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"It's really a sixty-pound sausage tub," my friend confessed. "Anne Bell decorated it for me."

Thus alerted, within the next few weeks in many different homes in Austin, Minnesota, Anne Bell's home, I noted these same containers used for firewood, waste paper, magazines and comic books, sewing baskets, toys, garden gadgets, and even turned upside down and the lid used for a table top. I saw even smaller wooden tubs used as ice buckets, letter holders, cracker, pretzel or cookie containers—these were salvaged from pickled herring tubs, by Anne Bell, I was told. And there were bushel fruit baskets converted into clothes baskets; paint pails into knitting carriers, popcorn servers, etc. Grape baskets were turned into clothes pin baskets.

I WENT to see Anne Bell and found her reading a comic book. She assured me it was required reading. A customer ordered a tub decorated with the theme of this particular comic strip for a little boy's room for his birthday present. Later, I saw this tub and she had incorporated the idea into the design and added some of the dialogue into a saying and the date of the boy's birthday. It was used to hold other comics in the boy's own room.

Mrs. Bell suggested it might sound more genteel to dub her an adaptor or converter, but she admits that salvaging is exactly what she does. Since most of these containers are not available as new products she takes them over after they have served their intended purpose. Incidentally, they come cheaper this way, which gives her a little more margin in most cases, and more sales because she can keep her selling price low. For example, the sixty-pound sausage tubs cost nothing if obtained from a butcher who may want to get rid of them anyway. The finished tubs are sold for $5 unless the lid is also decorated, and in that case $6.

Having worked in the art department of a magazine before she was married, Mrs. Bell was used to tapping her mind for ideas. Decorating her own home and making suggestions for others at their request seemed to prime the pump. Even now with her three children she finds time to salvage at home.

PROBABLY BECAUSE she could not get out and browse around art shops when her first baby was small, Mrs. Bell started to work on what was at hand. Her husband, who worked for a meat packing company, happened to bring home a sixty-pound sausage tub one day. Presto! The idea struck! She would paint it and use it for fireplace wood. Brass accessories come high for young married couples. And then she would do one to match to hold magazines. One could be used for baby's toys, and so it began. Her friends asked her to make tubs for them, for their friends and their friends. Soon Anne was contacting all the butchers, bakers and anyone who might buy sausage or lard in large quantities. When her demand exceeded the supply from this source, she did find that they could be bought from a meat packing plant for $1, and in art supply stores for slightly more.

One day Mrs. Bell was shopping for a week-end buffet party and noticed the miniature tubs that were packed with pickled herring. Immediately she became more interested in the container than the product and as a result her guests were served a liberal supply of herring. By the next party this little tub had become an ice bucket, and before long she had several orders for midget tubs for other uses—popcorn, snacks. One ice bucket was decorated with pink elephants, others with polar bears, skating scenes. One woman asked her to use animals from the animal cracker box so she could use them to serve cookies and animal crackers to her children and their little friends.

Since these little tubs cost nothing they can be sold for $2.50, decorated. The biggest outlay is the energy expended to get them clean and free from smell. Scrubbing with a stiff brush in plenty of hot, soapy water and maybe using a metal sponge to remove paraffin does the job. The adaptability of the finished product is a full reward.

While at the paint store to replenish her supplies, Mrs. Bell noticed empty metal gallon pails. Upon inquiry, the owner said they were 50 cents each so she bought a dozen to sell for Christmas presents. She decided to paint the outside bright red and decorate with lively peasant designs. The added touch was to fill them with popcorn balls and tie the whole piece up with Cellophane and ribbon. In casual follow-up observance, Mrs. Bell noted that the recipients of these gift pails are finding many uses for them from knitting carriers to ice buckets. These pails are sold for $3.

The metal pails do not take a base coat because the paint does not soak in, but it does take two or three coats of enamel to cover depending upon the shade used.

Another metal container Mrs. Bell has reclaimed is the round, flat tin that country style sausage is packed in these days. Decorated, these tins make serviceable cookie storers or pie keepers. Since they require about the same amount of work as the paint pails, they also sell for $3.

AS THE results of Mrs. Bell's practical application of art work spread, friends began sending her requests such as this:

"I can use this bushel fruit basket all right for clothes with an oilcloth or plastic lining, but you should be able to do something to the outside. My utility room is on the main floor, and these things have to show." Within the next few days, Mrs. Bell had painted a pert peasant design on the outside of her customer's basket, wrapped the wire handles with narrow clothesline and made a clothes pin holder to match from a grape basket. The prevalence of first floor utility rooms and the simple accessibility of bushel fruit baskets make this idea a natural. In such cases, Mrs. Bell charges $2 an hour for her labor.

Apricot and plum baskets which hold about thirty pounds can be used as lingerie wash baskets as gifts to career girls or girls going to college. Decorative enough to keep in her closet to catch these hand washables, safe because it is lined and handles wrapped, it is an attractive container to be seen going into the laundry room with or upon the deck to hang out the washing.

MRS. BELL'S latest adventure in salvaging came about through a chance remark from a friend of hers who is a contractor.

"I hate to throw away those scraps of plywood," he told her. "I've got a whole pile of plywood trimmings, and I can't bring myself to burn them."

He barely had the words out of his mouth when Mrs. Bell was begging him not to destroy them. "Why, they'd make—a—bread boards, that's what. I could decorate them in standard kitchen colors—red, black, white and yellow. The ones with good grain showing, I'd leave natural."

