When Projects Go Awry: The Pallet Herb Box Revisited

Do you guys remember this post from last month?:

Yeah, me too. My Pallet Window Planter was one of my favorite projects. And although I didn't kill the herbs, I did attract a whole bunch of gnasty gnats (pun intended). And I tried everything to get rid of those things. And on top of that, mold (yes, mold) started growing on top of the soil. Gah. I felt a bit defeated since I loved my box so much. I moved it out to my front porch. It made me want to cry every time I saw it out there with the big plants....it just didn't belong outside. Especially after the labor of love that went into it. 

After seeing Claire's post about her box, over at A Little Something in the Meantime...I was inspired to bring the box in, replant my herbs in my outdoor herb garden with the snakes (bleh), clean out the box (thoroughly) and repurpose it. 

My heart just couldn't take it being out in the big, bad world. It belonged in my kitchen.

I decided to re-use it as my cooking-utensil caddy {the previous one was way over-stuffed...I needed something huge for my volume of junk I use to cook with}. I worried about the sealer that I applied to the inside. After scrubbing and scrubbing, I made peace with the fact that all of my utensils are always upside down in the caddy....so the side that touches food doesn't touch the sealer {and I'm not really sure that the sealer is hazardous). Taking my chances. No judging, please.

Ta-Da! I really, really like it over here with my utensils. My husband thinks it's a bit over-stuffed and messy, but hey, that's how I roll. 

After seeing Claire's piece, I was inspired to add some hardware to the sides (fabulous idea, Claire). They also make it easier to just carry over to the dishwasher to reload or pull right up against the stove's side while I'm cooking.

And I think it looks great by my red mixer. It makes me want to clean it out and fill it with red utensils...how fun would that be? These are the two main colors in my kitchen, so I'm glad to have them "married" over here.

BEFORE (yeah, I know...it was a good place and purpose for it):

After (but I'm happy with how it turned out in the end):

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