As I stand with my legs spread wide apart, with rivulets of sweat migrating from my hind quarters to the floor of the glamorous Bargain Barn in Hughesville, MD, I realize that this is my rock bottom. My travels have lead my friend Rachel and me to this sweltering, dusty, rotted-out establishment in the middle of nowhere in search of glittering, sparkling, and glimmering treasures that I will ultimately transform into a one-of-a-kind heirloom.

The process of brooch hunting began about a month after I got engaged.  I had seen plenty of brooch bouquets on Pinterest and other DIY websites, and I was determined to create one for my wedding day.  I began recruiting everyone I knew - friends, parents and grandparents of friends, students, their families, etc. - to pick up any brooches they saw on sale for less than $5 apiece (pretty difficult for vintage, but not impossible).  My friends and their relatives really pulled through, and soon I had around 30 vintage brooches from yard sales, flea markets, eBay, and a particularly sentimental batch from a childhood friend’s grandmother with whom I had been very close.  When the brooch leads seemed to start drying up, I expanded my search to rings, and then when that went south I hit the jackpot: clip-on earrings.  Since almost no one wears them anymore, but grandmothers (and abuelas and yia yias) and their offspring have been unloading them at second hand stores in droves. 

Why did I choose the brooch bouquet?  Because I absolutely hate flowers!  Sometimes I can break into hives just being in the same room with them.  And I take issue with the mortality of flowers and their lack of usefulness when they ultimately expire (read Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz “A una rosa” and you will get the gist of my feelings).