Love it, want it, gotta have it! Now what do I do with it??

I love finding a cool piece that has lots of character and a story. Sometimes, it doesn't have a household use and you have to make one for it!

I found, well Kolby found, these molds in Chattanooga, TN. He was doing a little picking for Southern Accents and loaded these onto the truck! I was intrigued from the moment he sent the picture to my phone! I wanted to know what they were and what they were for! He gave me little information in the beginning.

We later learned they are patterns used to make industrial molds. They came from the Wheland Factory in Chattanooga, Tn which went under in 2005. The company’s foundries specialize in the making of brake components for the automotive industry and include two gray iron foundries and two ductile iron foundries. Wheland has for years been considered one of America’s largest foundry companies, with roots going back to 1866. The company’s facilities have a combined melting capacity of 190 tons per hour, and the company boasts that nearly half of all cars assembled in the U.S. contain one or more Wheland components.
Cool information, huh?!
It took a couple of weeks......ok, maybe a couple of days, but I found a great use for these at my house! Yay! I know how easy it would have been to just put some fruit in it and sit it in the middle of the table....but, I have a really cool dough bowl for that! Then, if I had some really awesome collection, I could have put it on my coffee table. Oh, that's right...no coffee table....Check out this post for the one I want!

I was still trying to figure out a great use for these. The moment I picked one up, I knew exactly what I would do! They were so light! I don't know why I thought they would be heavy. They look heavy, don't they?? Ok, I picked it up and knew I would hang them on my brick wall in my foyer. The wall is the backside of the fireplace and has two arches on either side. It's one of my favorite things about the house. Then there is this column right in the middle of it! Don't get me wrong, it's a gorgeous column. It was a beam from a warehouse in Chicago. It's load bearing and they placed it in the best place they could. It just keeps me from putting a piece of furniture there or hanging something like an oil painting or portrait. These are perfect.

I only have 3. I think I need 5! Five is a good odd number. I Love odd numbered things. These are close to the same size. I am hoping to add bigger or smaller ones.