Not just a plain old pot rack anymore

To some it may be just an old wooden pot rack, but to me, it is a precious piece with a story to tell. It is a part of the family now, and is well traveled, having been in three states.

It all began several years ago when my sister-in-law Jean joined me in selling at our garage sale, which has now become an annual event. With the miles between us since my husband and I moved to Arkansas, our sales are also a family reunion of sorts. It wasn’t like that in the beginning, when we all lived in Illinois.

One of the items she was selling was a wooden pot rack. I always admired it in her kitchen. I immediately professed my love for it and said I had to have it.

Despite this stroke of luck, the fact is, I never got to use it. My daughter, Jenny, decided it would look great in her apartment. I was ready to fight her for it, but my husband piped in and said she could have it. I’ve been pouting about it for the last 15 years.

Finally, Jenny, who moved it with her to Massachusetts, decided she didn’t want it any more. She was moving into a new house in Rhode Island and didn’t want to bring it with her. She figured she would sell it at a garage sale until I told her I still wanted it. So, she mailed it to me. I will be paying the postage, but it will be so worth the $21 to finally have my pot rack. Finally, I’ll be enjoying it in my own kitchen for the first time. I couldn’t wait to install it.

I actually have a small rack that I hang cast iron skillets and a couple copper pots from. It is very utilitarian, but I love it because it is a relic from an old railroad depot in the town where we used to live. I had hoped to hang both racks, one above the other.

I took everything down from the wall, giving me a chance to clean behind, under, and around everything that was there. I positioned my new, (actually 25 year old) pot rack and drilled the holes. It was a really tight fit and I had to place it all the way to the edge of the wall. What I didn’t know was that the corner of that wall was reinforced with metal. The screws just stopped dead in their tracks when they hit it. Upon further inspection, if I hung it there, my cabinet wouldn’t open fully. I realized it wasn’t going to work. And, I had no other wall big enough in my kitchen. I was crushed.

I was having a garage sale of my own in a few days. I entertained the idea of selling my precious pot rack, but then thought better of it.

Then it hit me. I don’t have to hang pots from it; I can drape a quilt onto the rung that would normally hold the pot hooks. So that is what I did. I turned my precious pot rack into an even more precious quilt rack.

I have just painted my bedroom, something I’ve wanted to do since we moved into this house 12 years ago, but never quite found the time or energy to do it.

So, now it is done. And the first thing I hung on the newly painted wall was my quilt rack. On it I’ve displayed my favorite quilt. It hangs above the cube shelves where I store my fabric stash. This is also a new endeavor. I used to keep all my quilting material in tubs under the bed, but now, it is all organized. One portion of my room resembles a quilt studio. I couldn’t be happier.