Gorgeous Ways To Upcycle Old Tea Cups

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Vintage teacups are the kind of rare object that still look gorgeous and can still be useful even if they’re cracked in several places or chipped and fading. Whether you’ve just inherited an old set that you’ll never use as is or found a box of damaged ones at a rummage sale, there’s a DIY opportunity in every single cup!

Check out these ultra creative ways to repurpose vintage teacups so their beauty can still be admired, even if they’re too cracked to hold your afternoon tea.

1. Cake stand

A Beach Cottage shows you how to make a simple cake stand out of an old teacup flipped upside down. Find its matching saucer, or even just a well sized plate that suits the cup’s colour scheme, and fasten it to the top. Your cake will look instantly classy sat atop such a fine stand!

2. Cupcake stand

Matching (or even stylishly mismatched) plates and saucers look amazing stacked on a stand with a little teacup topping it all off! Use the stand to balance cupcakes, macarons, and other small desserts. La Chica de la Casa de Caramelo walks you through the crafting process.

3. Flying flower teacups

DIY Enthusiasts cascading flowers idea is absolutely stunning, but it’s also a near optical illusion in the way it makes the teacup look like it’s floating! This design makes gorgeous decor for a wedding, but we’d be sneaking one home after so we could enjoy its unique beauty after that too.

4. Curtain fasteners

BHG guides you through the steps of carefully cutting the bottom out of an old teacup so that you can gather your curtains and slide them through the hole. The final look is vintage, unique, and completely adorable!

5. Teacup candles

This tutorial from Elizabeth Anne Designs shows you both how to make the actual candle and how to safely fill each teacup with it. Let the teacups try and then enjoy how gorgeous they look lit up anywhere in your home, or maybe even at your wedding reception.

6. Sconce planter

Oversized teacups or large coffee and latte mugs make beautifully decorative sconces for your summer plants! Intelligent Domestications shows you how to affix them properly so that they support your flowers without falling down and damaging your porch or the plants.

7. Lamp stand

Perhaps you found an entire tea set and not just the teacups? Score! Follow Vintage Revivals‘ lead and repurpose the whole set as a single project by making this awesomely stacked tea set lamp stand.

8. String lights

Luzia Pimpinella suggests using many repurpose teacups and some string lights to create a series of little spotlights you can hang throughout the room. They’ll contribute to your decor in a delicately vintage way while also providing you with light very practically.

9. Standing bird feeder

Intimate Weddings idea for a teacup bird feeder is quite simple, really! Affix the cup to the saucer and the saucer to a wooden pole in the ground. Fill the cup with bird seed, making sure to sprinkle some around the saucer as well, and voila! birds will be able to balance on the saucer and the edge of the teacup to snack while you enjoy watching them over coffee.

10. Tea set bird bath

If the tea set lamp stand isn’t quite your style, try repurposing large tea set pieces outside of your home instead! Morena’s Corner guides you through the process of piecing together this awesome bird bath that will contrast with the nature of your yard.

11. Makeup and jewelry holder

Stacking several teacups of different sizes on a plate and within each other creates a tall, rather practical jewelry stand that keeps your things easy to access and on pretty display. Get the instructions for building it at Designs by Studio C.

12. Topsy turvy jewelry stand

Do you love the idea of teacup jewelry stands but feel like your style calls for something a little whackier? Try affixing the pieces together at interesting, topsy turvy angles rather than in a straight tower, just like El Brooklyn Taco did.

13. Pendant light

Very large teacups that are too big to be added to your vintage string lights can still be used for practical lighting purposes! Hometalk shows you how to transform your largest teacups into spotlights instead.

14. Wine glasses

We fell in love with these teacup wine glasses the second we set eyes on them. Of course, you’ll have to choose teacups without cracks so they can still hold liquid, but Half Ass Chic Crafts will walk you through the rest of the steps!

15. Herb garden

Intimate Weddings suggests treating each unique teacup like its own little herb garden. Follow their lead to ensure that you plan each herb correctly and then let your mini gardens thrive!

Do you have another idea for repurposing old teacups? Tell us about it in the comments section!