Retrolutionize Your Sleep

When I moved into my new place back in May I decided I wanted a new bed. The more I shopped the market the more depressed I became by my options. These days most everything looks the same and little has any personality. Having already sold my bed by the power of craigslist, I started to grow tired of sleeping on just a mattress. After two weeks of unsuccessful shopping the thought occurred to me...."um, Hello! Why don't you just make a bed".  I set out in search of an old door for a headboard (which I still believe is an awesome idea and has much potential).  I found myself at a fun little antique shop that appeared to be wayyy overpriced.  After perusing the aisles for a little while I bumped into the owner.  He showed me a few door options they had, all adorable, but again all overpriced.  About to give up I noticed there was a yard, aka Junk Heaven, on the side of their building.  I asked him if I could take a look, to which he informed me that I wouldn't find anything out there but old rusted junk. UM PERFECT!  The second I stepped into the overgrown bee infested space I knew my headboard was hiding there somewhere!  I didn't know what it looked like but I knew there was a treasure waiting to be discovered.  Twelve spiders and four bees later I discovered it! Hidden behind a stack of doors and metal fences, was an old chipped fireplace mantel!  And how much was this beauty? A whopping 35 bucks!

The mantel find gave me quite a rush and I couldn't wait to get home and set-up shop. However, I still had a feeling that it wasn't complete. The headboard was perfect but I realized I didn't want just a boring old metal frame incasing my mattress attached to it.  As I was making my way through the grass maze I spotted a jackpot! Tucked away in all its rusted glory were 3 individual locker fronts.  Powder blue, vintage, and even graffitied a little!  John, the owner I was now on a first name basis with, made me a deal at 10 bucks a pop. I decided these beautiful babies would make for a pretty sweet bed frame. (I've yet to get them cut down and welded but thats the plan. As of now they stay proped against my bedroom wall awaiting thier overhaul.)

It was quite an adventure bringing her home. Half way to the house, squished in the back seat of my sisters SUV with my mantel and lockers I noticed a terrifyingly large black spider scampering out of the bottom hole on the piece. Since the highway makes abrupt stopping difficult my two sisters just opted for screaming while leaving me alone to deal with the infestation!  Needless to say we made it home, and made our guy friend do the de-spidering for us. That's what boys are for anyways, right?


The moral of the story is... Think outside the box and put up a good fight for something unique.  Having a story behind your piece makes it all the more special.  What fun would a story have been about getting boxes from the Ikea shelf and assembling by myself with the accompaniment of a few cuss words?


An old door, antique fence, mantel, distressed wood, all these could make for a fantastic statement.  Just keep your eyes out for something unique and different.  Great places to check for these things are Thrift stores, antique malls, an old farm (if you have access to one), and flea markets.


Get creative, think outside the box, and venture to places that you normally wouldn't.  This is where you find the good stuff!


Don't forget a tape measure and an open mind!