I’m not sure if it’s the norm for the previous owners of your new house to leave things for you, including handwritten notes and detailed instructions for how things around the house work, etc., so I’m pretty sure I hit the jackpot with my previous owners.  The previous owners of my home did all of the above, and then some, so I felt perfectly welcomed and adjusted in my new place upon moving in.  And, what would probably have been trashed by anyone else has now become one of my favorite pieces in my kitchen: a vintage metal cart.  Found at home stores for around $100.00, I’ve been seeing these metal carts on wheels quite a lot lately, and just couldn’t justify paying that much for one, and luckily I didn’t have to.  In my basement laundry room I found this warped, rusty gem.

The weekend before I moved into my house (when my mom and I did about 15 projects in 2 days), we dusted the rust off the cart with a metal bristled brush, removed the warped and stained wooden top, taped off the wheels and spray painted the cart the most perfect vintage hue of turquoise.  As soon as my dad saw the cart, he announced that he wanted to get a piece of marble or corian to replace the wooden top.  While he works on obtaining that, I’ve simply placed a cute tray atop the cart and it’s working out great.  I currently have the cart filled with Fiesta ware pieces and Mason jars filled with cooking utensils, but I’ll probably swap out what’s in the cart several times each year.  As you can see from the first photo in the post, the cart also works great for granola displays at stores, too. 😉

Supplies Needed:

metal bristled brush
painter’s or masking tape
spray paint ($8 for two cans) – insert color and brand