Vintage Farmhouse

Love this vintage table

When it comes to decorating inside or out, I love vintage farmhouse stuff.  Whether it be pails, buckets, doors, windows, farm implements, or tables, I love it and the more layers of chipped & peeling paint the better.

 I first began using old doors in our garden center.  Everyday we had folks come in and ask to purchase the doors. At first I said no, after all, I was using them.  But then again, I knew were to get more. So, we began to sell the doors as well as plants.  I am amazed at the creativity that I see when people tell me how they are going to use the doors.  And every so often someone actually purchases one to use as a door- amazing! Truly, the subject of how to use old doors would be a blog post all in itself- and it probably will be.

Old buckets have so many uses

Obviously, pails & buckets lend themselves to be planters, whether inside or out. The buckets and pails are also great for holding extra toilet paper or extra towels in the bathroom or napkins in the kitchen. Windows have many uses such as message boards, simple decor, or picture frames.  Really, there are no rules just let you imagination take you there.  I guess if you have large enough room, you could use farm implements inside, but mainly I use those to accent flower beds.  I especially love to plant pole beans around the implements.  Once it gets really warm the beans start blooming and the display is beautiful.

Lately I have been smitten with old tables. Painted wood has had my eye for awhile, but the wood ones with the porcelain tops are awesome.  They are very durable and the little dings and worn spots give them character. The porcelain tops are just great in and of themselves.  When the wood in the table has seen its last days, the tops can live on as message boards and such.  Magnets stick to the metal, paint pens work great for adding a quote or Bible verse to them, and dry erase will wipe off of them.

Many of the older folks would say that these things belong in the trash heap, but I so disagree.  By re-using and re-purposing things from the past, we can create a unique style and reduce waste at the same time.  Not to mention the sentiment attached to many of these items.  The look and feel of a galvanized bucket reminds me of summer and my Great-Grandmother's farm.  The old farm implements remind me of my earliest memories in the "fields"- that is what my family called the 5 acre garden where the produce was grown to take to the Dallas Farmer's Market.  I loved running barefoot and feeling the sand between my toes and digging a hole and burying my feet in the cool soil.  I like having items around me that pull these sensations from my memories.