Finding a New Use for Old Things
I love the process of finding cool old stuff. Sifting through antique stores, junk shops, flea markets, yard sales. Finding that one special thing that can really make a statement. I love taking something that is a piece of trash and making it shine. I love the challenge of taking something that was used in one way and making it work in a new or better way. I just love old things, period. Antique items all have a story. Some of the things in my home have a story I’m somewhat familiar with, as they are family pieces passed down through generations. Some the finds I’ve made over the years are just old, but I can imagine where they’ve been and like to wonder what their story might be. Some of my things aren’t all that old, but their story comes after I purchased them. Like the old coffee table I bought for $3 at a yard sale before moving into my first house in college, and then refinished using glue to make a crackle effect on top before moving into my first by-myself-apartment in graduate school. Or the armchair I got at a flea market for $20 that had a hideous, torn royal blue floral print upholstery. My mom reupholstered it for me and it was a great addition to the waiting room of my first private practice office. Some of my favorite things are both old and have been tweaked by me in some way.
For example, one type of item I especially love because of its endless possibilities and inherent artistic appeal is an old window. I have scored lots of cool old windows over the years at great prices. Most as low as $5, some even free. One person’s trash, and all that…
Old windows have so many great uses. I have lots of them that I love using for wall art. I’ve collected them over the years. I have done work on some of them, and some I pretty much just kept as they were when I found them. Here are some of the ways I’ve used them for wall art:
With this old screen I didn’t do anything but turn it sideways and add the hooks to the top.
I didn’t do anything to the top leaded window in this photo. I added the flower stencil to the glass on the bottom one. I just love the shapes of these windows and the textures of the old cracked paint and wavy glass.
I love the elongated shape, crackly paint, and great old hardware on this window. When I bought it, it was missing one pane of glass. Rather than adding more glass, I thought it would be more interesting to cut and punch a piece of tin to fit. The tin was brand new, so I rubbed a little brown paint on it to take off the shine.
I’m a total sucker for a basic mullioned window. We had windows similar to these in the house where I grew up. This one was a boring brown, so I did a paint finish on it to make it more interesting and so it would coordinate better with the other windows in my wall decor. I have used it as a photo frame, but for now I’m enjoying it’s simplicity just as is.
This window was free (yes, in this case that means I picked it out of someone’s trash). I didn’t do anything to it but scrub it up and add the pieces of a very old and tattered quilt in the openings.
This window is one of my favorites. It still has its original paint finish, turning lock at the top and handle at the bottom. I screwed the old door-molding-corner-piece-things in from the back to give it some more interest and a little function too. Initially I used the little shelves for pillar candles. Now, with the window in the entryway of my home, they hold mini framed photos of my girls or provide a place for guests to drop keys or hang hats, coats, or bags.
This is the first view one gets when coming in my front door.
The space below the window is empty. I’m still looking for a fabulous foyer table to round out the space. Maybe something old. Maybe a yard sale trash to treasure piece. Maybe even a new table with a funky old look or a piece of naked furniture I can put a great old-looking paint finish on. The possibilities are endless. Happy junking.
