Saturday, July 31, 2010

Junk Heaven...



Where's your favorite place to go "junking"? I have a few places I have frequented over the years like The Flea Market at The Tennessee State Fairground,   my friend Becky's place ...Red Wagon Antiques off of Nollensville, Rd.out side Nashville , and of course  Grandma's Attic in Crossville, Tn, the back allies behind the houses in my neighborhood....literally !

horse and buggy sunsetImage by Foxgirl via Flickr

 However, the most amazing place i ever stumbled upon was in Pennsylvania outside of Lancaster in the middle of Amish country. I found it by accident and can't recall the name but it was the most beautiful field full of junk i had ever seen in my life! Surrounded by weathered wood and vintage metal, i wandered through rusted farm equipment and piles of slate till i discovered 8 large handmade primitive drawers. Like any good Junk artist, I had a vision of endless future creations. So, against my mother's better judgement, I drove them all the way back to Nashville in my little Honda civic. (I ended up turning them into pieces for a show at  Twist galley   called "My Bird's Eye View"... and they were worth every penny!)
As you can imagine, I was convinced i had found the mother load ..."junk heaven". So this past Christmas i packed up my car and drove the 12 hours home to go in  search of  "Junk Heaven" and i am sad to say... it is... no more. Where previously had stood endless art supplies....now stood a clean cleared field and another Amish bakery. I was gutted to say the least.. why must everything change? "He's gone out of business... closed the place down"... said a Mennonite woman up the road.
Setting sun in Amish Country, PennsylvaniaImage by Nino.Modugno via Flickr

Tears filled my eyes as the winter sun set on that cold December night. So, i consoled myself by turning on some Innocence Mission ....as i turned for home... singing "nobody knows darling... nobody knows how they are loved...".
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Bead Board Barns!

A few years back I went to the Flea Market at The Nashville State Fair-Grounds and purchased a huge bundle of old weathered light green bead board...I have been slowly using over the years and am just about down to my last few pieces....These Barns were made with recycled wood, paper, and vintage photos that i have collected over the years....I recently started painting on the images and overlapping the photos to create new images....so if you have the space hold onto your scraps and bits ...you never know when they might come in handy!

Alley Cats!!!!

before and after
My most recent junking journey was as close as my back alley with my 94 year old neighbor Mr. Mathew Sherrill we found an old table and this vintage vinyl chair after a little soap and water and  purchasing a vinyl repair kit from "Auto Zone" i tried my hand at repairing the seat!
sometimes back alleys are the best places to find free furniture in need of just a little love and imagination!