Trunks were used for storage and for carrying luggage but today they can be used too. A vintage trunk is a great find – you may use it for storage, make a statement and add chic with it and even repurpose it into some furniture item. If you are lucky to have an old trunk at hand, don’t throw it away, renovate it! Here are some DIYs to do that.
Renovating
This tutorial is very easy: take your vintage trunk and spray paint it. You may tape off some hardware or just spray paint the whole thing – with white it will be a very gentle shabby chic piece. If you want, you may try some different colors – turquoise, pink, grey or any other to create a colorful statement or to match your interior.
DIY whitewashed shabby chic trunk for storage (via www.housebyhoff.com).
Renovate an old and worn trunk giving it a chic look and a new life! This project contains some information on painting, spray painting and renovating the hardware on the trunk choosing right colors. You may also add some decorative details like leather belts. Use this cool trunk for storage or as a stylish coffee table with storage inside. Get inspired!
DIY vintage trunk renovation with paints and spray paints (via brepurposed.porch.com).
Add a touch of pop culture to your space with such a cool Union Jack trunk! This project will tell you how to paint a Union Jack on your vintage trunk to give it a bold new and fresh look. Such an item can be used for storage in various rooms and the whole tutorial isn’t difficult, get inspired!
DIY Union Jack trunk for a glam touch (via www.frugalmomeh.com).
This tutorial is about making an oriental style trunk more stylish and chic repainting it. The tasteless floral prints disappeared after the trunk was painted turquoise. This color looks perfect with brass hardware the trunk had on, if yours doesn’t have it, you may just add what you like.
DIY oriental trunk repainting for a colorful touch (via www.infarrantlycreative.net).
A vintage trunk on legs was renovated and got a modern look after this tutorial. First it was painted white and then it was stenciled with some metallic stripes. The hardware added was black to contrast the trunk and create a bolder look. Get inspired to renovate an old trunk into a brand new one!
DIY trunk on legs spruced up with metallic stripes and new hardware (via www.bybrittanygoldwyn.com).
Got a boring vintage trunk and don’t know what to do with it? First of all, renovate it! This tutorial will tell you how to paint a trunk in white and gold stripes to give it a more modern and bright look. the idea is about spray painting using washi tape to create the stripes. Enjoy!
DIY striped gold and white trunk makeover (via www.delineateyourdwelling.com).
Repurposing
Here’s one more project to renovate an old trunk and give it a bold and cool look. The trunk was part wood, part metal, and part fabric, so there were quite a few portions to deal with. So the author painted the piece one and renovated the hardware, plus added a glass tabletop to use the trunk as a chic coffee table. Read more details on the project in the source.
DIY vintage trunk turned into a coffee table with a glass top (via lovelyindeed.com).
Here’s a tutorial to turn a vintage trunk into a chic coffee table or nightstand with angled legs. If you need to renovate the trunk first, do that using some previous tutorials and then find some vintage matching wooden legs to attach. Read the whole tutorial to find out how to do that all.
DIY salvaged trunk on angled vintage legs (via salvagedinspirations.com).
If you don’t need a trunk just for storage, give it a new function – for example, make a coffee table of it. This tutorial will tell you how to make a stylish and trendy coffee table with hairpin legs of a usual trunk. Feel free to give it a desired look first and only then put it on hairpin legs. Enjoy!
DIY colorful coffee table of a trunk and hairpin legs (via alittlecraftinyourday.com).
Make a chic and stylish shabby chic coffee table of a vintage trunk. The trunk is placed on small and comfy legs and then whitewashed to create a gorgeous shabby chic look. you may tape off the hardware first or keep it whitewashed, too. Get inspired!
DIY vintage whitewashed trunk turned into a coffee table (via www.artsychicksrule.com).
If you have a lot of documents, think of making a filing system of a vintage trunk – very easy and very comfy in using. The tutorial will tell you how to make such a filing system inside the trunk building in some wood for storage inside. Renovate the trunk as you like before building the wood in using some ideas below!
DIY filing system of a vintage trunk (via www.diybeautify.com).
Here’s one more idea to build a coffee table of a vintage trunk by adding some hairpin legs to it. The author decided not to renovate the trunk itself keeping its shabby look on purpose. Hairpin legs will rise it up the floor giving more space under it and creating a lightweight look. Get inspired!
DIY army trunk table with hairpin legs (via bachelorettepadflip.com).
Building
Trunk-style coffee tables are not only stylish, they also provide practical storage for toys, extra throws and pillows, a movie collection and anything that needs to be stored for a busy family. This rustic trunk-style coffee table is an easy build, it’s a great idea if you don’t have any ready trunk at hand, besides, you may personalize it as you like.
How to build a trunk coffee table yourself (via www.hgtv.com).