And that is just what happened. The builder cut them in ten-by-fifteen-inch pieces with rounded corners and cut a handle on one end with his power saw. He even used his power sander before delivering them. He told her they should be rubbed with olive or Mazola oil to prevent water from splitting them. Only one side is decorated in a hearts and flower design. With this side up it can be used as a tray for passing canapes. There is a hole in the top for hanging on the wall for storage or purely for decoration. After a coat of basic paint and two coats of enamel it is ready for the design. For the natural, a flat white is put on and rubbed off right away with a rag. When this is dry a satin finish varnish topping is applied. These bread boards are sold for $2.95. Because Mrs. Bell mixes all her oil paints with enamel or varnish for decorating, these boards can be washed off with a damp cloth without fear of marring the design.

THE DIRECTIONS for painting the tub, baskets and all wooden articles are the same. Take the used containers to the laundry tub and scrub them out thoroughly with hot, soapy water to remove all grease and fruit juices there might be on them. When they are thoroughly dry, sand off the rough places with No. ½ or ¹/0 sandpaper, dust with a soft rag, and apply a filler, primer or basic coat. Every paint company has a product for this purpose regardless of the name. When this has stood long enough to be very dry, sand lightly and dust off again. Now you are ready to start with the background coat of fast drying enamel—four-hour, for example.

The background of almost any object—tub or berry basket, will show off the decoration to a better advantage if it is done in light color. Nine-tenths of Mrs. Bell's work is done with white background, which is applied over the basic coat with a three-inch brush. One coat should be enough. Antiquing softens this effect and is desirable particularly on larger pieces. However, bright, fire wagon red is effective for hearts and flower designs on smaller pieces—the knitting carriers, for example.

The best designs for making up pieces ahead of sales seem to be hearts and flower or peasant designs or conventional adaptations of ivy or geometrics. These can be used in almost any room and are satisfactory for various pieces. It would be safe enough for general sales to make tubs or baskets because these are popular choices.

However, Mrs. Bell has capitalized on personalizing her work by adapting wallpaper, drapery or upholstery patterns to the object she is decorating. She copies a cherished plaything or comic strip for a toy or magazine container. Favorite sayings or wisps of songs significant in the life of the prospective owner give a container a whiff of individuality. While all her own work is free hand, Mrs. Bell advises against passing up the wide scope of designs offered by way of stencils and decals. Also, you can glue on cut-outs from children's magazines, seed catalogues, commercial labels, post cards or photographs, insignias, or whatever is suggested by the use of the object.

Although a good camel's hair paint brush, No. 6 or 8, will cost about $2 it is a necessary investment. Either of these is full enough for heavier work and has a point fine enough for tiny lines, writing and curlicues. A brush of this price level will not shed and thus your work will be neat and professional looking.

MRS. BELL likes the soft, mellow effect of antiquing and used this on all light colored containers. After the decoration is dry, apply an antique mixture over the entire piece with an old paint brush. Immediately wipe it off with a soft, non-linty rag except around the edges and cracks. Make the antique mixture by adding three tablespoons turpentine and one and one-half teaspoon raw turkey umber oil color to one tablespoon varnish. This will give a light brown effect and the one most generally desired. After a little experience, if a red antique effect is preferred use burnt sienna oil color, or select raw sienna oil color for a yellow tone in the antique. Unusual effects in darker antiquing can be obtained by choosing lamp black oil color, but this is so startling in effect that it is not generally applicable.

If the article is to be moved around and handled quite a bit it should have a coat of varnish to prevent any of the antiquing from rubbing off. Mrs. Bell prefers a dull or satin finish varnish for this purpose.

Any object that has bands or wires around it should be reinforced with staples. Then your piece will be strong and hold up under hard usage. Four staples spaced evenly around each band will strengthen it sufficiently.

Handles are added to wooden pails or tubs by boring a half inch hole with a brace and bit about four inches down from the top. Put clothesline rope which has been cut into ten-inch lengths through the holes from the outside and tie a knot in each end, inside. Existing wire handles can be wrapped with rope or raffia and anchored with a nail or staple.

SALES FOR Mrs. Bell first gathered momentum through her friends. She believed that she could serve as her best testimonial and used her products as prizes for her own parties as well as accessories for serving. She did not push them on her guests, naturally; but when they asked about them, as they always did, she replied "I'm going into the business." This cleared the air for all involved and the guests felt free to place their orders.

The same method was used through her mother who had many friends on the lookout for just such individualized gifts to give for bridge prizes, for special little gifts to their married sons and daughters and their mutual friends, and for themselves, of course. The fact that Mrs. Bell's mother lived in a near-by city spread her merchandising efforts over a large territory. Any friend in a near-by town whether large or small population would be glad to have something new and different to use as prizes and gifts and would not mind mentioning the source in a tactful manner.

However, Mrs. Bell put more direct sales efforts into effect by supplying a local gift shop with samples of her products. For example, she took a green, a yellow, a red, and a natural finished bread board that she had made from the plywood scraps to the owner of a gift shop. She offered to handle them for Mrs. Bell for the price of her customary mark-up. This method produces more and quicker sales for objects that can be put out in greater numbers. The amount of the mark-up allotted the gift shop is justified by eliminating the interruption and fuss of handling customers in the home. The gift shop operator also, gift wraps the boards, which is an added attraction for sales.

The owner of a knit shop was approached on displaying a knitting pail (decorated paint pail) with her stock and taking orders for Mrs. Bell. A floral shop gladly displayed painted flower pots which Anne had purchased for 2 cents apiece and enameled in bright colors to sell for 20 to 35 cents a pair, depending upon their size. In other words, take your wares to their rightful place—candy baskets to the candy store, clothes baskets to an appliance distributor, toy tubs to a baby shop, and so on.