Reprogram that old TV armoire

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Are we saying au revoir to the armoire?

Sleek, flat-panel televisions, typically mounted to walls or perched on credenzas, have rendered the bulky but lovely armoire superfluous. And when people want to get rid of their television armoires, so pricey and popular in the 1990s, they aren't finding many takers at garage sales or consignment shops.

"They're the dinosaurs of 2008," says Debbie Taylor, owner of Revival Home Furnishings, a consignment store in Overland Park, Kan. "We sell them for $50 or $60."

But wait. Before unloading an armoire on the cheap or, even worse, setting it on the curb destined for the landfill, think about how it still can be used.

Carol Whitney of Olathe, Kan., wasn't keen on parting with her TV armoire when she recently switched to a flat-panel television. After all, she paid a lot for it and still loved the wood finish.

Inspiration struck when she was flipping through a Pottery Barn catalog and saw a picture of an office armoire.

"A computer, printer and all the papers that come with it are things I don't want to see out in the open," Whitney says. "You don't mind seeing a slim television out in the open."

Whitney took the armoire to Cheep Antiques in North Kansas City. The store used to retool vintage wardrobes into TV armoires, so she figured it could convert her TV cabinet into an office armoire.

Store employees removed existing shelves and added shelving and eight cubby holes.

The drawer in the middle became a drop-hinge platform for a computer keyboard. Whitney loves it.

"I think we'll be seeing more retrofits like this because more people are interested in being environmentally conscious and in saving money in this economy," says Judee Porter, owner of Cheep Antiques. "The possibilities are endless with TV armoires."

That's what Bobanne Kalkofen thought, too. The interior design professor at Johnson County Community College assigned students to come up with new uses for old armoires.

"Every decade our needs as a society change," Kalkofen says. "So many people have TV armoires. I knew there had to be ways to rethink and repurpose them."

Student April Welsh, a designer and drafter at Olympic Cabinet Co. in Kansas City, Kan., went gung-ho for the assignment. She brainstormed about it while she drove home from class and typed up a proposal for half a dozen ideas. She also sent out a collegewide e-mail seeking people who weren't using their TV armoires. She received four responses within hours.

"That showed me that repurposing TV armoires is a definite need," Welsh says. "It saves large furniture pieces from going to a landfill. I think with some creativity, you can transform a white elephant into an heirloom."

Instead of merely coming up with plans on paper for the assignment, Welsh decided to actually transform two TV armoires for people who responded to her e-mail.

Matt and Kristin Wantland of Prairie Village, Kan., had an unused one in their garage, a gift from his mother. The French country piece didn't fit with the couple's more modern furnishings. Welsh interviewed the Wantlands about their needs and learned that they were expecting their first child this summer and didn't have any baby furniture. So Welsh decided to convert the armoire into a diaper-changing station.

She removed the ornate trim pieces from the top and bottom, giving the cabinet cleaner lines. She added solid maple backing and reinforced the base so it would be sturdy enough for a baby. She added hooks to the back and cubbies for storage. Welsh sewed a diaper-changing pad herself.

When Kristin Wantland saw the transformed piece, she felt like she was on "Extreme Makeover: Furniture Edition."

"It's awesome," she says. "The new look is perfect for our house. The ceilings are low, so the lower top will be great. We're really excited."

Welsh's other client, Mary Hedberg of Shawnee, Kan., paid $3,000 for her three-piece TV armoire in the 1990s. The set eventually sat in the basement and didn't get much use.

When Welsh interviewed Hedberg, she discovered that she wanted a coffee bar for her master bedroom. So Welsh lowered the cabinet and added a granite top for a coffeemaker, drawers for mugs and coffee and a waste basket for coffee grounds. She refinished the piece in a darker glaze that complemented Hedberg's other furnishings.

Welsh proposed fresh uses for Hedberg's remaining two armoire pieces: One will be converted into a display case to be used by Hedberg's son, who recently graduated from college. The other will become a bookcase.

Another "new" use for a TV armoire, suggests Welsh, is to go old school: Install a rod and use it to store clothes.

Here are some other ideas for repurposing an armoire, courtesy of the case-goods class in the interior design department at Johnson County Community College:

--China hutch: Add lighting, shelves and glass doors for displaying dishes.

--Garage cabinetry: Keep the large spaces for storing bulk items. Or add hooks and cubbies for tools.

--Humidor: Add a hole in back for ventilation and cedar liners to keep cigars fresh.

--Kitchen pantry: Add hooks for pots and pans and shelves for baking trays. Install a blackboard inside the door for grocery lists.

--Linen closet: Add shelves for towels and sheets.

--Liquor cabinet: Add racks for hanging glasses from ceiling. Install shelf that pulls out as a cutting board for garnishes and another shelf for cocktail recipe books. Use glass shelves for liquor bottles. Add wine-storage cubbies underneath. Add lighting. Install mirrored back.

--Media archive: Add shelves and racks for compact discs and DVDs.

--Mudroom lockers: Remove doors and add cubbies, hooks and a mirror.

--Outdoor bar and kitchen: Refinish with an outdoor finish such as teak. Retrofit pocket doors, add outdoor refrigerator and ice chest, and a granite top.

--Shoe storage: Add cubbies, racks and baskets.