Last spring I got an email from an Art of Doing Stuff reader who lives in my general area. She said she had spotted a vintage suitcase out for garbage pickup while she was out for her morning walk. She lugged it home, emailed me and asked if I'd like it.
Um ... YES. Garbage finds are my favourite finds and I didn't even have to go root through garbage for it. I didn't know what I was going to do with the suitcase but I knew I could think of something.
The suitcase was in relatively good condition, but definitely couldn't be used "as is". I'd have to fix it up, clean it up, paint it up ... something.
One year ago the title of this post was going to be "How to Paint a Suitcase!". By spring it was going to be, "How to Turn a Suitcase into a Gardening Shed!". Around July I decided the title would definitely be "Put Wheels on a Suitcase for Easy Underbed Storage!. Then fall arrived and the title became "Shove that old suitcase in your basement. It's ugly and a pain in the ass!"
But then I made a discovery. I decided to peel off the travel stickers that were on the suitcase.
One of the stickers was covering up a hole in the outside fabric of the suitcase. It looked like wood underneath.
I figured if I just peeled a little more of the fabric back I'd be able to see if the whole suitcase was wood. Just a little. Just enough so I could see if it was wood. If I was careful about it, I could always just glue the fabric back down.
Hmm. Not sure. Might need to peel a tiny bit more back.
Yup. That's wood alright.
Would you like to save this stuff?
We'll email you this post, so you can refer to it later.
Down to the basement to set up for suitcase surgery. I'd get everything ready and then come down in the morning to start working on it.
And I stuck to my plan. As long as you call 2:00 a.m. morning.
It was like an addiction this suitcase. I couldn't stop until I knew exactly what was underneath. Then once I knew what was underneath, I was satisfied and promptly walked away leaving it sitting on my workbench for the next 4 months. It runs in my family this sort of behavior. Rip something apart until you know what it's made of or what's going on and then walk away because your curiosity has been quenched.
Last month I got back to work on it.
To strip the suitcase I:
Table of Contents
1. Ripped the fabric off with my hands.
2. Scraped off some of the glue residue.
3. Sanded the rest of the glue off with a palm sander.
Now that the suitcase is stripped you have 3 options:
1. Leave it as is with no finish or sealant.
2. Seal it with a coat of Varathane.
3. Stain it and then Varathane it.
Even though I loved the clean look of the pale wood, I wanted it to have a bit more age and character so after MUCH debating I went with stain then Varathane to seal and protect the suitcase.
Are you wondering what this suitcase ultimately became? Is it underbed storage? A mini gardening shed? Nope, nope.
And yes. That is Rough Linen bedding. Smooth linen sheets and an Orkney duvet cover.
By putting the suitcase on an actual suitcase stand it instantly becomes the perfect height for a bedside table. Although it would look good on antique casters. Or on the porch with gardening tools. The one place it won't be going is the basement.
Rose
I have 14 vintage suitcases, all different sizes, colors...don't know what to do with them...
Tony Hoover
Stumbled across this while looking for a bed. I want to use my old suitcase for storage under a bed but want them visible. Was thinking maybe a Shaker Pine but not canopy. I want it simple. I have the same blanket that I throw over the end.
Nice job by the way. Thanks for the inspiration.
Going now to see more of your ideas.
bridget
what an awesome find!
Kelly
I am trying this project but the fabric is not coming off easily at all, any suggestions?
Thanks
Karen
Kelly - Just keep pulling and scraping with a razor squeegee thing. But be careful! You can also try heating it up with a hairdryer, but I'm not sure if that will help or not. ~ karen!
Diane McEwen
Brilliant! I love it. You are very clever Karen.. It turned out beautiful. I had some old Samsonite faux leather cases and it broke my heart to get rid of them when we moved into a small apartment. However, I will now keep looking for one or two similar and do just this. All I have to do is move into a house with a guest room!! The house we are in now is also very small.. Most of my lovely stuff is in storage.. One day Diane... One day.. I enjoy your site very much. I have been going through all my different blogs I follow and thought about deleting some because I don't have time to follow them all.. It is a shame as people have such wonderful ideas and are so talented. You my dear are not on the delete list! You are very diverse and talented. See you again soon.. :)
Karen
Phew! LOL. ~ karen
Diane McEwen
:) thanks Karen. I am just reading your beeswax sandwich bags instructions. Gee who knew! I am passing it on to share so my daughter can be impressed not only with you but with me too.. She will know I actually read and try to do the right thing with regard to Mother Nature... but I do love re-using my veggie plastic bags and this will impress you, I re-use cling film (plastic wrap) too if its clean, as I wrap bits up for my dogs or I wrap bones etc. for the freezer until garbage day.. whatever won't go into the compost. Now that's pretty on the button me thinks! (Y) Best of luck with your Spring Project too. Sounds like something I would have done many moons ago.. Keep well..
