters are so charming … outside or in. Fun idea to add the sconce light. Adorable! xo

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Aren’t sconce lights great? Thanks for stopping by!

  5. I’ve always wanted a house with shutters. Maybe a shutter home decor DIY is the next best thing 🙂 Your project is a neat way to make them functional!

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Great idea – if you don’t have shutters on the outside, bring them indoors! Thanks Marie!

  6. Wow! I really love the light fixture idea! It is so fun to watch your tour stories and see all your amazing staging.

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Thank you Melba!So glad you enjoyed the project and the staging!

  7. Such a great idea and I just happen to have two sets of shutters that I don’t know what to do with. You are so creative!

    1. Cynthia Gayle says:

      Yay for spare shutters lying around!! Happy Reinventing!

  8. This is one of the cutest things I’ve seen from an old shutter and just love it. Thank you for sharing it on Farmhouse Friday! We are featuring it tomorrow. Pinned.

    1. Thanks for the feature, Cindy!

    1. Thank you, Rachel!Hope you have a great week!🥰

    1. This would be a great way to light up a spare bedroom! I would love to see yours if you get a chance to make it Michelle! Happy hunting! 😊

  9. This is beautiful Cindy, It looks like this is something I could tackle. They would be darling in my sheshed, Looking forward to blog hopping with you next week.
    Wendy

    1. Omgoodness Wendy! This would be amazing in a she shed!! Great idea! I’m going to have one of those she sheds someday! Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to our hop too! 😊

  10. This is a great way to repurpose an old shutter, Cindy! Whenever I can find the old wood ones, I scoop them up, too. They can be used in so many ways! Great project!

    1. Shutters are so useful! Thanks for stopping by Lora!

  11. Love it! I never thought of putting a light on an old shutter and it looks great! I’m pinning this one! Thanks, Donna

    1. So glad you are inspired, Donna! Thanks for pinning 🥰

  12. Cindy, I love this project! You always have such creative and inspirational ideas. 🙂

    1. Thanks for the sweet words Niky! I appreciate the encouragement! 😊

  13. Susan Bartenfeld says:

    Could you not use an outdoor fixture and use this on a deck or screened porch!!!??? Oh. My creative juices are flowing like a waterfall!! I’m so happy I’ve joined this group!!

    1. So glad you are inspired Susan! Using this on an outdoor porch is brilliant! I just might have to make another one!😊