Upcycle Thrifted Wooden Canes Into Vintage Inspired Holiday Decor


I am in full holiday mode now (are you?) and despite not neeeeeding any more holiday decor, I just couldn’t resist these wooden canes when I saw them. They were at the thrift store and at $1.99 each how could you pass them up?

2 thrifted canes

Prepping the Canes

To start the recreation of these lovely canes, I removed the rubber bottoms. I didn’t need them and they were really easy to just pop off.

rubber bottoms on thrifted canes

I wiped both canes down well with some Fusion TSP alternative and then started sanding them. I didn’t want to remove all of the finish but did want to scuff it up a bit. I love these sanding sponges for this type of work. They are squishy and easy to hold.

sanding block and 2 canes in different colours

Taping the Canes

Once the wooden canes were sanded down, I started at the base of the canes and wrapped painter’s tape all the way up to the top. You want to start the bottom at an angle and then as you wrap, it will leave the perfect gap all the way up the cane.

using painters tape to tape off canes

The top of the cane was a little tricky but I just stuck the tape down crinkly as I moved around the curve.

painters tape on a wooden cane

Painting the Canes

With the taping all done, it was time to paint. I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White and did two coats.

painting wooden canes with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

wooden thrifted canes painted white

Peeling the Tape and Finishing the Canes

Once the two coats of paint were completely dry, it was time to peel up the tape, and boy was it satisfying! I should have filmed this part just because it would have been fun to watch lol.

removing painters tape after painting two wooden canes

I wasn’t overly concerned with how the paint looked becuase I knew I wanted to distress them after the tape was off.

two canes painted with white stripes

I wanted them to have more of a vintage look so grabbed a sanding sponge again and gave them a quick sanding.

sanding paint on a wooden cane

Adding Bows

The final touch to the vintage-inspired candy canes was to add some bows. I found this beautiful cotton ribbon last year and the red was the perfect pop of colour since I had left the other stripe a natural colour.

canvas ribbon with red snowflakes

adding rustic bows to thrifted canes

The larger candy cane got a double bow,

and the smaller one got a single one.

canes painted with white stripes and bows for the holidys

I love how cute these are and I’ll choose to upcycle something any day over buying new.

thrifted canes painted with stripes and bows hanging on them

I hope your holiday season is off to a great start and you’re finding time to be creative amongst the hustle and bustle too.

thrifted canes turned into Christmas decor leaning on a building

If you love vintage as much as I do, be sure to check out the Recreated Designs shop for all of your furniture painting, crafting, and vintage needs.

All of the links in the project are to the Recreated Designs shop and are for products that I regularly use and love. Enjoy!

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