Vintage Garden Style

MY PASSION FOR ALL THINGS GARDENING extends well beyond the confines of my garden beds. It fills every nook and cranny of my Arts and Crafts bungalow. It crowds my mantel and lines my porch steps. It fills my bookshelves and decorates my walls. I am, after all, an inveterate collector. And I collect all kinds of cool garden-related stuff, like old hand tools and watering cans, out-ofprint garden books, terra-cotta pots, vintage garden prints and postcards, black-and-white snapshots of people posing proudly with their plants, cast-iron garden toy figurines, Maxfield Parrish garden prints, even old seed packets, and—of course—vintage garden magazines. I also like to infuse my outdoor spaces with those same romantic salvage sensibilities. And I suspect you do, too. That’s why this issue of Vintage Garden Style…

WHETHER IT BE RUSTY garden tools, flower-themed linens, or vintage vases, the thrill of finding just the right piece to add to your trove will keep you hooked on flea market shopping. Choose a collectible or theme that interests you or has special meaning to you and works into your design aesthetic, then do a little research. You’ll find that the more you know about the items that catch your eye—and your dollars—the better you’ll be able to choose thoughtfully and still stay in your budget. Keep in mind that just because something is old doesn’t mean it’s valuable. Likewise, just because you love something, doesn’t mean you need to pay more than it’s worth. Display your collections in a thoughtful way—don’t let them become clutter. Arrange them in groupings,…

Flea Markets Traditionally known for vintage items, and for strange and unique castoffs, a lot of flea markets have been taken over by cheap imported merchandise. Many of them also have farmers’ stands and garage sale booths. You can still find treasure there, but check to see if there is a vendor or sales listing on the market’s website before you go. See our list of some of the best-known markets on the following page. Antique and Vintage Shows Antique shows are often of interest to serious collectors, and the vendors there are usually knowledgeable. However, prices can be higher because the merchandise is of higher quality with a documented provenance. Vintage shows can have less expensive, but still interesting, items for sale. These shows often have strict rules about…

1. THE FARM CHICKS ANTIQUES SHOW Spokane, WA thefarmchicks.com 2. ROSE BOWL FLEA MARKET Pasadena, CA rgcshows.com 3. THIEVES MARKET Tempe, AZ thievesmarketvintageflea.com 4. MILE HIGH FLEA MARKET Henderson, CO milehighfleamarket.com 5. ROUND TOP ANTIQUES FAIR Round Top, TX, and surrounding areas roundtoptexasantiques.com 6. ORONOCO GOLD RUSH DAYS Oronoco, MN goldrushmn.com 7. WHAT CHEER FLEA MARKET What Cheer, IA whatcheerfleamarket.com 8. SHIPSHEWANA AUCTION AND FLEA MARKET Shipshewana, IN shipshewanatradingplace.com 9. SPRINGFIELD ANTIQUE SHOW & FLEA MARKET Springfield, OH springfieldantiqueshow.com 10. NASHVILLE FLEA MARKET Nashville, TN nashvilleflea.com 11. SCOTT ANTIQUE MARKETS Atlanta, GA scottantiquemarket.com 12. RENNINGER’S ANTIQUE CENTER Mount Dora, FL renningers.net 13. ANTIQUE EXTRAVAGANZA Adamstown, PA, and surrounding areas antiquescapital.com 14. BROOKLYN FLEA Brooklyn, NY brooklynflea.com 15. BRIMFIELD ANTIQUE AND COLLECTIBLES SHOW Brimfield, MA brimfieldshow.com SHOP TILL YOU DROP Vintage markets aren’t the only place to score treasures. Hit these local or online options: auctions…

Produced by STEPHANIE BRANDENBURG Photos by PETE KRUMHARDT An interesting piece of galvanized metal or a section of fancy wood molding is all it takes to set designer Stephanie Brandenburg’s imagination free. Brandenburg, below, has worked in design all her life, and is the artistic and business force behind her fabric company, Frond Design Studio in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But turning her paintings and drawings into quilting and crafting fabric is just one iteration of her creative life. Brandenburg, also a long-time lover of salvage materials, designs sheds, furniture, and more with repurposed materials . A peaked section of galvanized metal from a disabled piece of farm equipment became the centerpiece of this garden shed’s design, and then all the other materials found their places. “The top of the shed…

These utilitarian—and affordable— bouquet-arranging tools surprise with character, beauty, and offbeat charm. WHILE NO SPELL BINDS the frogs tucked into vases, mystery surrounds these hardworking tools used to arrange fl owers. This use of the term frog, for instance, has no recorded origin. For the most part, it seems to be a slang word that hopped into use during the fl ower-frog heyday of the 1930s. It possibly referred to the way a fl ower holder squats in water. In the 13th century, Persians made vases with side spouts, giving arranged fl owers a more natural look. In early ikebana, a Japanese fl ower-arranging art form, frogs were contrived from charcoal chunks, small stones, or wads of straw. Iron fl ower frogs were introduced in 14th-century Japan, featuring amphibious forms:…