I've been trying to build our venue as thrifty as possible, while at the same time, making it beautiful and elegant. That is not very easy to do because as you know, elegant isn't cheap! So in our case, thrifty but classy becomes very important. :)
I'm constantly on the look out for materials to use at the venue that are free or really cheap. You can turn cheap into classy, but you can't turn expensive into cheap! So, I've been raiding my dad's farm and have found a ton of items and materials to use that most likely would have never gotten any use otherwise.
My grandpa used to own a company in Hartville that delivered lumber, way before I was born (over 30 years ago), and he was also a penny pincher. He saved a lot of scrap lumber that wasn't good enough to sell, and put it all under cover. And I'm sure glad he saved it all, because it's now the privacy fences behind the new barn! We were also able to use lots of wooden fence posts that my grandpa bought over 40 years ago, stacked up outside, and never used....those were the posts we used for the front fences. I LOVE that we can be thrifty, classy, and sentimental all in one, plus, the wood becomes functional and actually gets used! So, thank you to my grandpa in Heaven for my awesome fences!!!
I also swiped this awesome gate from my dad's. It belonged to my great great great grandma, who everyone called "Ma Smith". The gate was hung on the entry to her front yard, which is on the property that has been in my family for almost 110 years! The gate has been leaning against a tree or building for the last 40 years...I'm thrilled to be able to use it for what it was created to be again!
I'm constantly on the look out for materials to use at the venue that are free or really cheap. You can turn cheap into classy, but you can't turn expensive into cheap! So, I've been raiding my dad's farm and have found a ton of items and materials to use that most likely would have never gotten any use otherwise.
My grandpa used to own a company in Hartville that delivered lumber, way before I was born (over 30 years ago), and he was also a penny pincher. He saved a lot of scrap lumber that wasn't good enough to sell, and put it all under cover. And I'm sure glad he saved it all, because it's now the privacy fences behind the new barn! We were also able to use lots of wooden fence posts that my grandpa bought over 40 years ago, stacked up outside, and never used....those were the posts we used for the front fences. I LOVE that we can be thrifty, classy, and sentimental all in one, plus, the wood becomes functional and actually gets used! So, thank you to my grandpa in Heaven for my awesome fences!!!
I also swiped this awesome gate from my dad's. It belonged to my great great great grandma, who everyone called "Ma Smith". The gate was hung on the entry to her front yard, which is on the property that has been in my family for almost 110 years! The gate has been leaning against a tree or building for the last 40 years...I'm thrilled to be able to use it for what it was created to be again!