Junk Chic Cottage

I was on Anne Marie's blog today   www.nadafarmlife.blogspot.com  and was inspired by her blog posting of expressing your soul through the beautiful found treasures within our homes.  How store bought things aren't always the things that express who we are but more the reloved items we put into our homes.  Items rescued and reloved or given to us by a friends or family members.  They represent history and each piece tells a story.  This hit home with me because I love to rescue, repurpose and relove pieces of history into my home.  My most cherished items are items passed down to me from family.  When we moved and had to downsize I gave alot of family heirlooms to my two daughters to keep and cherish in their family homes.


This cabinet I have in my office was old kitchen cabinets taken out of an old farmhouse in Iowa.  I bought it from one of the great vendors of old vintage stuff at the Kane County Flea Market.  I loved that I scored this old chippy cabinet and it had a great story with it.  The vendor told me of how she saved alot of things out of the trash when they tore down this old farmhouse.  So glad she saved this little treasure from the trash.

I so so love old doors.  I just think of the history of who has walked through these doors and the stories they tell.  This door I got from  www.tatteredtiques.com  it was an old horse farm barn door. I fell in love the moment I set eyes on it in the shop.

This little chippy door was thrown out in the trash!!!What!!!! who would throw out such a beautiful part of history?  I loved the mail slot in this door. Such character and the little ledge under the window just too much for me to pass this up.  I hang her proudly in my home knowing this hung on a home and many family and friends passed through this door.

Another chippy door that I got at an estate sale years ago in a old lake house cottage they were tearing down.  Oh the fun summers the families of this place must have had on the lake.  I have a home in a lake town so I knew this was meant to be for me.  Now it hangs in my lake cottage guest room of my home.  It is amazing the love I feel for a simple old door with history.

I am sure some of you saw these chippy side lights I hung on each side of the entrance from my kitchen to the family room.  I loved that this one on the left had the old chippy mail slot too.

These chippy windows were out of an old farmhouse and I got them in a shop I like in Geneva called Denise's Adornments. Loved that these too hung in an old house.

I love these old doors I got at the flea market and my husband was able to make them into a great headboard in our bedroom.  I just love to be surrounded by history.

This old birdhouse hung outside an old farmhouse for many years. I just think about how many birds have lived and had their little families inside this cutie.

The old shutter off an old tear down and the old vintage birdhouse have alot of history between them. So glad I could hang them together to make this beautiful piece for my wall.

These cute suit cases and the places they have gone through the years.  Oh my I can only imagine.

Old gates for a headboards.  I can dream about the gardens these gave entrance too.

Old chippy gate to hang my stuff on in my office.  Another lovely gate taken from a beautiful home with a beautiful garden now has a new home and a new purpose.

Ok these next few pictures are of some of the vintage mailboxes I have inside my home.  I think of all the love letters and special and important news that went through these.

This was an old farm discard.  I can't believe someone would throw out a beautiful old and chippy mail box like this.  This one is special because it is so big.  The packages left in this alone such stories!!!

This is one of my prized treasures.  This mail box is from the 1900's cast iron and all.  Back before phones, cell phones and internet the only way of communicating was through mail.  Oh the wonderful history of stories and messages that went through this mail box.

This was given to me by a special friend years ago.  She made this chippy table for me and put these old baskets in it for all my magazines.  She knew my love of reading magazines for inspiration and she wanted to give me something special to store them in.  Thank you Paula for my gift from long ago. I love it.

This is piece is a really special piece for me.  This was my grandmothers old cedar chest from my dad's side of the family.  I love that when we were kids this chest always stored some of the most comfy blankets to curl up with.  My little friend is guarding the piece for me!!!!!!! She is nosey and wanted to be in the picture.

This little pillow means the world to me.  My 99 year old grandmother that just passed last year is in this picture with my grandpa.  This was actually their wedding photo out on their farm.  The beautiful charm bracelet was a prized keepsake for my grandma.  It has each of us grandchildren on it and our birthdates.  She loved this bracelet.  Also in the upper right corner of the pillow is my grandmothers watch that she put on everyday.  She always needed to know what time it was.  The picture, the charm bracelet and the watch are cherished and treasured pieces of memories for me of my grandma.  I loved her so much and miss her so much.  She was only a few months short when she died of reaching 100 years old.  She was a wonderful women caring wife, mother and loving grandma and great grandma.  I am so glad to have these pieces from her to hold on too precious memories.


 

Here is an upclose of the charm bracelet.

Well I just thought I would shoot some pictures from around my house today of some of the treasures with history that I love in my home. Thanks Anne Marie for the inspiration.