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Thursday, February 4, 2010

My Box/Measure Collection

I have gotten some wonderful comments on my boxes/grain measures recently. I thought I would share a little about them for those who may have just recently found my blog. I think I've talked about a few of them in prior posts. I have also seen many of you who have found cheese boxes and debated as to paint or not paint. Keep reading and you will find that most of mine are not real per se. They are imitiation look alikes that I spent little to no money on.

First, my big box... I found this shipping container sitting on top of a trash heap. Yes I am a dumpster diver. Of course the trash was in front of the elementary school and of course it was time for the kids to get out. I picked up my son took him home and thought I really want that box. Sooo... back I went and most of the cars were gone when I arrived. LOL. I grabbed it and ran back to my car. It was just a plain bright pine wood container. I grabbed my stain and went to work. As you can see there was a number written on it but I don't care I turn it to the back.



Next is my real measure... This one came from my Grandma's house after she passed away. Dummy me at the time only saw it as a cute little wood box that would be cute to plant real flowers in. YIKES!!!!!! What was I thinking. I was thinking I didn't know what it was and was not into prim at the time. That was my cutesy country decorate with cows era. Anyway, I promptly brought it inside when I figured out what it was.



The next box is a paper mache box that was stained to look like a measure I got at a yard sale a year or so ago. There were some other things piled in the box I wanted, but had to buy everything. As you can see the label is still half on it. But when you turn it upside down and stack another box on it you can't tell.



Next we have a box my sister bought at the Goodwill and then gave to me because she doesn't decorate with things like this. It is something like balsam wood I think. But hey I'm not picky it was free. LOL.



The next cheese box I have was a Christmas gift from my ex MIL. We always said we could always buy each other old dirty dusty stuff and be extremely happy with it as a gift. LOL. Though this one was in awesome shape when she gave it to me. Just a little Briwax softened it right up. You can still see the stamping on it but again I turn it to the back.



Next is the newest cheese box to join my stash. I just found this one a few months back at the Goodwill for $3.00 or so. I still need to paint it. Or maybe I will stain it. And this my friend is why it is not done. LOL. I can't decide. So for those who find these cheese boxes snatch them up.



This little cheese box was a $7.00 find at the antique store. It was the same type of unfinished wood as the one in the previous picture. But with a little paint, stain, and wax this is my new box.



The red box was the second box my sister bought at the Goodwill and gave to me.



Last but not least is the top white box. This box is actually resin. I bought it at a store closing sale. My loving children broke it the other day as they were wrestling around in the living room. This was prior to the box move to the dining room. I got out my super glue and glued it back together. All of these boxes got a beating when they were next to the TV because when you play Wii you have to jump around and swing your arms. LOL.



So in other words you can have beautiful box/measure collections for less money than buying the real ones. It is all in how you display and paint them up. There are some ladies on here who paint the most beautiful paper mache boxes that you can add to your decor too. I actually have a set I'm thinking about repainting myself. But of course I have other projects to be finished first before I start anything new. LOL.

18 comments:

  1. love your boxes!!! i need to find a gw like yours.

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  2. I love your collection and love how you got them ever more! You are a girl after my own heart! LOL!
    I have painted my own paper mache boxes too and they really look great. I even use sand paper on them to help give them some age. As long as its done with a light hand, it works fine.
    I think it's great that you have a genuine old one from your
    Grandma. What a treasure!
    Enjoy the rest of your week!

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  3. In my last comment to you I talked about the big one you dumpster dived for; I absolutely love that one. I would do the dive too. You got some great ones there. I think the one you used outside, helped the aging process to make it look really cool! Love them all. I have 2 in my basement which I will now have to find a place for. You are inspiring me!
    Blessings~Kim

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  4. LOve your collection! My favorites are the dumpster find and your grandma's box,. Simply beautiful,thanks for sharing

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  5. Neat, neat, neat Mary...such a talent you have:) Love them!

    Rondell♥

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  6. I LUV your boxes. I have two, one of them was my grandmother's.

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  7. I love your boxes!...I have 2 of the larger ones as well...and a few of the smaller ones....all which I have found at the Goodwill stores too!

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  8. I can't believe you found the biggest one in the trash!They look like an expensive collection, the way you've put them all together. I just found a big, flat one this morning at the TS.
    ~Katherine

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  9. What a great bunch of boxes....I love em too...they can go anywhere! So neat!

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  10. This is a great collection Mary! The large tall one is just awesome!!! If you have any Amish bakery/cheese shops near you, check them out as they sell the ones the cheese comes in:)

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  11. What a gorgeous collection of all different kinds of measures and band boxes and cheese boxes Mary. They all look so nice together!!

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  12. ok so now I'm on the hunt for some cheese boxes! you have the best collection...I enjoyed looking at your pics!!!
    Hugs,
    Pam

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  13. What a great collection and who knew cheese boxes would be so darn cute!

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  14. Love your collection Mary. Isn't it amazing the GOOD STUFF people throw out ??? They just don't see potential lol. Hey I'm a dumpster diving sista' too ;0} I live on the outskirts of a college town and when the students move out in June OHHHH MYYYY you wouldn't believe the things they pitch ! We have gotten pc's t.v's radios...And NOTHING wrong with any of it. Hope your day was wonderful and your tomorrow is even better !
    Prim Huggs n Blessins
    TJ

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  15. Love, love, love your boxes! I have a few around my house too, I will share pics soon! My cheese boxes are not painted, you have inspired me to get busy, or to have hubby get busy! I am not getting much done with my quilting, I can at least show something getting done LOL!! Silly jobs anyway, wouldn't we all rather show 'prims'?? Have a great weekend!

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  16. love the boxes!! too cool!!!
    hey, someone had some big cheese boxes on either wayne county freecycle or holmes county freecycole. i cant remember which one. freecycle in waynes county always has cool stuff, i am envious of those freecyclers. lol

    p.s. i would have went back and got the one from the dumpster too!!

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  17. I love your boxes and the pictures of your home. Thank you for visiting my blog. I appreciate it very much! I enjoyed my visit at your blog, and I am now one of your followers. ~Dan~

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  18. Wow! I can't believe that big box was in the dumpster! I would have went back too and yes, I would have ran to my car also. Haha! That cracked me up as I was picturing you running, running with that big box in your arms!

    I love boxes of all kinds. My sister works at an Amish cheese store. I didn't even realize they had these. She had my name for Christmas, so she painted one for me and put all kinds of prim goodies in the box! It was my most favorite present!! I told her I want more of them boxes!! They are huge and very nice!

    Thanks for sharing your collection. I love hearing the stories behind the goodies. That's almost as neat as the prim itself!

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