Over the years I’ve done various pieces of DIY and I love upcycling in particular. Today I thought I’d share this tutorial on a monk’s bench I found on eBay and how I refurbished it into something that looked good and fit in our home decor.

Church Pew Upcycle Materials (affiliate links for your convenience):

1. First sand it down to get rid of the varnish finish and create a key for the paint. I generally do this by hand as it’s easier to get in all the nooks and crannies, but it can be time consuming and my hands certainly don’t thank me for it!

2. Next paint a white undercoat all over the bench and leave it to dry for 24 hours.

3. After this it’s time to set to work with your choice of paint. I used Olive Green by B&Q Colours, which matched some cushions I’d already had made. I used two coats of this to make sure it came out even with no streaks.

I would recommend adding a varnish or wax as a final coat so you don’t want to be touching it up every couple of months.

It’s as easy as that! It may take a couple of days as you need to leave it to dry, but with very little effort you can have a perfect storage bench for your home.