One of the best gifts I ever received started out as a bunch of junk – five old door knobs and a piece of wood. Thanks to my handy husband I am now the proud owner of a one-of-a-kind coat rack. I can’t tell you how many compliments I have received about my gift.
It all started years ago when we would often go to flea markets from Armada to Centerville and then all the way to Brimfield, Massachusetts. We would pick up things from our back road travels with no idea how or when we would use them. Sometimes we repurposed them, other times they got put in a box in the basement to be used some other time. I liked to buy vintage House and Garden magazines from the 1920’s and 1930’s with gorgeous advertisements in them. I have framed a few of these ads and they now hang in my house. My husband always kept his eye out for old quality lighting fixtures – with a little polish and some re-wiring a few of these beauties also came to hang in our house.
Antique stores, consignment shops, thrift stores (Salvation Army and Goodwill), garage sales and estate sales are all perfect places to pick up something that catches your eye. Maybe a fresh coat of paint is all it will take to fix something up – or sometimes just a good cleaning. I have seen a cement rake that found new life as a wine rack, wool mittens made from old sweaters (I made a few pair of these myself this past winter). A favorite of mine was stuffed animals made from old chenille bedspreads – they were adorable.
Most items have more than one purpose – you just have to figure out what it can become. Is it junk or jewel? Most libraries carry books on how to make crafts out of found things, some ideas are complicated but some are really simple.
My husband still has that box of old door knobs and shower knobs in the basement just waiting to find their second life……
