ANTIQUE STORE YARD SALE

I wasn't going to junk hunt this weekend, but a nearby antique store was having a yard sale. Chandler Antiques in Mechanicsville, VA had tables and tables of wares spread out in their parking lot so my husband graciously pulled over.

This sale was great for finding those bits and pieces that complete projects. I really got lucky because they had a lot of great plates in all colors, shapes and sizes.

Sherry @ Recycled By Skattur on Etsy

My goal is to make garden flowers out of the different plates. Just like the one above, my favorite, there are many beautiful ones on Etsy.

Previously, I picked up seven of these green, leafy plates for $3.25. I thought these would be great background plates for the flowers and the price was definitely right.

At the sale, I kept mixing and matching plates in different combos until I arrived at six arrangements that I liked:

There were many pretty plates with great design and color to choose from. I also ended up choosing some salt and pepper shakers in different forms to serve as the seed or stamen part of the flower in the center. In the top picture I even used an old brooch.

To finish these flowers, I will glue a small bottle upside down on the back of the flower to slide over a piece of rebar that is stuck in the ground.

Now, for what else I found...let's call her the new mascot of my garden......

I'm not sure what I'll name her, but I do think I will paint her. She has flowers in various places which I think should be turquoise and green.

It's obvious she's enjoying the clover in the yard for now, but she will be allowed to wander about as she pleases.

And here she is frolicking in the creeping jenny.

In her previous life she was a piggy bank, but now, in her forever home, she can just be a pig with a life of leisure!

For the plates and the pig, along with a couple of other small treasures, I spent $20. A small price to pay for flowers that never die and a pet you never have to feed! Happy me!

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