One fine sunny day, my friend facebooked me, asking if I’d like to come for a look see at her parent’s place. They are friendly retired folks moving into smaller quarters soon, so their many years of collecting was coming to a close and it was time to clean house and home.
I didn’t really know what to expect, but I rearranged my schedule (read: push work to the next day!) and head out. If trucks could talk, mine would have squawked that it wasn’t even awake yet as I made flames down the roadway. It was a junkin’ day after all!
Once I arrived (after getting lost a couple times, terribly directionally challenged I am) I didn’t quite know where to start. And then I saw the rusty metal pile. Giddy, I knew I was home. 🙂
Old rusty headboards adorned a retaining wall. They came home with me. As did one of those mattress spring things you see. Can’t wait to show you what I did with that one. 🙂
There was quite the birdhouse collection dotting the yard as well. I immediately fell in love with this one, as it paid homage to my growing up years. We had that big ‘ol red barn in real life.
Aren’t the shake shingles adorable?!?
There were so many things to look at. I didn’t bring these home but sure wish I could have!
And then there was this little darlin’ stuffed in a corner. Wait till I zoom up on the patina for you.
You can’t possibly MAKE paint do this! Such beautiful natural aging. I’ve never seen crackle look quite like this. Now I see why we attempt to simulate it. Real deal here.
This is part of my pile that came home with me.
A cluster of yardsticks begging to be brought home, and something that resembled a cauldron. It’s cool! That white speckled thing is an antique garden hoe. Never seen anything quite like it. Other antique tools came home as well to mount up on my character building.
Clean workshop?!? Eh… that was last week. 🙂
I just love the galvanized touches along with the other rusty components. Don’t even ask me what I’m going to do with these. I have NO idea. All I knew is, I HAD to have them. My new rusty friends are most happy here. 🙂
I wish I could have stayed all day and just taken pictures. There were old clocks, cameras, dictionaries, newspapers, cutlery, jars, dishes, furniture, skeleton keys… anything and everything, and all from a time long ago. Why didn’t I bring more stuff home? $. I’m sure you get it.
Oh how wonderful. I am soooo jaleous, to be able to rummage there and then just take your pick. Junkers heaven. I am currently on the look out for some iron fences/gates (but know I think headboards might work too). I have a corner in my garden that I want to hide (keep the ugly garbage containers there). I want to put an iron gate in front of it and have winding flowers grow against it. So I’d probably do something like that with them. Use them as a fence in my garden (or make a headboard for my bed like yours, but you already have that).
Some wonderful pieces you got there. I look forward to seeing what you do with the mattress springs. I love that bird house and you are so right about the patina being perfect as is on that dresser. It just needs a little clean up and it will be even better. Enjoy all these treasures.
FlowerLady
Awesome junk! I think I’d use those old headboards for a “flower bed”, you know, bury the footboard about 6 feet away from the headboard and plant flowers in between… or I might even cut the posts off, wire the fancy work to our ugly farm gates and make signs to attach to the posts: “Goat Gallery” “Peacock Paradise”, etc. for all our animal pens. Oh, you lucky woman!
Those headboards are awesome! You’ll have to have one somewhere that you can see it EVERYDAY at it.
Give me a minute to clean the drool from the keyboard! Great… wonderful… awesome finds!! Can’t wait to see what you did with the mattress springs! LOTS of great stuff coming up… yeah! 🙂
Holy crap! It must have been like a kid in a candy store. I do love those old birdhouses. I would have to think about those headboards for a while but one would have to go in the garden for some clematis to wander through! Love the red sled and the old wire sifter thingy. What about the old metal cart, did you bring that home too? (please say yes, please say yes)
ugh! I am so jealous of all your free finds!!! I love the flower bed ideas for those headboards. I also think it would be cool made into a bench for your entry or something. I wonder if you could fasten hooks to it to hang coats. Or, I like it turned sideways and leaned against the wall with quilts hanging on the horizontals. Do you have any king size beds, because…I know this sounds like totally crazy…but you could just use 2 together as an actual headboard. ha, but we would never do THAT!
I am crazy jealous over all your junk finds, I would have been in heaven! I can’t wait to see what you do with all of it!! I love the birdouses, I would have grabbed every one!
Wowsers – I can’t believe I just said that – but really in this situation with those headboards & that dresser – completely necessary! I’m super jealous!
Simon says “Send them to Polly”. You have to do it – Simon said. lol
Envy. Total envy.
Here’s an idea. I would go on the lookout for an old metal watering trough, and then use the headboards to make the frame of a bench, put the trough in the middle as the base and attach a piece of wood to it for the seat.
Or, wouldn’t it be cute to build a fence around your little building – made out of the gates? One right after the other.
Or just line them up in your yard somewhere and plant different kinds of flowering vines on them.
You know, The Great Wall of Headboards.
Seriously, I’m dealing with some total envy here.
Oh, oh, I’ve got it. How about using them for a hammock? Mount them in the yard and tie a hammock to each end. I’ve never seen a hammock with a headboard before!
Man you have a great friend….jealous….
I’m getting lots of outdoor ideas from your finds! Maybe you could make a garden “bed” from one of your headboards. ; )
Metal yard art. Work your magic and weld it into something beautiful. There’s a local shop that sells framing and art, and outside they have the most beautiful rusty metal contraptions. Pieces of art, some spin and move. Everytime I drive by the shop, I think of what you do! I’m sure you’ll do something fantastic with it! 🙂
Oh Donna! I bet you have a bunch of readers drooling all over their keyboard right now.
I sure am!
I just love it all, and do not know that i could pick a fave if I had too.
about the rusty bed frames, I would just love them sitting around the place!
blessings
barbara jean
PS thanks for featuring me today. =0)
Oh la la I am drooling!!!! I love all the rust! There are million things you could do with them- do share! Krista
Great rusty stuff, Donna!! Have fun. I love that patina.. perfection. -Tammy
i would LOVE to have some of those headboards to put in my landscaping. . . .the landscaping that i don’t have, you know?
that’s what you should do! do some tutorials on how to landscape. i don’t know where to start. to save money, we didn’t have our contractor do any landscaping to the house. . .we have a pretty house on a hill sitting in mud! yuck! all i want is some flowers and shrubs around the house!
Ohhh I love those beds!! We got one for $5 at a yard sale that looked like those. We had a friend of my dad’s sand blast it for us and then repainted it for our daughters first big girl bed. It is GREAT!!! And everyone always asks where we got one that old in such good shape.
I’m very curious about what you’re doing with the bed spring! I love the rusty old oil lamps They look so cool! You found some great things!