November 15, 2013

The Things They Left Behind

I adore a treasure hunt. Before we had children, Scott and I could spend hours digging through scummy flea markets - riffling through milk crates full of records, tunneling through mountains of books, searching-searching-searching for something extra special that we probably couldn't afford but really really loved.

But what if you could find those treasures right where you lived? Without kids hanging off your leg wailing that they're bored and 'can't we just go look at the toys???!!!'  

The thing about buying a house with outbuildings means that you're very likely to get stuck with things that are left behind.

Sometimes (most of the time) those things are junk.

But sometimes those things turn out to be treasure. Not in the traditional worth-a-fortune-like-a-pirates-spoils but in a 'I've got a perfect spot to enjoy this little thing I happened upon while digging in the barn' kind of way.

Here is a small sampling of some of my favorite finds from right here where I live.

vintage, old, rusty, scale, kitchen scale, barn scale

The Rusty Scale: I'm pretty sure this was used once upon a time to weigh rabbits before butchering (ew!) but now it sits it's pretty little self on my kitchen counter.  It doesn't work properly but I love it for it's colour and patina.

vintage, old, rusty, sign, ontario farm fresh market 
The Beat Up Sign: There used to be a Farmers Garden Market where our neighbors live and this hung at the end of their lane way. How it came to live in our barn I will never know but now, it too resides in the kitchen.


The Old Window:  You've seen this before but I haven't stopped loving this window that I found in a pile at the back of the barn.

old, vintage, rusty, carpenter square, wooden

The Carpenter's Square: At least, I think that's what it is.  I love it's rusty finish and it sits quite nicely on our craft table.

red, tin can, can, heinz ketchup, utensil holder

The Ketchup Can: Now a functional utensil holder that matches the kitchen walls.

the pop shoppe, bottle, pop bottle, vase, red

The Old Glass Pop Bottle: Actually, there's a whole case of these. I'm using this one as a vase but waiting for inspiration to strike for creative ways to use the others.

kodak, camera, vintage, old, no.2 folding, autographic
The Vintage Camera: This beauty was inside an old kettle and packed behind a collection of jars and bottles - I LOVE old cameras!

Happy hunting!

[NaBloPoMo Day 15 - half way there!!]
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8 comments:

  1. Ahhhhh so jealous of your AWESOME camera find!

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    Replies
    1. It's cool, isn't it?! I already had a few that I saved from a big clean out of my grandparents old farm house but you can never have too many!

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  2. What fun finds! Congrats on having eyes that see!

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  3. Neat. I hope the people who bought my mom's place enjoyed the leavings as much as you seem to.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Did you leave a lot behind? I think it's so fun to dig around - you never know what you're going to find!

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  4. I'm pretty sure that window was from Grandma and Grandpa's house, when they got new ones.

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    Replies
    1. Really??? That makes it even better!

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    2. Check with mom, but I think she took a couple.

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