Kelly
Ugh. Sometimes I hate you a little bit because you're so darn clever! Now I want one of these, and I just know that the next 17 vintage suitcases I pick up from the side of the road will have nothing but ugly sticky plastic underneath!
Thanks for the inspiration though. I'm keeping my eyes peeled for suitcases and roadkill to turn into nightstands.
Karen
Um ... Kelly ... I don't think you wanna turn roadkill into a nightstand. Clearly roadkill is much better suited to becoming a lamp. ~ karen
Alixandra Bouchard
Bahahah you are the smartest. I JUST found a suitcase too! But mines not wood I dont think. But still a good idea for it!
Feral Turtle
It is totally beautiful Karen!! Amazing that you thought to strip it down instead of painting it. What a find. We did something similar with old army trunks. I think they were for hauling music equipment or bombs...not sure. http://www.feralturtle.com/2011/07/junk-in-my-trunk.html
Have a great day! Cheers.
sera
Looks beautiful! Ages and ages ago I bought four of these at an antique mall and stacked the up to make a bedside table. I even had them out in my living room for a while, but they are currently being used as storage and are tucked in the back of my closet. All three of mine were leather and weren't in terrible condition, although they do smell a bit musty inside. I guess that's the real reason I have fabric softener sheets.
Karen
I have 3 stacked under a window right now! I think I've hit my luggage limit for this house. ~ karen!
Pam
Wow, I was so surprised to see the suitcase as a nightstand. I love it , also love the rough linen and that cute mirror over the bed
Sara
Gorgeous! Your procrastination paid off.
Barbie
Oh I love this!! I will now be on the hunt for one of those for my daughter who needs a nightstand. Where did you find that cool suitcase stand? With my luck I will find the suitcase that is perfect and then never be able to find that cool stand! It looks antique as well.
Beth H.
That is really beautiful! The next time I see a suitcase like that at a yard sale or estate sale, I hope they don't mind if I tear a small patch off of the covering to see what's underneath. I never knew those were made of wood. Great inspiration!
erica
That looks AWESOME! The way you described your transformation process seems so familiar to me!!! Thanks for inspiring us again....
mayr
J'adore your clever brain!
Karen
Merci. ~ karen!
katy oneill
You're amazing. I've been lugging around my grandparents old case just like that one since I was a teenager (I'm 40 something now) each time I've moved (a zillion times). I've always known I wanted to restore it or repurpose it somehow, but UNTIL TODAY, I never found quite the right project.
Somewhere I think my mother still has her old Hudson Bay blanket even.
She also has an old Hudson Bay jacket I keep wondering how to use or repurpose.
stephbo93
Wood?!? No wonder the things are so damn heavy!! Great job!
Mariella
Hi Karen,
Beautiful project. Quick question. What stain color did u use? I often wonder if the color of the stain will vary once applied on different thpe of wood.
Thanks,
Mariella
Karen
Hi Mariella - The type of wood is almost as responsible for the finished colour as the stain itself. I used a mixture of a few different stains including Minwax Early American and Puritan Pine. I used each individually, mixed them together and in some cases swiped one over the other on the actual wood, in order to get a more aged look to the wood. When you want to stain something get a few different stain samples to try and test them in a discrete area of the wood. ~ karen!
Mariella
Hi Karen,
Thank you for the advice. I tried the wood stump project u posted a while back, but mine turned down very dark. I stained it because i thought it was too light. It wasn't until i read it again that you mention that poly would make it dark and then it would light a bit again. I love the honey color that u do on your pieces. Thank you.
-Mariella.
Laura M
Gorgeous wide plank flooring in your bedroom. Is it original to the house or did you add it?
Karen
Laura M - It's 170 years old of original. :) ~ karen
Jill
The Book Theif is number 1 on my fav books right now. The writing and characters are so beautiful it will make you cry. I've had this idea of making a suitcase nightstand for my guest room for as long as you've had that suitcase, but you've completely owned that project!Congrats on finishing! Beautiful work. Thanks for inspiring me!
Karen
Thanks Jill. Wait'll you see what I have to inspire you with coming up in a few weeks, LOL. Inspire might be the wrong word. Frighten probably works better. :) ~ karen