Journey to Yesterday

Owning Green Roost has given me a lot of new experiences, but last night was by far the most adventurous event to date.

Roque, owner of Yesterday Reclaimed, let me tag along on a trip to one of his secret "bone yards" to give me a first-hand look at how he salvages abandoned farm equipment. We even brought along local photographer, Jazmyn Ward, of J.B. Ward Photography, who will be documenting the salvaging and building steps over the next few months.

Up until now, I've only seen the end result of all his hard work. I've sold his upcycled furniture to customers, and explained to them where each piece had come from, but had never seen the salvaging process. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but should have known when he handed me a machete, and declared I was on "snake-duty", that he meant business.

Just getting to the bone yard was an adventure in itself.  We four-wheeled in, booted up, crossed a handmade bridge, and hiked through knee-high grass, making sure to tread lightly in case of slithering friends. After several hundred yards, we arrived at the site, which basically looked like the the field where farm equipment and cattle came to die. This was by far my favorite part of the trip, because I got to see Roque's creative brain at work. He gave me a tour of the site, and would point out each piece of equipment, giving me insight into his next grand idea. We'd be looking at the same piece of equipment, and I'd see a piece of rusty, petrified metal and Roque would see his next lamp or end table. I was given the rare opportunity of seeing an artist in action.

Then, we got to work.  If a tree was in the way, Roque and Ryan cut it down like it was no problem. 

I even got to test my skills on an angle-grinder. Now I can see what Roque means when he says the salvaging is addicting...I'm already planning my next trip, and pumping myself up for my next power tool tutorial.

All along, Jazmyn made sure to capture all the hard work. This lady was not afraid to get down and dirty!

 

Last night was just the beginning of our Yesterday Reclaimed story. Over the next couple of months, we will be documenting the furniture building process, from start to finish. If you want to know what we're up to, make sure to like the Yesterday Reclaimed Facebook Page, so you don't miss out on any of the action. Also, make sure to like the J.B.Ward Facebook Page, to follow Jazmyn's journey with the YR crew.

Stay tuned...