How to Decorate With an Old Footboard

Transform an old footboard into a wall-mounted message board for display in your kitchen, entry or living room. Paint the footboard a solid color. Install a piece of wood across the back if it has an opening. Leave it as it is if the footboard is solid. Paint the center portion of the footboard with chalkboard or dry-erase paint. Hang it from the wall for making lists or leaving messages for family members.

Hang an old footboard in a home's entryway or mud room and install hooks along the span to create a distinctive place for storing coats, purses, keys or other hanging items.

Use a footboard with holes as a large picture frame. Get a photograph blown up to the appropriate size or mount a piece of canvas to the back of the footboard and create your own work of art on the front section that shows through the holes.

Paint and decorate an old footboard, mount it to the wall and use it as a built-in headboard in the bedroom. Mount it at a height that ensures you can see it without the bed covering most of it up.