This probably won’t surprise you in the last when I tell you that I have a fairly strong, occasionally controllable addiction for estate sales. On my ‘good’ days I see the estate sale postings or street signs and think, “I already have plenty of stuff. Why would I need more?” On my weak days, which is to say most every day, I think, “I wonder what treasures could they be selling that I must have?”
The other week I saw ads for an estate sale of mega proportions. A five acre property with an entire warehouse full of tools, farm equipment and rusty knick knacks. Scott typically looks the other way when I mention these sales, but even he was intrigued when I mentioned tools. When we arrived, we saw they weren’t kidding when they said tools. If there was one screw driver there, there were 200. There wasn’t one weed whacker, there were 15. Multiple sanders, boxes of nails and screws. Everything you could want to build anything you could think of. While Scott filled a box full of random things he just had to have, my eyes fell on this old paint splattered rusty cart.
What if we made that into our new outdoor coffee table? We’ve been looking for one for our new deck but nothing seemed quite right. And what did look promising was really, really expensive. So we made an offer on this old rusty thing, they accepted and we brought it home.
Immediately Scott got to work scraping off paint and smoothing down the rust with a wire brush. As he was brushing it all off, we noticed that on a the wheels was a metal tag saying, ‘Property of Naval Weapons Station’. My goodness! We wonder whatever that could have been carting around. He took some left over deck boards and built a table top. A few days later and we now have this beautiful coffee. Tall enough that we can use as a table to eat off of. We anointed it with a party almost as soon as we could roll it up on the deck and it was a perfect finishing touch to our new outdoor room.
What a nice feeling to take a rusty old naval weapons cart and turn it into a place where we will (most hopefully) peacefully gather for celebrations and daily living. Almost better yet, Scott mentioned to me the other day, ‘Hmm, I wonder when another estate sale will be?’ See, even he’s got the bug now!
Estate sales are the best! That table turned out beautifully!
Your table turned out great, good job Scott! I would love to know where you got your canvas awning? I’m in Sonoma too, & my patio bakes!
Hi Terry! We got our awning through this website: http://www.cableshade.com/ The man who makes them was really great to work with. We recommend them!
Wonderful, thanks!
What a great find! Sounds like an awesome sale, I feel I never find the good ones. All I end up with are some 80’s cookbooks and some cake pans. None of which I actually need.
Your creative mind amazes me. If I had seen that rusty old broken down cart I would never had seen a coffee table. You even created the table with old decking! Very cool!
Kendra, estate sales are my obsession and addiction. We need to go together. Let’s make a date! I’ll DM you later.
Hi Lori! Yes let’s!
Great find, great re-purposing and great table! Well done, you! Cheers, Ben
Love the new coffee table and outdoor space! I’d like to see a picture of the view off your deck from that space …
Great room!
What a find— if I had seen it I would have bought it too!
That is such a gorgeous project. Have you been to Lytton Springs yet (about 20 miles north of Santa Rosa)? We have had all our best vintage furniture there! The really good stuff goes early so its kind of like some crazy Black Friday sale in the mornings.