Craigslist Score and Shutter Dillemma

I'm a huge fan of Craigslist. It's usually the first place I stop to shop when I need something for around the house. I love a good bargain, and there are many to be had there. Initially, I was in need of some yard tools-- in particular, an edger. But not the electric or gas powered kind. We wanted the old school rubber wheel with splines. We had priced them at Lowes and Home Depot, but I wasn't interested in shelling out $30 for a plastic tool that had questionable hardware. It just didn't feel very solid. So, naturally, I hit up Sir Craig and his list to see what I could find. Lo and behold, the first listing under my "Trimmer" search revealed exactly what I was looking for: long handled garden tools. Best of all, they were only $5 each! For half of what one tool cost at one of the big box stores, I scored 3 sturdy tools to aid me in my yard work efforts.

And in true dough-brain fashion, I totally forgot to take a picture of the edger-- the tool that started this adventure to begin with. D'oh! The pitch fork is going to come in handy when I finally get a compost bin set up. I've been frantically pinning compost bin styles to my boards, and I like the idea of a 3-bin system. Hopefully I can get started on that project this summer. The pickaxe will hopefully help me loosen up the soil in the flower beds with ivy so I can more easily remove the roots. Some of the root systems on that plant are that of a small tree, and incredibly hard to pull by hand.

The gentleman selling these tools also had a garage full of other great antique finds. Including these awesome shutters that we just HAD to grab. Originally he was asking $80 a pair for these, but I managed to talk him down to $60 a pair. Aren't they awesome!? They're in really nice condition despite their age, and they match the shutters that are hanging alongside our front door.

We have some ideas for these guys: either replace the shorter front porch shutters with these and add a planter box to lengthen the window, make a rustic dressing screen for the bedroom, or a new headboard for our bed. There are so many options! Which do you think sounds like the best project?

These are the shutters that are currently alongside our front door. They are slightly different than the shutters which we purchased, so I am a little hesitant to pair them, but I don't know if that bottom detail is really prominent enough to matter. We will have seating in front of the windows which will somewhat "hide" the bottoms anyway. I'd also like to repaint the shutters (I'm thinking black will be a nice contrast against the masonry), and the door is going to get a dose of color this week.

Here's a good comparison of how short the window shutters are next to the entry door. I had contemplated adding the larger shutters alongside these windows, and then add some window boxes beneath the window to elongate them. Would that look odd or cohesive I'm not sure at this point. The side of our home does not have shutters. I could always relocate the shorter pairs to the side of the house, but would that be necessary? Would it look overdone? Decisions, decisions!

As for the chairs above, they're already undergoing transformation. So far I have them primed and ready for a light sanding before adding color.

I love them already.

What's happening at your home? Have you spruced up your front porch at all? Do you have any suggestions as to our shutter dilemma?