Last Thursday I took you shopping and one of the stops was my favorite roadside junk shop! It was a fun day, but I left out the best part.
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| Shelf unit made from old crates |
As I was looking through the old doors, the owner approached me and asked what I was looking for. I asked him if he had any barn doors? I had purchased a small barn door from him last year - you can see what I did with it HERE. He said he didn't have any, but knew where there were some in a burn pile! My response- you've got to be joking! Where and how do I get there?
He told me that this burn pile was at his nephew's home and just a mile down the road! He also told me about his nephew's successful business - he buys old barns that are going to be torn down for land development and takes them apart and sells the old wood and fixtures to builders, designers, etc.
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| Two rusty tin cupolas rescued from a barn to be torn down! |
He said he would take me there and we could see if the doors were still on the burn pile and show me his nephews business! I tried to contain my excitement and said - Let's go!
As we approached the property, I could see the large burn pile from the road and as we drove closer, saw that it was at least 12 feet tall. We drove up to the pile of treasure in the middle of a field - that's right, I drove my white Chevy Malibu through a field! I can only imagine what the Amish neighbors were thinking!
The wood in the pile was amazing! Most of it was chippy white painted siding, but there were 2 massive barn doors that would have been sliding doors. I also thought I could see a smaller door near the bottom of the pile. There were also several half stable doors sticking out here and there. I couldn't believe these great pieces were in a burn pile!
We went inside the large barn, turned wood shop/warehouse owned by his nephew. It was ahhh mazing! I didn't feel comfortable taking pictures inside, but it was a large open area with the perimeter stacked floor to ceiling with beautiful planks of barn wood! I asked him how he advertised the business - because the plain people don't use modern conveniences - especially not a computer and know nothing about how a smart phone works or what can be done with an Ipad! He told me that it was strictly by word of mouth! He is obviously quite successful and doesn't need the modern advertising methods! I got a little private tour and was shown some of the treasures he has saved from old barns that he has torn down!
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| Stacks of structural barn timbers |
We asked - Why would he throw away what was in the burn pile? He told us that when you spend 15 days taking down a barn, transporting the wood to your shop, removing the hardware, etc.; towards the end, you just want it to be over! I think we DIYer's can relate (on a much smaller level of course)! My friend asked how much he would want for some of the items on the burn pile and he said if we wanted any of it, we could have it!!! Obviously, nothing was going to fit inside my Malibu, so I asked if I could come back with my husband with the minivan and he said we could!
On Saturday, hubby and I went back and were greeted by the owner. We dug out two half stable doors and one amazing half door with a cute window!!! Then we dug deep in the pile to uncover some of the "smaller" barn doors with the original large hinges! We somehow got them into our minivan with the help of rope to hold the rear hatch door down!
I know this is a wordy post, but I just had to share my amazing days digging through a burn pile of old barn wood! I now have a favor - do any of you have any idea what I can do with these pieces!!! My husband would like to know my plans for them and exactly where I plan to store them!!!! Can any of you relate?
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Blessings,
