The Unique DIY Home Decor Idea That Upcycles Old Phones Into Bookends
Back in the day, people spent hours talking to their friends on rotary or push-button phones — the kind that plugged into a jack on the wall and lived on a little table or perhaps on a wall in the kitchen. You can save these retro treasures from ending up in landfills by tackling an adorable DIY project that will spruce up your bookshelf with genuine pop art. This is a fun way to repurpose outdated technology and create an eye-catching conversation piece — plus, its aesthetic pairs well with midcentury modern architecture, enhancing any room's character. You'll just need a pair of shelf brackets, a power drill, and a couple of totally fabulous old-school telephones to DIY fun bookends.
Since landline telephone styles changed through the decades, it should be easy to find (or perhaps you have) vintage phones that are well-suited to your home décor. If you don't have any stored away in your attic, you could pop over to eBay, where you'll find a huge selection; you can even check local thrift shops. It doesn't matter if you're using rotary or touchtone phones — this functional art project will possibly be the easiest you've ever done.
Repurposed vintage phone receivers make a great addition to your bookshelf
To create your bookends, remove the telephone cords from each phone's receiver. Drill a pilot hole in the bottom of each piece, then secure the shelving brackets with screws. The receivers can face inward or outward, depending on your preference. Put books between both receivers, and that's it — you're done!
If the original phones' color isn't to your preference, a coat of spray paint in a bold color will change the look of the bookends while maintaining the original nostalgic design — you could even paint the metal brackets to match. Another option is to use different phone handsets for either end to get a super funky mismatched vibe. This eco- and budget-friendly bookend DIY can also be done with one rotary telephone, as demonstrated by TikTok user Sheabalina; simply attach one bracket to the handset and the other to the base of the phone. Your new retro bookends are a fun way to decorate a reading nook, but this DIY design isn't exclusively reserved for books. These pieces can hold vinyl records, CDs, DVDs, and anything else that needs to be stored upright.