Note:  We are in the midst of lots of projects here in the cottage.  I wanted to share the entire process with you.  So you will see trim not hung and painted in some of these posts, but all of this is real life.  

I started collecting antiques directly out of high school and filled our entire house with them.  Because they were so inexpensive and I loved the look and the history.  Back then, you could pick up random pieces at auctions and flea markets for a few dollars.  Some of the pieces I bought back then are still with us today.  When I look at our antiques, they bring up past feelings. In the midst of moving to the cottage, I realized that so many of our items in our house have a long history with us personally.   BUT, I realized you don’t know the history.  I talked about one of our pieces over on Instagram stories, and so many people loved hearing it.  Therefore, I thought it would be fun to start a new series here on my site. Here is the our story behind our antiques.

Our Antiques: The Story Behind Them

Roughly 22 years ago, I went through my divorce.  We owned our own home and a few rentals.  We each chose the home that we were going to live in and sold the others.  And we did the same with the furniture, each choosing items that fit both of our needs.  I chose a smaller home, with little closet spaces, that needed a major facelift as it was quite outdated.  I, of course, did lots of work to it, including pulling up the old carpeting to expose the hard wood flooring, painted every square inch, including ceilings and trim, etc.

When I got all of my antique pieces moved in, I had nothing in my bedroom for my television.  Money was very tight… and my bedroom was very tiny so I needed pieces that could serve several purposes. 

The Hunt

I decided to check one of my favorite antique malls in Portland, Indiana.  Which we haven’t been to in awhile… which means we need to take time for a road trip.  ????  Anyway, I found this wardrobe there.  The finish was terrible and the doors were broken.  I even believe there was a piece of wood missing.  

It was $40.  I took it home, refinished it, and I believe my dad fixed the doors for me and added a few shelves.  I ended up using it for my television and kept all of my sweaters and jeans neatly folded in this small wardrobe.  It was so special to me because of the price and because it served such a great purpose for me.

This little wardrobe has travelled with Deb and I throughout all of these years.  It held our television in a few of the houses we lived in.  And, most recently, we removed all of the shelves and added hooks to hang our coats in the rental when we realized we didn’t have a coat closet.  

The Antique Wardrobe in the Cottage

We realized we are in the same boat here in the cottage.  We are without a coat closet because, as you know, this cottage will be Deb’s workshop when we build our actual home.  And, we wanted to make it as simple as possible to change this space to it’s first intent.  Therefore, this little wardrobe works perfect for a coat closet.  Who knows what else it will become in the future.  But, I love the feelings this little wardrobe brings up.  

I have several pieces in mind that I want to share next, but let me know if there is a piece you want me to talk about next.  I love getting your input, too!

THE STORY BEHIND OUR ANTIQUES