Nautical Porthole Mirror
Sometimes when I go to flea markets or antique stores, I have a theme in mind. I try to stay focused so I can be productive in my purchases. And, sometimes, I am struck by the beauty of an item and buy it “just because”.
One day I was searching for an old mirror that could hang on the outside wall of my house. It needed to be able to withstand the weather and fit the look and design of my patio. I was inspired by a picture I saw in an architectural magazine of an old, French farmhouse that had a mirror on the outside wall of the house. It was beautiful, life sized, like a door one could walk through. It looked like an antique because there were black spots on the mirror, when the silver backing had worn off due to oxidation. You will see this often with mirrors from 100 years ago. I liked how that looked, it seemed to fit the country home. The idea of a mirror outside makes me think of secret gardens and passageways to enchanted worlds. Like Alice and the looking glass, turning everything upside down or backwards and taking a magical trip.
The wall I planned to hang my mirror is a stucco exterior of the house. My partner and I had spent three years nurturing the creeping fig vines to cover the wall with the hope it would soften the appearance of our stone courtyard. I knew the mirror would give the wall even more life, as if looking into a lake in the middle of a forest, seeing the reflection of moving white clouds in the blue sky.
So, we set out our sites for a trip to a big, local flea market. This is a biannual flea market Located on 117 acres of scenic, rolling land in beautiful Lake County, the heart of Central Florida; amid spreading oaks, garlands of Spanish moss waving gently from their branches, you will find Renninger’s Twin Markets in Mt. Dora. Two large buildings and a number of open-air shopping areas house a wide variety of dealers from produce stands, clothing shops, and oddity vendors, to high-quality antiques and collectibles.
Renninger’s Flea and Farmer’s Market in Mount Dora is home to hundreds of dealers that sell just about anything you could imagine. Shoppers can find products from fresh produce, clothing, crafts, fresh meats, pets and pet supplies, foliage, collectibles, jewelry, and a whole lot more. In addition to our air-conditioned, indoor building (housing over 100 booths), our outdoor pavilions house over 400 spaces, and you can find even more dealers in our open-air spaces!
My partner and I have been going to this for eight years, finding all sorts of great deals!
When we go, we always stay at a different bed and breakfast in the quaint mountain town and make dinner reservations at 1921, an exquisite restaurant with unique menu items.
We start the day out early and pull a wagon behind us to hold the many treasures we plan on bargaining for. Like I said earlier, sometimes I have a theme in mind. But sometimes I just let the items speak to me. This time, for some reason, “Nautical” items were catching my eye. We hiked up and down the dirt paths, scanning the booths for whatever looked interesting. That year, we scored lots of good finds! But I vividly remember the booth with authentic nautical pieces. Everything had barnacles growing on it, or a lovely green patina. I spotted a few items I had to have. Like most flea markets, there is no room to make a pile of things you may buy, and there aren’t shopping carts. So, when you see it, buy it before someone else does! Also, I find it very interesting how as soon as you show interest in an item, it seems like everyone else in that booth shows interest too.
I pointed to the three things I wanted to “bundle” for a better price. Just then, I looked down on the grass and saw a quick flicker of light. It was a mirror reflecting the sun! At closer examination, I noticed it was a porthole, probably iron or bronze. The mirror had been installed to replace the missing glass, which was called a portlight. It was round and the structure included a large pin hinge to open the window and four fasteners with teeth for screwing tight. It is not often you find a porthole with the original glass, so it didn’t bother me that it was missing and replaced with a mirror. I felt like this porthole could be the mirror look I wanted to achieve. I quickly picked a few more items with matching patina to pull the look of the courtyard together. There! Perfect! And just like that, the whole space came together with that one find. I love how it looks, nestled in the fig vines and how it catches the blue sky from certain views.
