Why I Decorate With Junk

I have this friend who used to feel sorry for me.

I didn’t know this until much later, but apparently the first few times she visited my house, she thought we were struggling to make ends meet.  She pitied me because my furniture was so old and beat up.

I still laugh out loud each time I recall her letting me in on this secret!

Born and raised in another country halfway across the world, she was obsessed with “new” furniture.  Where she comes from, old and used items indicate poverty.  New items signal success and wealth.  And actually, many native U.S. residents may agree!

This old, beat up bench cost us nothing but a drive to a beautiful farm nearby. Our realtor knows how we are (I like to think of it as “resourceful”), and tipped us off about her clients who were moving and getting rid of many “treasures.” We literally walked through their home, saying “Sure! We’ll take that. And that. And that…” The bench is the perfect size and patina for our playroom sitting area, where we needed something narrow and durable.

The funny rest of the story is that now she (the aforementioned friend) has begun incorporating “junk” into her own decorating style!  I recently visited her  newly-purchased home and commented on an adorable set of table and chairs in her breakfast nook.  She laughed and described how the table was old, but newly painted.  She’d enlisted her parents’ help to paint the chairs to match, and then recovered the seats in a fun fabric.  It looked so great and we laughed together about her evolution of style.

“I get it now,” she said.  “Old things really can be so beautiful.”

This old dresser was rescued by a relative from the curbside trash and now serves as our kitchen island.  I love its curves and antique drawer pulls!  Of course, it didn’t look exactly like this when it was sitting on the curb, but more on that later…

There are so many reasons why I love to decorate with junk.

1. It’s economical.  Many items in our home were either free or very inexpensive.  I like to save where I can in order to splurge where I want.
2. It’s unique.  Who wants their house to look just like every other house, or (even worse) like a furniture catalog?  Not me!  (Unless it’s a Pottery Barn or Restoration Hardware catalog, in which case I might make an exception).
3. It’s got character.  A story.  I love looking at some of our old things and wondering about their past lives…
4. It’s green.  I’m not a tree hugger or anything, but I do love to save useful items from the landfill.
5. It’s an endlessly creative challenge.  It’s so fun to transform old things, to give them new life!  I really get charged up about repurposing old pieces.
6. The end result is so rewarding!  I often hate the process.  You know, the part where I cannot find the design solution I’m looking for, or when I’m waiting and waiting to find that perfect item (the one that I can’t quite identify, but I’ll know it when I see it) or when my idea didn’t quite work out the way I hoped it would.  But I LOVE that part at the end, when I find the perfect solution, or the perfect item, or the perfect idea!  Everything comes together, and it was all worth it.

We acquired this hutch free of charge from a neighbor who was relocating. (Do you know how much this would cost at an antiques store!?)  For years, it sat outside on her porch. Now it’s just perfect in our guest room!

Anyone else out there love to decorate with junk?  I’d love to hear about your favorite finds!

Other posts you might like:

• Master Bedroom Makeover
• Master Bedroom Makeover: Nightstands in Distress
• DIY Harvest Sign
• Vintage Diaper-Changing Station
• DIY Pallet Shelf