I am one of those rummagers who hustles right to the garage and basement, elbowing with “the guys.” Many of my counterparts, ladies who are collectors or dealers, prefer the kitchen for glassware, or perhaps the spare rooms for linens and clothing. While I do love those things, my first stop is the grungy areas, hoping to find something with rust, wear or smelling of oil. When hubby is along, we go there together, and I realize he is more of a pro in understanding tools, or determining if the metal is truly old and collectible.
We have a great deal of unusual metal in our home and in our yard. Some visitors think it is “really cool” while others kind of roll their eyes and say “that’s interesting.” (Sounds like my younger daughter when I would shop with her and point out an item of clothing I thought was nice. Her comment denoted disdain and you could almost hear her thoughts of “what is mom thinking?”) But I do not let that deter me. Recycling is in you know.
The hard part can be where and how to display it. The yard art, as we call it, cannot be all cluttered about and not in the way of the lawn mower. I remember too many Ma and Pa Kettle movies to allow that to happen. So we do limit ourselves and do a trade-off of an item if a better one appears.
Rust can be fun! About 10 years ago my daughter gave me a wind chime that is shaped like a bell. The tag actually read “guaranteed to rust” and her husband, who was just getting to know us, queried “now, who would want something that will rust?” My daughter stared at him and exclaimed “my mom, of course.” It was one of my favorite gifts that year. It hangs proudly outside the house, and yes, it rusted pretty promptly.
I recently went to a small antique shop north of Milwaukee and came across this beauty. I was told it was from a barn, perhaps part of the mechanics on the door. But who could pass up a greeting of “Good Luck” for their home? Not me.
A regret that I have: we purchased an old cast iron school bell at a yard sale. The price was very low and we scooped it right up. It was two days before our booth set-up at the wonderful Elkhorn Antiques Fair and we decided to bring it along and see what we could get for it. It was an instant draw, many folks asked about it, tried to pick it up and scratched their chins wondering where they could put it. It was late in the morning and a couple sauntered in and were immediately attracted to it. They had just completed their log cabin in northern Wisconsin 
and thought it would be fantastic on a tree near the front door. They paid (just a few dollars under our rather-high asking price) and asked us to hold it for them. Naturally, everyone who came through our booth the remainder of the day commented on it and we even had one gent who offered us $25 more than it sold for. We, being very ethical, declined his offer, stating it was “SOLD” and then moved it out of viewing sight. I have thought about that wonderful bell for the past few weeks and wishing I had kept it. I know, I know, the name of the antiques game is often “take your profit where you can”, but this was a super piece and I do wish I had hung onto it and found the right spot. I was pleased to know it was going to a good home, however, and hope they enjoy it.
If you are out and about, hitting rummages or estate sales, take some time to check out the garages and basements and then give some thought to where you can fit these older pieces of rusty metal, you might be surprised. Happy hunting.
