When it comes to home decorating, nothing looks more rustic and chic than repurposed ladder ideas. You may have a few old ladders lying around the house or find them at auctions, flea markets, or garage sales for cheap. Turning these ladders into a functional piece of furniture or a decorative display can breathe new life into a room.

Ladders aren’t just for rustic farmhouse style. They also offer a clean, simple look that compliments a contemporary design aesthetic. If you have a few extra ladders lying around and want to turn them into unique pieces of home decor, these DIY projects are perfect for you. They are easy enough to complete on your own, even for beginners, and can bring a touch of vintage flair to any room in your home. Whether you’re looking for towel storage, a blanket hanger, or a way to display your favorite artwork, these ideas are sure to inspire you.

Preparing a Repurposed Wooden Ladder

There are so many creative ways to repurpose an old ladder in the home. But before starting your repurposing project, there are several things to do.

• First, when repurposing an old ladder, it is important to keep in mind safety. Make sure that the ladder is still in good condition. Check that the ladder is stable so that it can still be used again. Minor damage, such as loose rungs, can be repaired to ensure that the ladder is safe to use. However, if the ladder is severely damaged or rusty, it should not be used and may need to be replaced.
• Clean and prepare the ladder for use. This is to avoid splintering wood and to ensure that your painted ladder will stick to the surface. Work gloves and safety glasses will help protect you from splinters or other hazardous pieces of wood that might be affixed to the ladder.
• Once you’ve finished cleaning and removing all the nails, use fine-grained sandpaper to smooth the surface of your wooden ladder. This will prepare it for the next step in your project. This step will help your new coat of paint to adhere better and last longer.
• Paint or Stain the Ladder. You may want to paint or stain the ladder if you want to make it match your decor or a specific room. Choose a paint that is safe for wood and will resist water damage. Alternatively, you can use spray paint that is safe for wood. Shake the can well and apply several light coats, allowing each one to dry in between. Be sure to work in a well-ventilated area and cover the floor with a drop cloth to protect it from overspray.

Decorative Shelving

A creative way to repurpose a wooden ladder for home decoration is by creating it to become decorative shelving. A ladder makes a creative way to display your favorite photos. You can put some photo frames or other decorative items on the rungs. Alternate the rungs with wreaths, mason jars, or framed quotes for a beautiful rustic display that can be changed with the season. It will enhance your home decor look. All you have to do is just adding planks of wood to the ladder rungs to make a flat surface.

What a brilliant idea to use your old wooden ladder as a decorative shelving. It is a great item to add a unique flair to your home. As a decorative shelving, you can use it to display your decorative items, even seasonal items. For example, you can display your spring decorations on each rung of the ladder. Such as a spring wreath, spring quote, plant, and some bunny for sure. It looks great, right? Decorative Shelving from @shayna.robinson.repurposing

Blanket Storage

If you have a lot of blankets that you want to keep out and accessible, hang them from your old ladder. This works great in a bedroom or living room. It is an easy way to save your space and it looks cute. It also keeps your blankets from getting tangled up or rolling on the floor. The way is simple to do. Just lean it against your wall and drape your towels or blankets through the rungs. It is a quick and simple project that you can do in no time at all.

An important thing to use a repurposed wooden ladder is turning it becomes blanket storage. Nowadays, a blanket has become part of home decoration. Instead of letting it be cluttered, you can store it on the ladder. The repurposed wooden ladder can be another storage option besides a basket. All you have to do is just lean on the wooden ladder on the walls and then put the blanket on the rung You can place the wooden ladder in the corner of your room, such as the living room, bedroom, or in your reading nook. Blanket Storage from @jusathome

Lighting Fixture

A repurposed wooden ladder can serve as a unique lighting fixture for your home. Depending on the color and finish of your ladder, it can blend in with your home decor or provide an eye-catching contrast to it. Adding hanging lanterns or string lights to the rungs of your ladder can add ambiance and make it a focal point in any room.

