Don't Toss An Old Cake Pan — Make A Stunning Piece Of Home Decor

Your trusty cake pan, the one that baked birthday cakes, last-minute potluck desserts, and late-night sweet treats, finally had its last run in the oven. How do you retire such a useful piece of bakeware? You could give it a new purpose around the home. We've already covered genius ideas for repurposing old bundt pans, but this time, we're using a plain old cake pan. The new use? A decorative tray personalized with paint and graphics. Instagram user Priscila Raposo, aka minhacasaminhasescolhas, showed off a farmhouse chic version that you can use as inspiration.

It's usually time for new cake pans (at least for baking purposes) when they're scratched deeply. When you buy new pans, keep the old ones for this project. Or, look for older cake pans at thrift stores and garage sales. Either way, you're making an inexpensive and sustainable home decor piece.

Sheet cake pans work well for this project — they're usually about 2 inches deep and come in different sizes. Round cake pans are also an option if you prefer a circular tray. Or, grab a sheet pan, which typically has sides that are under an inch high. Think about how deep you want the tray, and consider where you'll place it when choosing the overall size. To decorate the tray, you'll need paint and any embellishments you want, which could include paper to decoupage onto the pan, stencils, vinyl stickers, beads, and drawer pulls for handles.

Clean the cake pan well before decorating it. Smooth rough patches, and scrape away baked-on food remnants. Sandpaper or steel wool will help get rid of those areas. Do a final cleaning with denatured alcohol to remove remaining oil. Then, apply your main color all over the pan — chalk paint sticks to metal without the need for primer, but you can also spray paint it with a product that works on metal. If you want to add aging to create timeless vintage farmhouse decor, scuff the edges or dab on a contrasting paint color. 

If you want a solid tray, you can stop here. Or, start embellishing to create more of a themed look. In the original project, the creator decoupages floral paper to the bottom and stencils flower market text over the floral print. Copy the original, or use it as a jumping-off point with swaps that work for you. Try a piece of faux leather or fabric in the bottom, for example. Or, use vinyl letters for your text instead of stenciling. Running ribbon, beads, or twine around the inner bottom edge hides the transition.

Another optional embellishment is adding wooden beads or blocks to the bottom to elevate the tray. Or, glue or screw drawer pulls to each side as handles. Use a similar decorative method if you're looking for ways to reuse old muffin tins around the house – the compartments create a divided storage tray that's just as cute as the cake pan version.