Of all the flea markets I've been to over the years, the Scott Antique Market in Atlanta is definitely one of my favorites. With a fantastic mix of traditional and modern items from all over the world, Scott's is so eclectic, there really is something for everyone!
Back in January, while Jaithan and I were down in Atlanta for a super fun shopping trip with our readers, we teamed up with my good friend Steve McKenzie of Larson-Juhl Frames for a mini flea market expedition of our own.
As an artist himself, Steve knows the beauty (and longevity) that a
well-chosen frame can bring to a piece of art. Shadowboxing,
especially, is such a cool way of displaying and preserving the things you love.
Problem is, first you have to figure out what objects you want to
frame, how you want to display them, and finally a frame that fits the look you want! It
can all get a little overwhelming, I know. So we thought, why not do a post encouraging folks to think…well… inside the box. These days, with so many of our friends having babies, I couldn't help but feel the love when at Scott's, we stumbled upon a booth with these beautiful, old baby clothes.
Steve and I both agreed there was something so charming about them that if we could somehow frame these clothes in a way that was fresh and modern, they could definitely make for some unexpectedly chic works of art. Well, that was all the inspiration we needed to dig deeper at the flea market, combing the aisles for all things baby! A couple of booths down, one dealer had a gorgeous collection of silver, including several pieces of beautiful antique baby silverware.
Check out what we found! It's a sterling silver baby fork and spoon. Now—if I'd only been so lucky 30 years ago…
A couple of aisles over, from a book dealer out of Birmingham, we found this old scrapbook from the 20s, lovingly titled Baby's History.
It was so beautiful and personal inside, a heart-melting mix of diary entries and drawings, we knew we had to have it! Here was art of a new kind, a spontaneous narrative of our own, unfolding before us.
Next, we headed outside, where Jaithan found two pairs of vintage baby shoes.
How cute are they?
With our shopping done, it was time to head back to the Larson-Juhl showroom, roll up our sleeves, and get to work. But this, I assure you, was more play time than work! Sure, picking frames and mats can be a little scary, but working with Steve (or any of the other skilled folks at Larson-Juhl) makes it a lot easier! Here I am with Steve, our good friend Elizabeth Blitzer (remember her?), and Anne Katz, Art Manager for Artaissance.
Now in choosing frames and mats for these items, I really wanted to have fun with it! Vintage baby can go vintage stodgy real fast. Picture all white mats and ornate gold frames. Boring! Instead, I wanted to take these old, timeworn objects—dresses, shoes, a scrapbook, and silverware—and update them with in a way that's modern, youthful, and surprising. Here I am with Steve, experimenting with layout and color.
For the scrapbook piece, we took our cues from the opening page, narrowing our choices down to a pale yellow, a fresh, spring green and a sophisticated gray, all paired with a modern metal frame.
Next, we went with araucana egg colors—a pretty pale green and two shades of blue—paired with a modern birch frame.
Finally, for the third piece, a coat whose collar we all agreed was nothing short of diva, we picked a punchy palette of hot pink, turquoise, and Dorothy Draper black, framed in minimal white wood.
Check out the final result! No stodgy baby clothes here! The hot pink I think is graphic and chic, especially in our friend Robert's country house, whose city apartment is itself an inspiring lesson in ritzy rentals. With the punchy fabric wall in his daughter's room, modern furnishings like a West Elm desk and Ghost Chair, and one of these retro cool soy candles from Seda France, I think this scenario is as stylish as it is sentimental. Thank you to Addie Juell for her pictures and to Jordan Perry for helping me style!

For the dress and shoes, we chose the darker blue mat in a birch frame, then hung the piece above a dresser flanked by gourd lamps and curtains in an overscale caining pattern. I love the pop of color in this scenario! The piece feels sentimental but beautiful, a work of art all its own. Creating a one-of-a-kind shadowbox like this with objects you love is an investment but then again, here's an antique of the future, to be passed on, no doubt, for generations.
This piece, with gray matting and a modern metal frame, is subtle and sophisticated. It's a collage of sorts that's baby without being babyish; sentimental without being sappy.
Here's a detail of the work, hung on a pretty grasscloth wall.
And finally, for an added surprise, here are two teddy bear baby rattles we also found at the flea market that day. Steve chose gray ultrasuede matting and a black wood frame, which, when mixed with other pieces on a wall, feels spontaneous and modern.

Your shadow box project is terrific. Had to laugh because that baby book looks just like mine! Would be the perfect way to preserve something so special.
