It's clear that our planet is especially dear to you... otherwise, you probably wouldn't have landed on our website. Would you like to build yourself a sustainable shoe rack, perhaps to store our vegan shoes?
We're very happy about that. And to make this DIY shoe rack as sustainable as possible, we've put together a series of great ideas for you – we'd love to turn it into an ingenious upcycling project.
What exactly is upcycling?
Just a quick refresher: Upcycling, like traditional recycling, is about reusing and recycling valuable raw materials that we would otherwise simply throw away. However, upcycling goes a step further and transforms a product (or its components) into something better—hence the prefix "up-" for more or to upgrade.
Which materials are suitable for building a shoe cabinet?
The list of possible materials for building shoe storage is practically endless. When in doubt, just use your imagination. You can turn cardboard and paper into papier-mâché, you can build crazy shelves from old glass bottles and old wooden slats, you can assemble beautiful shoe cabinets from scrap wood, you can use old soda cans as spacers between shelves, and much more.
DIY upcycling shoe cabinet project for beginners and advanced users
Below, we present four different ideas for building your own shoe rack. Some ideas are easy to implement even for beginners, while others may require a little more experience or even more tools. The important thing is not to be afraid. You can't really go wrong... and if you do... so what... on to the next project. Practice makes perfect, after all.
Idea #1: Reuse the Euro pallet
It's truly fascinating what you can do with a wooden Euro pallet. This is upcycling at its finest – an old transport aid can be transformed into seating, hanging shelves, vertical gardens, or even a shoe rack. All you need to do is clean the Euro pallet and then rework it. Then stand it upright and use the horizontal surfaces to store your shoes. Or you can use the grooves between the slats of the former storage area to clamp your shoes.
You can, of course, also cover them with a pretty fabric or glue old fabric scraps (you can even simply tear up old clothes) on them as a patchwork. Your children's old comic books are also great. To do this, cut the comic books into small pieces (you can even use contour cuts), glue them to the Euro pallet with craft glue, and finally seal everything with clear varnish. Done!
Idea #2: Give old wooden spoons a new purpose
Do you have a collection of old wooden spoons that you no longer want to use in the kitchen for hygiene reasons? Many of your friends and family probably feel the same way. Ask around and collect at least 10 to 20 spoons.
Ideally, you'll also need an old railway sleeper and drill holes 6 to 7 centimeters deep, depending on the number of wooden spoons you want and the thickness of the spoon handles. Glue the wooden spoon handles into the holes and use the spoon head to store the shoes and booties.
Our extra tip: Boil the wooden spoons in boiling water for 10 minutes beforehand to destroy food residue, odors, and germs.
Idea #3: Pimp my shoe cabinet
You don't always have to build a brand new shoe cabinet; you can also pimp up an old or unsightly one. Paper mache is perfect for this. Turn a boring shoe cabinet into a rock or a fairytale castle, a shoe-eating monster, or a golden abstract work of art. So instead of buying a new shoe storage unit, simply upcycle the old cabinet.
If you're aiming for a specific shape (like a rock), you should roughly model it using fine-mesh metal fencing (rabbit wire). Attach the wire to the cabinet in the desired shape and generously cover all surfaces with the homemade papier-mâché. Let the papier-mâché dry and paint it as desired.
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How do you make papier-mâché? To make papier-mâché, collect old newspapers and tear them into small pieces. Then mix the paper with paste (which is almost always made from potato starch and is therefore 100% vegan) and water until a viscous mass forms. Alternatively, you can simply dip larger pieces of newspaper into the prepared paste and then place the piece directly onto the wire. You should use at least three to five layers of paper to ensure the whole thing is stable enough. |
Idea #4: Narrow shoe rack made from old wooden slats and bottles or cans
Do you have some wooden slats from an old garden fence lying around in your basement and don't know what to do with them? A DIY shoe rack, of course, that will perfectly fit our vegan shoes for your child. Here's how:
Clean the wooden slats and paint them, or cover them with scraps of fabric, for example, as described above for the wooden pallets. Screw the shelves to the wall using metal brackets and simply place bottles, cans, old bricks, or whatever else "gets in your way" between them as pseudo-supports. This way, you can even swap out the supports from time to time, creating a new look.
Were we able to inspire you?
We sincerely hope we've inspired you and that you can't wait to build your first shoe rack yourself. If you view it as an upcycling project, the whole thing is even more fun, because you're not only reducing your waste, but also creating something great and new from seemingly useless items. Have fun crafting and building! Feel free to send us photos of your homemade shoe rack. We look forward to seeing your creations!
