When I started decorating our bathroom, I knew I wanted to add this little cabinet to this room. But I wasn’t sure where. It was behind the toilet in the old house and held a lot of random little items. But, we already had the wooden one that Deb made from an old window hanging behind the toilet that we use as a medicine cabinet. And to be honest, we don’t have a lot of wall space in the bathroom due to our large windows, which I LOVE. But I still found a place for it. I wanted this cabinet to hold random items again, which are things that don’t really fit into any collection that I have. I call this our little cabinet of curiosities in our bathroom. And I thought it would be sort of fun to show you what it is in it.
I really didn’t know what these little cabinets filled with random items were called. Until I happened upon an Instagram tag years ago. And it finally made sense. I believe that cabinets of curiosities are sometimes filled with objects that are similar: A collection of pinned butterflies, small skulls, sea shells, etc. I filled mine with items that I love and that sort of tell a story on their own.
First off, I need to tell you where we found this little cabinet. Deb and I happened upon an auction one Saturday morning. We saw some antique furniture out front and decided to stop and check it out. When I take the time to stop and check out an auction, I immediately grab a number if there is no line. Awww.. I cannot wait to find another good auction this summer. Once we got inside, we saw things were going for pretty good prices. There were about three things that I was interested in. But, didn’t want to spend a fortune on them.
This little cabinet with a glass door was one of the items. If my memory serves me right, it was around $35. It was originally chippy white paint, but back then, it wasn’t a thing to leave it covered in chipped up paint. I usually stripped every single piece of furniture that I bought. It was actually one of my hobbies and one of my favorite things to do on the weekends. Over the years, this little cabinet has been stored several times because I didn’t have any place to hang it. So, I’m loving it here in the bathroom.
On the top shelf I have two vintage lady head vases that were left in the hoard at the old house. I added a vintage victorian bathtub tray that I found years ago on the Marketplace. And, of course, my 4-H fair Queen of Adams county crown. Ha! That was from the year 1983, I believe. And I’m just realizing that it was 40 years ago. Gahhhhhh.. time flies.
I added Deb’s little green sewing machine that she had when she was little, a small antique hanging glass vase and a sterile seat sign that was also left in the hoard, and a vintage brush that I found last year. You know I had to add my bronzed baby shoes because where else would I display them? I do have a few more that I need to find a place for but wanted mine displayed here. I also added a stack of vintage ironstone soap dishes, a set of skeleton keys, and a really pretty door knob plate.
The greenery urn isn’t vintage but I wanted a splash of life in our cabinet. I added an old McCoy flower pot, an antique vanity tray mirror, and a bottle of Vaseline hair tonic that I found at the goodwill years ago. This box of old coupons is something I picked up last year for a few dollars. It’s also a perfect place for my iron rooster, another hanging glass vase, and a baby bath thermometer that was left in the old house as well.
And that is what is in our little cabinet of curiosities. I’m sure I will be adding things to it here and there as I find smaller items. But I love having it and find it very interesting.
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LOVE everything about this! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you SO much!
So cool. I have a little iron rooster too. I love all your things in your cabinet.
Thank you.. little antiques like that make me so happy.
Thank you. It must be something about a rooster's personality, because they always catch my attention!
Love it! I think my fav is the iron rooster? Is it vintage ?Does it have a story?
Nope! Someone gave it to me and it has the name of the town I used to live in :)
It is vintage and comes from my hometown!
I love a cabinet of curiosities! I am in the planning stages of a bath remodel and I am certainly going to add one. It is so fun to make a display of our collections. Thank you for the inspiration.
You're welcome, Sherry! I'm sure your collections will add so much character to your remodel!