Les Clés
I've been collecting keys for years, so I have bags full of them. I'm not sure how many exactly, but they probably total several pounds in weight. Some of them have ended up as necklaces, some have been given away as gifts, and there's one with a red ribbon tied to it that I keep with me all the time for good luck. I had some of my favourites mounted on a piece of framed matte board hanging in the living room, but I dismantled it a while ago to make room for a new painting and I have missed them ever since.
Last week I found a vintage needlepoint kit at the thrift store, still in the original packaging. It came with a pre-stamped pattern of potted plants, enough yarn to complete the embroidery, and this small shadowbox to display the finished piece in. I wasn't all that wild about the potted plants pattern (very 70's--looked like something that would have hung on the wall in Jack Tripper's apartment! Oddly enough though, I actually started embroidering it the other night while watching tv.), but I loved the shadowbox and knew it would be perfect to house a few of my keys in.
With some orange textured cardstock, a liberal amount of E6000, and a few minutes, I had a new key display that I like even better than my old one! The key in the top left square I found somewhere a long time ago, and I think it might open an old, forgotten trunk or chest. The very large one in the upper right I purchased recently as part of a lot of keys at an antique store, and I love it to pieces--it's one of my all-time favourites, even though I bought it and didn't technically "find" it. The bottom left key is very rusty, and has a small piece of twisted wire attached to the top hole. It's embossed with the number 3, and came from a store that sells old furnishings--they always have a huge box of keys for sale and the nice man that works there lets me go through the box at my leisure and always gives me a bargain. Incidentally, 3 is one of my favourite numbers. The small key on the bottom right probably goes to a padlock. It's also rather rusty, especially on the back side. I found that one outside on the ground a long time ago. It isn't as old as some of the keys in my collection , but I really like it anyway.
Do any of you have collections? What are they, and how do you like to display them?
Labels: display, diy, keys, repurposed, shadowbox, simple, thrift
posted by Elisabeth @ 8:05 AM
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