Vintage Book Trough Makeover
Have you ever heard of a book trough? If you’re lucky enough to spot one of these vintage finds at the thrift store, be sure the snatch it up!
If you’ve never heard of a vintage book trough before, you’re not alone! We only recently learned that this long wooden contraption is called a book trough, or book rack. It’s used to organize and display books or other items. Cool, right? Let’s give this vintage a piece a pretty makeover.
What is a Book Trough?
Now you may be wondering about that name. A trough is usually a long narrow container you’d find on a farm for holding animal food. But this wooden thing certainly was not for feeding.
I looked it up and an alternate definition is “any of several similarly shaped receptacles used for various commercial or household purposes.”
An image search of this vintage wooden creation had various names including book shelf, book case and desktop bookcase. But they all did the same thing: hold objects that were the size of books or DVD’s.
Materials Needed for this Upcycling Idea:
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- vintage book trough (look for them in the thrift store)
- sandpaper
- Decoart Chalky Finish paint in Everlasting
- craft paint in blue, white and yellow
- paint brushes
- decorative wax, black
- round wax brush
- lint-free cloth
How to Upcycle a Vintage Book Trough
This old book rack had been sealed with varnish many, many years ago and it was peeling off. So instead of killing myself and trying to remove it all, I just sandpapered the obvious bits off.
I then went over the whole thing with two coats of white chalky paint.
Now this was going to be given to my daughter who loves books so much! So naturally it had to be painted in blue.
I had a few leftover craft paints and mixed them together with the chalky finish paint to create that soft blue which you see below. I may have added a bit of yellow in there too- just for fun!
This was the resulting paint color. I then used the sandpaper to distress it in all the right places.
And to seal it, in I used some black wax. I just put it on with the round brush and then wiped it off with a clean lint-free rag.
All done! And here she is all full of books.
All that heavy distressing really came out great, I wanted to pay homage to the vintage look of this book trough.
It actually looks like it has been in quite a few tumbles and the black wax makes it look old and grungy. Kinda like how we like our books to look – old and worn out – because they have been read.
The books you see here have not been read yet that’s why they are so shiny and new!
But don’t worry I’ll get to them one at a time and my girl will put the trough in her bookcase to store her books in.
We even share books – nothing like a vintage book trough to bring a family together!
So this may seem like a small post but it actually accomplished a lot. I learned what a vintage book trough is and how to up-cycle it in a fun way. But I also bonded with my girl over her love of books.
Now you tell me have you ever heard of the word “trough” before, and is it British or is it just my imagination?
More painted wood projects you’ll enjoy:
I LOVE the color! You are so creative with your upcycle ideas.
Thank you Rachel, it has become my favorite color these past few years.
Cooooool Mary, I haven’t seen one of those in years. My Ouma had one for all of her recipe books in the kitchen. Such amazing memories, she always called it a trog, which when you say it in Afrikaans sounds so much like trough in English. I wonder if the word didn’t perhaps originate from Dutch or maybe even German?
So glad you got to spend bonding time with your daughter too, that makes this one extra special
You know something it does sound like a German word now that I think of it. I had seen it described this way on British websites that’s why I thought it was British, but German makes much for sense.
Good on you for keeping it and making it your own. It look so much better!
I think everything we have in our home has to reflect us, am I right?
What a great informative post with a DIY and bonus family bonding! It turned out really beautiful.
I absolutely love the way this turned out! Hugs and blessings, Cindy
As a book lover, I love this!!! I need several of these to keep my favorites handy! Great idea!!
Mary, I really like this and I’m wondering…could the trough be used for dishes?
Pinning.
Never in a million years would i have thought of this. You have a great creative mind.
From one book lover to another, this would be fabulous bed side to house the stack of “must read” books 🙂 It looks so pretty now – love the custom color and distressed finish! I would have never thought it was called a trough for the same reasons as you. Learn something new everyday.
Such a pretty book trough! Would love to have one of these in MWA! The blue color would totally work in my bedroom, too! 😉
No, that word wasn’t new to me either. Not in Dutch, nor in German or English. My dad used to kneat the dough for the bread in a trog… But I like your through much better! And I absolutely love the vintage look you gave it!
