A Little Bit More Shed Decor

I have added a few bits and pieces to my shed recently. Some I made myself and some I picked up at the last Collectorama at Nambour.


The first photo shows three 3 dimensional barnstars that I made. They are made from some thin galvanised sheet tin that I actually bought probably over 30 years ago. I was going to use it to make trays for the bottom of some birdcages that I intended to build.

My three homemade Barnstars

On close inspection you can see how the centre of the red star is not quite as crisp as I would have liked it to be. This was the first one I made. I began to refine my manufacturing process as I went on with the result that the cream and blue stars turned out a lot better. I chose to paint these stars red, white (cream) and blue to be in keeping with the colours of the Australian flag (or the American Stars and Stripes or the British Union Jack for that matter). My barnstars are approximately 30cm across and I have arranged them in a random pattern just above the barn doors of my shed.

The three barnstars above the barn doors

I intend to make some more, next time experimenting in different colour schemes and materials.

Click here for a brief history of the origins and uses of barnstars.

The next photo shows some more horse gear that I managed to find. This time a few different horse bits.

Three different horse bits.

I managed to pick these pieces up at the last Collectorama in Nambour a few weeks ago.

Amongst the gear were two horse bits which were a little different to the one that I had. My original one, the one on the left is blacksmith forged whereas I believe that the other two have been machine manufactured. Maybe some one can confirm this for me? I would also like to know what the two bits sticking out of the centre bit were for. Can anyone help me here? Included in the lot were a number of horse shoes and some other steel bridle links (at least that's what I think they are).

My Horse Gear.

I actually saw a set of leather horse blinkers and a full leather bridle for sale at the fair. They weren't too expensive but I am trying to do this shed decor thing on a budget so I left them for someone else to buy.

Below is a photo of the steel hook and shears that I also got from Collectorama, as well as my experimental Union Jack.

A collage of rusty metal and a few other bits

The shears were in a box of rusty junk which the seller really wanted to get rid of so was open to any offers. I picked out the two pairs of shears and was hoping I could get them for $10 for both. Before I could make him an offer he asked if $5 sounded OK. Of course I said that would be fine.

Two pairs of rusty shears

The shears are both marked and still work surprisingly well considering their rusty condition The smaller pair are simply marked Crest and Germany. The larger pair of sheep shears, however, have a number of different marks on them. They are marked Hind's Patent - Double Hollow Ground as well as Burgon & Ball Patent No 294. Along with a few other marks, they are also have Made in England stamped on them. Apparently, Hind's Patent shears were of the type used by the sheep shearing legend, Jack Howe.  He once sheared 321 sheep in a single day with shears like these. His hand sheep shearing record still stands today. They sure look good hanging on my shed and would probably clean up OK if I decided to put in the effort to do so. Read more about Jack Howe here.

The hook and chain was sold to me as possibly used to move wool bails around but I don't think this is correct. I believe it was most likely used to pull out stumps or drag logs behind a tractor. Either way it makes a great addition to my shed decor.

Rustic Union Jack and rusty hook

I made the rustic Union Jack while experimenting in making a folk art Australian flag. Never really intended hanging it on my shed but I think it looks OK so there it is. All I did was to grab a small bit of old ply that I had laying around and quickly brush on some acrylic folk art paint (I was after a rough folk arty look). I then got the sand paper to it to give it a slightly weathered look, added some rusty wire to hang it from and it was finished. I enjoyed making it and will probably experiment further with other rustic folk art flags in the near future. I may even take photos at each step along the way for a future post. Might plan to also do this when I make more barnstars.

I am currently waiting on more number plates and signs to arrive, so stay tuned for the next exciting instalment of Johnnyfive's shed decor.

My Shed Decor

Lately I have been collecting all sorts of rusty stuff and other old things to decorate the outside of my beloved shed. I have been scouring fairs and markets all year for anything that would look interesting. Below are some photos of some of my finds.

Just some stuff that I've had for sometime now

The extension ladder was my Dad's. He used it a lot when he was building homes with my Grandfather. Their building company was called "Ron Stevens & Son". I wish I still had one of their tin signs that they would put up on their building sites. The last time I remember seeing them was when Dad and I cut some up to make trays for the bottom of my birdcages when I was probably about 12 or 13. Would love to have one to display on my shed. Might have to make up a dummy one.

The red tub also came from my childhood. I painted it red to protect it from rusting when I sunk it into the ground to provide a pond for my pet tortoise, 'Plonky". I named him Plonky after a similar tortoise we met while visiting friends in Adelaide on our first big family road trip. This was way back in December 1965. I've still got my diary from the trip. Oh, and they named their tortoise Plonky because this was the noise he made when he walked down their hallway. Plonk, plonk, plonk....

My mystery item.

I wonder if anyone knows what this large rusty thing is? It was also used by my Dad & Grandfather while building houses. It is a floor clamp. You used it to clamp onto the floor joist and then push the floor boards up tight while nailing them down. If this doesn't make a lot of sense, come and visit and I will give you a demonstration. The sieve was another thing they used.

The rabbit trap above doesn't work but still looks the part and didn't cost much. But I do have some others that are in full working condition. Apparently, so I'm told, rabbit traps can be classified or identified by the different marks on the trigger plate. I have a trap with a spade on it and another with what looks like a trowel. Don't know if this makes them special or not. I just like the look of them hanging on my shed. The two working rabbit traps were found at the last Collectorama fair at Nambour.

Spade mark on one of my rabbit traps

Trowel rabbit trap

Close up of trowel mark

Large rusty hook and chain

The large rusty hook was a Caboolture Market find. I love this hook. I think the chain came from Nana's (my Mother-in-law) place and is probably an old anchor chain. Come and see me if you need to work on your car and lift the motor out.

Horse gear.

This is my small collection of horse bits and pieces (bits literally). The horse hames were found at the last Collectorama at Nambour. They don't actually match but look OK together. Horse hames are part of a draft horse harness and are used in conjunction with the horse collar . The stirrups are another Caboolture Market find. They are not brilliant as they are both (I think) for the right foot but they look OK. I really like the horse bit. It is a blacksmith forged piece and was found a few weeks ago at my club's show at Morayfield.

"EMU" brand on horse hame

Blacksmith forged horse bit

Some of my number plates

Now for my number plates. I have discovered that you can buy genuine American number plates (or license plates as they call them) quite cheaply on the internet. So this is where most of my number plates have come from. They make a great display. The American plates also have some amazing graphics. Much more interesting than our Australian plates although I do like to have a good mix of both. The top Victorian and Queensland plates came from Karen's Auntie Hazel's garage in Melbourne. The lower Victorian plate came off Karen's car from our time of living in Melbourne.

This NON-MOTOR VEHICLE plate came off an Amish buggy from LA GRANGE COUNTY, INDIANA.
(I believe that Indiana is the only US state that requires the Amish to display number plates on their buggies.)

Karen's Victorian number plate from her Hyundai Excel.

Some more of my number plates.

The top Victorian and Queensland plates also came from Auntie Hazel's garage while the lower Victorian plate came off my Holden Berlina when we were living in Melbourne. I love the Kentucky plate as our house was built by the company called Kentucky Log Cabins. It is also the Bluegrass State and I do love my bluegrass music.

Kentucky Bluegrass State plate and others.

Nice Texas plate showing the space shuttle and my Victorian plate

I still have plenty of room for lots more number plates and other rusty junk. Maybe you might have something that you don't want that would look good on my shed. Who knows, I just might be willing to take it off your hands for you (if the price is right). Please let me know if you do.