Love it!
OMG Eddie!!!!!!
Those are beautiful!!!!!
Love the simplicity of all of them!!
What a fun project!
Clara
Scott Antique Market is one of my favorites, I have been only a couple of times but it never disappoints me. I have found fabulous treasures. The shadow boxes are great.
Thanks for the peek, I have done this for my daughter yrs ago… A whitewashed box, red & white silk plaid & engraved antique fork / spoon a small 4×4 box. So cute! Good to see you bloggin….
Have a good day,
lmf blog
Leslie
Love the gray piece. Really catches your eye.
How did you mount the silverware to the book?
Love the shadowboxes and LOVE LOVE LOVE Scott Antique Market. I live in NW Georgia and the husband and I try to make it to Scott’s at least every other month. Even when we don’t make a purchase, it’s very worth the trip. We’re also big fans of Lakewood.
I love the way you have styled your shadow box vignettes. The bold patterns and colors in the background really make the artwork pop off of the wall.
The Scott Antique Market is indeed an experience. I hope you have a great turn out in Atlanta!
You guys have such brillant creative minds! I loved meeting Steve, he was such a sweetheart. I have baby shoes from my babies (now 33 and 35) plus my ivory and silver teething ring….let’s just say they are 50+ years old. This has given me some ideas on displaying them instead of them hanging out in a drawer.
I was hoping to see you all next month at Scotts but looks like I’ll be at the beach that weekend….hopefully we’ll meet again soon.
Love you guys!
Judy
these are really, really beautiful. now you’ve got me looking around the house for things to put in a shadow box!
I love these ideas! I think sometimes it’s difficult to place things out so that it’s not too theme-ish and over the top. These are very tasteful and sweet. Great ideas!
Oh I’m so excited about going to Scott’s with y’all next month. Yay! I already have a list, complete with pics, of what I’m looking for.
Serendipity! I just picked up a bunch of sterling baby utensils and I am working out how to frame them for my shop (www.sparkershop.etsy.com)!
Beautiful and inspiring as always. Thanks, Eddie!
The Shadow Boxes are beautiful!
Hey friends!
Wow! What a great post! I love how you transformed a traditional shadowbox and made it fabulous! Love and miss!
Sara
Those shadowboxes are beautiful – wonderful idea!
I love how all of them turned out! My fav is the pink/red/white room…so graphic, so lovely!
I will be sure to check out Steve’s blog.
xoxo
Aline
Loved this post! I will use this idea for sure.
Absolutely gorgeous. Unrelatedly, I’ve been meaning to tell you that Dollar Tree has seersucker napkins for Spring!
It was great fun Eddie and I can’t wait for the next fun project!
I absolutely Love this!! I would love to feature this on my blog!! Thanks for posting on my blog!
Divine! I’m SO going to try this with some of my baby boy’s momentos!!
My Dad has that same baby book! Well, I guess I have it now. He gave it to me a few years ago after his father died and he inherited it. I can’t wait to share it with my own children one day, so they can find out what their grandpa was like when he was a baby.
eddie,What a great post! I love this idea for a unique baby gift,how special it would seem.I remember your other post with Steve and showed us the Biltmore Estate prints in black and white, I am in love with those. I am going to go and visit the Biltmore Estate this coming Sunday all the way from sunny Calif.I am sure when I get back I will have to order a print .Hugs Kathysue
I adore vintage baby wares!!! I did my goddaughters rooms with vintage pieces of silver and then did a ribboned clothes line of vintage baby clothes on one wall as art. Love the shadow boxes!!!!
By the way…you’re always dapperly dressed: you need to teach the men of the world to abolish the white shirt look with a tie…so boring.
A great project. I love the mat colors…really pretty…
wow, how did i miss this in atlanta?! i can’t keep up…anyway, the framed vintage baby clothes is so sweet and makes me want to have a baby just so i can do this (did i just say that? yikes.)
Eddie, how did you get the garments to “sit” so nicely, are they pinned into place? I have collected some beautiful antique and vintage christening gowns on ebay and would love to have them framed like this, a great idea…I love it.
OMG how amazing!! What wonderful and ingenious ideas. You always amaze me with your ideas.
um, does anyone know where to get that pink/red wallpaper in the first picture? it’s AMAZING.
deja vu – I made shadow boxes as a child – there must be some deep psychological meaning to this…now you have brought back all those memories and I am off to shadow box so many items….
my daughter’s christening gown, and her sweet silver rattle….
darn you –
Sweet!!! Especially the silver…I may have to try that! You also gave me the idea to frame some butter pats that I own, and will probably never use on a regular basis. Thank you!!
