Simple Reclaimed Chair Spindle Project: Carrot DIY

Today, I am excited to share the cutest little DIY project that’s perfect for your spring or summer decor – repurposing old chair spindles to create adorable carrot bundles!

Confession time: I have a bit of an addiction.

I have this tendency to collect odd objects, never knowing when inspiration will strike.

Take, for example, this pile of chair spindles.

Some people would just toss them, but I’ve seen so many cute things made from vintage wood chair spindles

How fun is this chair spindle windchime created by Marie from Interior Frugalista

I also used them for the tree trunks of my tin tile trees (you can find that DIY here)

While cutting the chair spindles in half for that project, another idea popped into my head.

They kinda look like carrots to me

Not to eat, of course. I mean, wouldn’t they make the most adorable chair spindle carrots for home decor accents?

My brain works in mysterious (and often odd) ways.

As it turned out, using reclaimed chair spindles to make whimsical wood carrots is so easy

I hope you’re inspired to make some too!

Here’s what you need to get started:

Old chair spindles
Saw
Orange paint
Green paint

Paint brushes
Drill
Hot Glue Gun
Hot Glue Sticks
Green Faux Leaves (optional)
Twine (optional)

Now that you have your supplies gathered, here’s how I made them:

Cutting the Chair Spindles

Start by cutting the chair spindles in half

I used my favorite Ryobi compound miter saw to make easy work of it, but you can use a hand saw if you don’t want to break out the power tools

Don’t worry if they aren’t perfect. The worn edges and irregular shapes just add to their charm

Painting the Base Orange

Next, paint the base of the spindles orange

I used some leftover orange craft paint from my painted pumpkins project

A person is painting a chair spindle with a brush, using light orange paint in this Spindle Project.

Just don’t paint all the way to the top

Leave some space because we are going to paint the tops green

TIP: The ridges of the cut wood spindle are great way to define the difference between the body of the carrot and the top

Since the wood is dark, it may take several coats of paint for full coverage. Just make sure to let the paint dry in between coats.

Painting the Tops Green

Next, paint the tops green to create a base for the “leaves.”

A table with art supplies including a pink paint container with a brush, a green paint container with a ladle, various paintbrushes, and several chair spindles painted orange. A few brushes and paint-stained cups are scattered around the table covered with a plastic sheet from the Spindle Project.

If you looked closely at my chair spindles, you would notice that I had two different types

One set was beautifully curvy

The other set, not so much

I decided to make a more whimsical version with the not-so-curvy spindles

To do this, I simply took a q-tip and dipped it in white paint to create these fun polka dots