To present a unique lighting fixture in your home, you can utilize a repurposed wooden ladder. Well, you can wrap some string lights to the ladder and on each rung. It is a simple way but looks sophisticated to enhance your home decor. Especially, this lighting fixture idea is suitable to create a festive look for your occasional moment, such as Christmas, Halloween, New Year, and more. It can create a warm ambiance and make your home decor more inviting. Lighting Fixtures from @maddafix

Antique Bookshelves

Another cool way to repurpose an old wooden ladder is by turning it into a bookshelf. This can be a fun project that can take some time and effort to complete but will be a conversation piece for your guests when they come over. Simply attach planks of wood to the ladder rungs to create shelves of varying sizes. It would look amazing in a living room or bedroom. It’s a great way to show off your book collection and also looks gorgeous with mason jars or vintage bottles displayed with it.

You can beyond your imagination to get a unique home decoration. Think that your old wooden ladder can be repurposed to become an antique bookshelf in your home. Just reuse your old wooden ladder to store your book collection. You can make it new again by repainting it or if you want a rustic look you can leave it with a distressed look. It’s up to you to put it on the floor or mounted it on the wall. But if you want to get an attractive look, mounting it on the wall is a great idea. Ladder Bookshelf from @greendoorhomedecor

Bathroom Storage

Ladders are a perfect fit for bathroom storage, and you can make it even more stylish by hanging smaller s-hooks on each rung. You can hang towels or robes on the hooks, or you could place wire baskets filled with toiletries over each rung to create a unique storage solution that looks both stylish and organized.

For those of you who are interested in the rustic style, adding an item that represents a rustic flair will complete your decoration. Such as this bathroom decoration that uses a repurposed wooden ladder as a storage idea. The ladder is very useful to store bathroom supplies and even you can still add some decorative items. To save space, the wooden ladder is possible to be mounted above the toilet and make it easy for you to reach what you need. Bathroom Storage from @house_of_jase

Plant Stand

If you have a large ladder, you can even turn it into a unique plant stand for your home. This is a fantastic idea for those who don’t have enough space in their homes for traditional shelving solutions. Just be sure to sand and paint the ladder before using it for this purpose so you don’t run into any issues with splinters or other wood abrasions.

Interested in vintage decoration doesn’t mean you have to thrift stores to look for a unique and antique thing. Even, you can make the most of unused items in your home to create an antique decoration. In this case, maybe you found an old wooden ladder in your home. Don’t throw it away! You can use it as a plant stand to enhance your home decor. You can do some adjustments to make it proper to hold some plants. Such as adding planks to each rung and tightening the bolts on the ladder to keep it sturdy. Plant Stand from @thrifted_vintage_home

Kitchen Shelf

If your old ladder has a flat back side, it can easily be turned into a set of shelving units for the kitchen. Prime and paint the ladder, then nail or screw small wood blocks to the back ‘legs’ opposite each of the bottom steps. Then add shelves that are a few inches taller than the depth of each ladder rung to make a sturdy shelf unit. You can even hang a row of glass jars from one of the rungs to give your home a country, farmhouse feel.

Don’t be worried if you can’t have any kitchen cabinets for your kitchen. You can still make your kitchen neat and tidy with your own kitchen shelving unit. You can make it from a repurposed wooden ladder. Do some adjustments to make it more proper to store your herbs and other kitchen supplies. Mounted it to the wall to save space and get an organized look. Kitchen Shelving Unit from @thereuseboxtruck

Bedside Table

Whether it’s a bedside table from a repurposed wooden ladder or simply shelving for home decorating accessories, repurposing an old ladder is easy and adds rustic charm to any room, especially for the bedroom. Alternate the repurposed wooden ladder as a unique bedside table for your bedroom. It provides more space to store your stuff. Even, you can install lighting fixtures there to get an interesting look.

Maybe it sounds weird if the wooden ladder can be used as a bedside table. But luckily, this is a great idea for the bedroom decor. Usually, a bedside table comes in a small size. But if you don’t want to spend your money to buy a new bedside table, you can repurpose the wooden ladder to become a bedside table. The rungs of the ladder make for perfect little shelves and are ideal for displaying knick-knacks, books, home decor, and even installing a light. Bedside Table from @kitten_vintage_mackay

Conclusion

Due to the versatility of the wooden ladder, it can be repurposed for another functional item. With some creativity, the wooden ladder can add an interesting touch to the home decorations. Repurposing a wooden ladder is easy and adds rustic charm to any room. It’s great for storing books in the living room or adding some greenery and decorative items to the dining area, and any space. All you need is some creativity to get an interesting repurposed item for your home.