Posted By rosie on Apr 11, 2014 | 2 comments

My future retirement home.

I love taking junk and turning it into something useable.

I have no doubt that I inherited this characteristic from my father. Just this week, I walked into his garage and saw he had a shiny new trailer. “Where did you get that?” I asked. “I made it!” he said. Of course, he did. He had cobbled together parts: the steel sides of an old truck he had owned 30 years ago; the fenders he picked up at a flea market 10 years ago (“because I knew I’d use them for something!”); the axle off who-knows-what old car; the remaining tongue off a trailer he had built decades before. He welded it all together, painted it a shiny gray and black, and he has a trailer that will likely outlive us all.

A few weeks ago, I reinvigorated old flower pots with a coat of color-coordinating spray paint. Last summer, I ripped the rotted top off a perfectly wonderful farm table, painted the legs and replaced the top with lumber slats I had sitting around to make a great deck table. (And this summer, I think I’m going to go all Pinterest on it and add a beer trough.) An old side table someone gave to me is going to get a coat of paint in coming weeks to coordinate with my living room furniture. A metal footboard for a bed is serving dual purpose as a trellis and replacement section for a fence crushed in a storm.

I have never met yard sale furniture under $5 that I didn’t consider turning into something. Of course, there have been just as many (maybe more) failures than successes among those finds, but there is always a Plan B. A set of drawers I rescued from alongside the road a few years ago to serve as an art cubby for my daughter has done nothing but give us fits – drawers that won’t open right (I see now why it ended up alongside the road). But a fresh coat of bright paint and this summer, it’s going to be a planter. And if that fails, I always know people who need firewood.

I imagine myself to be one of those cool chicks who has all sorts of kitschy yard ornaments and funky furniture – a sort of PeeWee Herman meets Monica Geller vibe. I know the reality is far more Jed Clampett than I want to admit.

But that’s why my new venture will fit right in! A dirty ol’ camper sitting in my parents’ backyard is destined for Rosie greatness. I am thinking it is crying out for baby blue polka dots and floral bunting.

Stay tuned. And share your glamping pictures with me on Pinterest!