You really know how to give your furniture a worn and loved look Mary. I love the distressing and the color too. I think this is such a cute book holder and my daughter would enjoy this too! I should look out for one here!
I remember these but didn’t know they were book troughs :). The makeover really brings it up to date. You mixed up a very pretty blue. Very nice.
I remember something like this from my childhood. My mom had a book trough built into a little table. So cool that you found a way to update it and put it to good use! Love it!
What a creative idea, and I love that color blue! Pinning!
A well loved book trough for a bunch of well loved books! Looks great.
I love the book trough! Perfect for holding some favorite books. You always mix up the prettiest colors, and as always I love the distressing.
Well, thanks to you, I learned a new word too! And you upcycled that fantastically!
That’s so awesome, I’m always looking for ways to store my ever-growing book collection! Plus I love how you upcycled it, it looks great.
Hi Mary, Haven’t seen one of these book troughs in many years. Your upcycled one looks grand and I pinned it. Thanks for hosting This is How we Roll, where I shared How to Create an Inspiring Vision Board and Beauty, Healing from the Red Rocks in Sedona. Enjoy the weekend and be well. Nancy Andres @ http://www.colors4health.com
Just realized I wrote the wrong blog party meant sweet inspiration. LOL. Mean it anyway, the book trough is great and thanks for hosting.
Looks amazing – I adore books and that trough looks like a perfect and beautiful way to store them!
What a cool piece, Mary! I love the color you came up with. It’s perfect for it. I, too, love books and could definitely put one of these to use at my house. 🙂
I love how this turned out, Mary. The vintage look still shines through. Love the blue. Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle. Pinning.
Hi Mary, I love the look of the chalk paint. I have not used it before. I have a small kitchen table and chairs that I need to repaint. Do you think chalk paint is a good option for a table top which is used for eating? Can you coat it with a finish so that it stays nice and can be wiped off regularly? I like the more vintage , distressed look.
Hi Michele, I think chalk paint is a great option for a table top, as long as you seal it with a varnish so it is protected on top. I have actually done a table just like this, here: https://www.theboondocksblog.com/home/greek-beach-table-intl-bloggers-club-challenge What I forgot to mention is that I used a varnish for the top. I did about 3 coats to protect it and it has stood up very well.
Good luck and let me know how it turns out.
Thanks Mary! I love you blue and white table. Now you’ve got me thinking that maybe I want a color other than just white. We are still in the mess of moving, so it will be several weeks before I can get to this project but I am looking forward to it!
Mary, I had never heard the word “book Trough” before. I only associated troughs with feeding animals too.
However, I’ve seen plenty of those in my families’ houses!!
I am an inveterate reader myself!
I need one of those now!!
Inspire Me Monday Party
Stopping by to say I pinned your book shelf diy. Beautiful work. Best wishes, Linda @Crafts a la mode
Thursday Favorite Things Party
I remember these from my youth….telling my age! You gave this one new life and made memories at the same time. Very nice makeover! So glad you shared with us at Merry Monday! LOVE the paint color!
That turned out so darling! I would love a book trough! Thanks so much for sharing at TFT. I am a new co-hostess there!
So pretty! I used to have these in my classrooms. They were everywhere several years ago, but I haven’t seen one it a long time. So cool…
As a Brit I have to confess that I’ve only heard the word trough used for animal feed containers and for gardening (a long thinish planter would be a trough here too) Oh, you can have peaks and troughs in business too can’t you? Ups and downs. And also you can trough your food down if you eat too quickly, but that’s slang, I don’t know if everyone says that.
Anyway, I LOVE the idea of a book trough, and I love the makeover you gave this one.
Oh my friend you are so creative! I love this color and you used it the better way you could!
Vintage is always fun
Hi Mary! I had seen these book troughs before but didn’t know that’s what they are called, either. Love how yours turned out! It’s nice that you all share books. My daughter and I would often share books when we were at home together, though she is a much faster reader than I am, Lol! 😉 Great project!!! Pinned and will G+, too. <3
Happy weekend to you,
Barb 🙂