A month or so ago, my Dad and I spent a Friday morning at one of my favorite monthly junk markets {Old Red Lumberyard Market in McKinney, Texas} and I came home with a completely grungy, completely rusty, completely fabulous vintage mail cart! I added a couple of other items and turned this old cart into an upcycled vintage mail cart table with a cabinet door tabletop! It’s a really fun and whimsical piece for the corner seating area in my gathering room, provides additional storage, and the style fits perfectly with my vintage kitchen island. Let me show you how I made it!
When I found a pile of vintage mail carts at the market, I was instantly drawn in. I love pieces that have history and I can only imagine all the history this little cart has seen and the letters and parcels it’s carried.
I chose a mail cart that had some interesting details: a leather buckle and handles on the side …
… years of rust and wear and tear …
… stamped markings on the side …
… and lots and lots of grunge.
The base was intact, albeit rusty {but who doesn’t love a little rust?}, and the wheels worked perfectly, even the ones wrapped in threads from the cart.
I loved every dirty, rusty inch of it!
I was debating whether or not I should buy the cart when inspiration hit that it would make a really great table … and my Dad, who goes along with almost all of my crazy ideas, agreed. It didn’t take any more than that to convince me.
I originally thought about planking the top to create a table but then decided it would be more fun to make an upcycled top. I went to ReStore and bought two cabinet doors, two old, mismatched paint-covered hinges, and a drawer pull.
It cost less than ten dollars for all of the tabletop supplies.
I decided to place the hinges on top. I liked the look but also didn’t want to leave the gap that would be required if I placed the hinges underneath the doors.
With the hinges placed like this, we can easily lift up one side of the tabletop in order to store things inside the mail cart.
I painted the drawer pull bright red and attached it through the original holes that were already in the cabinet door. The pull makes it even easier to open and close the top.
The cabinet door tabletop sits right on top of the mail cart …
… and because of the weight of it, it doesn’t slide around at all.
The mail cart table sits in the corner of my gathering room in between two chairs {lit by my upcycled coffee pot lamp with a dip dyed lampshade} …
… and it’s the perfect spot to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee and a good book.
What would you do with an old mail cart?
What a clever upcycle. Makes a neat side table. Love the coffee pot lamp too! Going to have to get the hubby to take me to that Old Red Lumberyard Market. We have a couple days off coming up in a few weeks and we both love antiquing and junking.