What the heck is a Barn Sale?

So I bet a few of you are sitting there, scratching your head thinking "What is a barn sale?" A barn sale usually held in a barn. They happen in the exurbs here- farther out from the city, where there are actually barns. People refinish furniture, sell antiques and vintage house hold items, repurpose or "upcycle" things to have a new purpose. Think Restoration Hardware meets garage sale meets thrift store. Add in a bit of Paris antiques market and a really nice arts and crafts show and you can kinda see what barn sales are all about.

In the barn sales I have been to, each stall usually has a different look, vendor, or color pallet. They're really fun. I have been to two in the DC region. Check out www.chartrueseandco.com . They are in Buckeystown, MD and they wrote the book on throwing a fantastic barn sale. Well there really isn't a book, but you get where I was going with that. (Maybe I should write a book......Nah, more fun barn sale-ing and making art.) OK stop number two for me in actual barn saling was also in MD, but the other direction, towards Annapolis. Check out http://www.thebarnshow.com/ for that one. They aren't as big, but it was just as fun. Both the websites are great for info about when and where the sales are, so go check them out. Oh, I should probably mention that most barn sales are only open every once in a while, like 3 times a year or once a month, so you totally want to check the websites to be sure you don't drive all the way out there on the wrong weekend. That'd be a bummer.

I found out about all these sale through a great article the Washington Post wrote in February about all the barn sales in the DC region. It's a great article and it tells you where all of the true barn sales are around here. Check the article out here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/gallery/2011/02/09/GA2011020905520.html .

If you are closer to the Aldie/ Leesburg Virginia area, you are in luck because there are a couple of shops there open everyday. Belle Villa is a beautiful store full of refinished vintage furniture and cool architectural salvage. If you are into the french flea market look or the shabby chic thing, you will want to move in. Check them out here: http://bellavilla.nova-antiques.com/ . Another great place nearby is Lucketts Antiques. They have inside shopping and outside shopping. If you are looking for salvage, it is awesome! The website looks pretty lame, but trust me, this one is worth the drive. Here's the link, just so you have the address: http://oldluckettstoreantiques.nova-antiques.com/ And I have heard awesome things about the festivals out there in Aldie and Lucketts. I think they do spring and fall festivals.

So those places were all my inspiration. Actually my adventure buddy Sharon and I were standing in line with bumper to bumper women at the Barn Show in MD and two things occurred to me. First, that this was the perfect type of venue to sell my leaf collages. And second, that I knew how to make EVERYTHING they were selling. On the way home, I looked at her and said "We should do this!" And the idea for Branches: the barn sale without a barn was born.