Metal and Clay

Last weekend, we visited two interesting companies selling the bits which make up our homes:

• Sims Metal Management (1720 Monterey Highway, San Jose, CA)
• Fireclay Tile (495 West Julian Street, San Jose, CA)

At Sims, we were looking for some steel pipe and angle iron for John, although I also came home with a treasure: a 4-shelf wrought iron plant stand for $20 which only needs a little work. Everything at Sims is sold by the pound – kettle drums, lawn chairs, fencing, old farm equipment, rusted bird cages, old iron stoves, and unidentifiable bits of steel. There is even a small section for sculptures.

At Fireclay Tile, we looked for the tiles to pave our new side porch. John and I rooted through the new tile showroom and also the Boneyard in back where excess and nonstandard tiles wait for adoption.  We found some likely piazza tiles by Gladding McBean plus a tile mural for the center.

Images Copyright 2012 by Katy Dickinson