Unsold furniture often ends up discounted, donated or, eventually, thrown away. But one overlooked credenza at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Portland, Oregon, received a very different fate. Rather than treating its dated appearance as a problem, craftsman Mark Haley saw an opportunity to turn the unwanted piece into something more useful.
According to Habitat for Humanity, Haley cut apart the donated credenza, salvaged sections of it and rebuilt the furniture as a storage bench. The piece had previously struggled to attract shoppers, but its transformation quickly drew attention. Created as a display for the Portland Spring Home & Garden Show, the finished bench generated purchase requests almost immediately, with hundreds of potential buyers expressing interest by the time the show opened.
