Primitive Decor in Your Garden

One of my favorite places to use primitive decor is in the garden. You can use almost anything to create that primitive touch in your outdoor room.

Probably most favorite are antique farm and garden tools. These can be as large as horse drawn plows, to the midsized steel wheeled wheelbarrow, to a small potato planter. I've stacked would crates to create plant stands. Planters included crocks, cast iron buckets and scuttles, and shoes!

One of my friends purchased an old metal frame and headboard from us to create her "flower bed." I'd love to follow through with her bedroom theme and have an old washstand and more!

I've picked up many ideas through the years. My raised beds are made using railroad beams. I've created my herb garden in a wooden ladder on the ground. We talk of surrounding the herb garden with firefighting collectibles, but as of yet, it still has its simple, lovely, primitive theme.

Get out in your yard or on your porch! Take a look around! Can you see a way to add your prim flair out there?

Powered by ScribeFire.

Primitive Decor: Cast Iron Accents

Antique cast iron pieces can be another affordable help to your primitive decor. And once again these pieces have the antique charm in which you can leave their age showing, clean them up, paint them, decal them, or whatever you choose.

Cast iron trivets can be fun in your kitchen. I have a dear friend that has an entire kitchen wall of her log cabin decorated with the various trivets she has found. What a brilliant idea.!

My kitchen does not lend itself well to this, but cast iron wood stove doors can be fun. The one pictured is a favorite of mine. The heartwarming message on it, lends it to a homey kitchen wall.

I have many cast iron kettles in my gardens, including one huge one held up by a tire rim that looks like an urn propped up as it is. Again, as with the cast iron enamelware, if you are planting in it you must allow for a lot of drainage material.

Cast iron is quite durable but a word to the wise for those that are going to use it outdoors in northern climates. Be very careful when moving frozen iron in the winter! And no, not because your skin will stick if wet. I am sure most people know this. My warning is because cast iron becomes brittle when very cold. This is the voice of experience speaking! I dropped a heavy kettle on concrete and it shattered into several pieces!

Powered by ScribeFire.

Cutter Quilts, Splashes of Color for Your Primitive Decor

I love primitive decor, but I also love color. Sometimes the muted colors of primitive decorating style leave a room looking a bit drab. You can easily add patches of color by creating or buying accents made from cutter quilts.

What are cutter quilts? Old damaged quilts that are no longer very good for display as a whole, but pieces can be salvaged for lovely splashes of color such as stockings, runners, pillows, and stuffed accent items.

Cutter Quilts on eBay

Enamelware Accents in Your Primitive Decor

Enamelware is an affordable alternative for primitive decor accents. Enamelware pitchers, such as my friend Melissa's recent flea market find (Under $2) make great vases and Utensil catch-alls.

Often, you can find enamelware at very affordable prices. Look for pieces that are not dented or heavily damaged by have a worn area(s) to the enamel surface. These flaws sometimes accentuate their primitive look or they often can be easily hidden with paint, decals, or just facing the flaw to the wall.

Enamelware bowls, bedpans, slop jars and others, serve as wonderful planters for indoors and outdoor, too! Just be certain that if you do not want to put drainage holes in the piece, that you put plenty of stones on bottom for drainage before adding soil.

To see more of Melissa's beautiful home and enjoy her great blog, visit The Cottage Rose.

Primitive Decor

Primitive decor occupies much of my time. Not only do I enjoy primitive decor, as an antique dealer in a brick and mortar store and an eBay seller many of friends and customers also love prims!

What exactly is primitive decor? I like to describe it as old American farmhouse with pizazz. Vintage items, often well worn, arranged to delight the eye.

And not everybody to whom I sell primitive items, decorates in a primitive decor. Many enjoy the shabby chic style or a combination of both. In this blog, I hope to share and inspire for both of these decorating styles.

Powered by ScribeFire.