Our daughter, Laura, made this whiligig at a workshop near her home in Washington State. The beauty is a composite of treasures culled from rummage and estate sales in her area.
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Those of us who enjoy junking are NEVER BORED—and we’ll probably never be tempted to go off the deep end financially with our passion for collecting, because the stuff we prefer doesn’t normally cost that much.
The items we love best are those which many folks disregard, discard, and even look down their noses at. These people don’t get it. They’re missing a huge chunk of abundant living to be found in foraging garage sales, scrap yards, and curbsides!
Now that rummage season is in full swing, our joy cups run over on a regular basis. We come home from a morning of foraging renewed, refreshed, and super charged with creative ideas as to where we will place, or how we will use, our newly acquired treasure. One thing is certain: where junkers are concerned, there are no two homes alike. Our decor is highly individual. It can be simulated, but never cloned!
In celebration of junk, junk, wonderful junk, here are some outdoor shots of our comfy little condo where Joe and I live contentedly with loads of junk:
↑ The small blue granite pitcher peeking out of the Hosta is mounted on an upside down lamp base from one of those derelict “Made in China” lamps which, after 2 years of use, tend to become electrically unsafe. The base (hidden in the photo) was too pretty to discard, so I cut off its cord and glued my vintage blue pitcher on its bottom. Behind the pitcher is a broken, circa 1930 plate. I never discard broken china or pottery, as it can always find a pleasant home among my garden or house plants.
And observe the old watering can, complete with its “rose” on the spout. These are pricey now, as most everyone wants an old watering can. Fortunately, I found mine years ago. 🙂
↑ A saxophone playing frog leans against the bird feeder, with our mutant Bleeding Heart providing a background. Froggie was actually a new purchase, a gift from our daughter Laura.
Note the Virginia Creeper creeping up the trellis—one of my all time favorite vines, also called Woodbine or Englemann Ivy. It’s indestructable in our northern climate. More damaged pottery rests on a handmade-by-Joe bench on the right as you view the photo.
↑ A closer look reveals the frog’s companions: a bunny and a skull from the Southwest, reminiscent of artist Georgia O’Keeffe.
↑ The hangy thingy next to the hummer feeder was assembled by a local artist who has a business called FUNKY FINDS.
You can see the tops of a couple of old screens. Screens and shutters with chipped, peeling paint are always welcome—indoors or out. One can never get enough of those!
↑ Here is our patio, right off the living room so that we savor a year ’round indoor/outdoor atmosphere. The patio is the setting for many lazy spring, summer, and autumn days spent sipping iced tea, reading, snoozing, and cloud gazing. The patio faces east, so that we can sun bathe in the morning and rest in the afternoon shade.
This picture was taken in a downpour. The card table gets covered with a lovely vintage cloth on sunny days. It also serves as a place for my art equipment and afternoons of sketching and painting.
The smashing antique croquet set was a rummage sale treasure which cost $5.00. It has all its mallets, balls, and arches—with an old rag tied to each arch. We can take the croquet set up the berm to the park, just a few yards away, for killer games.
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In closing, here is one of my most precious photos of our grandsons, Nathaniel and Joelly, with their creation from their finds from a junk yard near our up north home. Nathaniel is the driver of this unique vehicle. I’m not sure what Joelly is doing with the stick—I think it’s a car window cleaner. ↓
Upon all the evidence, I rest my case! Junk is wonderful!
Margaret L. Been, ©2011
The Messy Palette . . . 