Wake Up Tired Furniture With Paint, Paper and Fabric

Give ordinary pieces a new spin with crafty updates, like a fresh tabletop, decorated sideboard and wall-size pinboard

Not the DIY type but still hankering for a creative interiors project? The answer could be style hacking — shorthand for taking an existing piece of furniture, be it a tired old chair or an off-the-shelf bookcase, and adding some quirky, crafty personality. (The trend began a while back when clever folks discovered they could give Ikea staples new life with a few smart style tweaks.)

Style hacking sits in that happy space between DIY madness (new headboard built from scratch? No problem!) and mass-manufactured blandness. The result can mean an original piece for the price of a tester pot of paint or a roll of wallpaper — ideal if, like many of us, you’re on a budget but don’t want cookie cutter interiors. The following projects are achievable even for beginners.