My rounded front porch was one of the first things that caught my eye on our 100+ Victorian little lady. When it started sagging and cracking last summer, I couldn’t imagine what my house or my life would be like without our wonderful porch. This became reality when my husband backed his truck up to the house, slipped a chain around the posts and put it in overdrive. It came down in one final crash.

I quickly grabbed the antique columns and loaded the rest in a dump truck. The columns became bed posts and our curb appeal became barren.
We quickly learned the cost of materials, but what really shocked us was the rarity and the cost of carved posts. We needed at least 7 and at over $100 for each post, we were worried we’d go way over budget.

My scavenging mode kicked in. I began driving by old houses, waiting for the yellow caution tape to appear. It took about 2 months and jackpot – a Trak-hoe pulled up to the house across the street and, voila, I got 7 carved posts, complete with gingerbread trim just for asking.

Saving us over $700! Although they are not holding up a roof yet, they sure look pretty lying on our front porch!

But switching to Shakespeare. “”What’s in a post? That which we call a porch by no other support posts would only be a deck. Pardon my homage to Willy, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet.”