On a side note, what do you use to wash fine linens, that will not harm the fabric but will whiten and remove stains??
Most sincere thanks for your assistance.
Found you via Kenziepoo. Great post/idea. Love the baby rattles!
you are beyond inspiring. thank you so much for sharing your creativity!
Wow! Look at the treasures you’ve found this time! I love Scott’s! You did a great job with the styling.
I had a hard time focusing as I was really taken with your outfit. the vest, the tie, the shirt ! – how can I look at vintage knick-knacks at a time like this?
wow! I love what you have done. As always.
These are so perfect!! What an amazing way to showcase unexpected art.
I have quite a few things I would love to frame this way, my question is how did you attach the sterling pieces as well as the baby rattles to the matting?
I, too adore this wonderful idea! I have no idea HOW to do a shadow box but hopefully my local craft store may have a class I could take! Thanks so much for the inspiration…you are amazing! Pinky
Nice way to frame these collections. Especially perfect for vintage Christening gowns.
Eddie, I enjoyed every moment of this lovely post! I savored each photo, as if I was on this adventure with you. So much fun! And the end results are fantastic. Now you have my mind thinking about the possible “heirloom” treasures that I might have in order to create one of these beauties for my four daughters! My oldest is graduating from college in a couple of weeks and I would love to present her with a beautiful shadowbox as a gift.
As always, thank you for sharing your fantastic ideas. I discovered a little something that I would love to send to you if you wouldn’t mind emailing me an address. Drop me a note when you get a moment.
Hugs,
Debbie
Eddie, what a great project!!! The frames look amazing. Please can you not tempt us with any more of your super duper shopping trips??? We are so close to jumping on a plane and joining you on one! So watch out………….
Gorgeous! So now that you all moved out into the country, you have babies on your mind? Hmmmm… 😉
Looks like another great visit to Scott’s Antique Market! I love the shadow box creations. Such an awesome way to preserve and display memories and treasures – gets me to thinking of things I would like to preserve of my own; much better than having the items locked and shut away in boxes and drawers!
Thanks Eddie,
Ciao.
Absolute perfection!
eddie, those are awesome…way to make something that lends itself to the more traditional side, have a little funk in it! love those first two rooms- hello!!
Thanks for the fleemarket story. i will try to go visit the next one. Always on the look for antique silverware for our Brocante chandelier collection. Nothing beats the thrill of a great find! My idea of fun is to peruse through old junkyards…
Being rather new in the blog world, I just fell upon yours and love it!
Hi Eddie and Steve,
How nice to see you two working together. It looks like you had a great day. You have given me inspiration for another frame shop display–antique spoons! I was born in England and I have lots of antique silverware at home., along with gorgeous antique Spode plates. If there is a way to send photos on this site I’ll send you the framed examples.
Gorgeous!
These are beautiful!
Whenever I see men looking for baby things, I melt. I so much love the picture of the tiny spoon and fork on your big hand. . .
Eddie – this is a great post. The framing turned out beautiful as I would expect!! Loving your blog – you continue to inspire me again and again!
I love the shadow boxes. Great job!
Eddie,
You buy so much stuff… where do you have the place to keep it all? Or do you sell everything?
Cheers!
I have been wanting to put my sterling baby spoon and fork in a shadow box for years! Are you willing to share any hints on how you mounted them and what to do to prevent them from tarnishing while being displayed? Thank you
Hi Beth,
Thanks for the question!
The silver was mounted with a museum wax sticky tack and do tarnish, though the glass serves to slow the process. To polish, just remove them from the back.
Thanks!
Eddie
Hi Eddie,
I am a fan of your site and your work. I am getting ready to hang some pale blue grass cloth wall paper in my office next week, and would appreciate any tips. Specifically, how do you display art without damaging the delicate paper?
Hop on over and see my related post with a special mention:
http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2009/06/proving-myself-wrong.html
Kate at http://www.Centsational Girl.com
PS If you’re ever in the California Wine Country, look us up.
Check with Gorham and Haggerty’s. One or both of these companies make anti-tarnish strips that change the chemistry of the air in a frame or cupboard to slow (not eliminate) the tarnishing process. My dad was a jeweler, and these were used in display cases at his store.