Happy Monday y’all!
Today’s Married Monday post is all about our collection of state plates, something we (read: I ) have quite an obsession for! If you would’ve asked me six years ago when I started collecting decorative state plates if I would’ve had any idea that it would become semi of an obsession of mine, I would’ve told you no way! I wouldn’t have thought that I would’ve developed such a love for collecting plates or that I would have an entire wall covered with them! With one wall in our dining room completely covered with plates, 2 boxes still full of unhung plates, and only a couple more states left to collect, our little gray dining room is my most favorite room in our house.
It all started one day while I was walking around the Metrolina Expo (Charlotte’s monthly antique show) and I spotted a plate that was similar to one that I had collected from my great-grandmother’s house shortly after she had passed away. After buying a Texas state plate at the Expo, I was hooked! Whenever or wherever I went, if I found a state plate at a good price, I would buy it and add to my collection.
Now here we are, a full wall of plates later…and I’m STILL adding to the collection. We find the plates everywhere – while antique pickin’, at garage sales, or on a local Goodwill run (or “The GW” as I like to call it..). The plates don’t usually cost much (usually less than $1-$2) and when I get home with the plate, I simply put the date and where/how I found it on the back with Sharpie. While I don’t have all 50 states (I’m missing Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland and Washington) I do have lots of other fun plates that represent places like “The Biggest Little City for Reno, NV” and even National Parks like Yellowstone or Yosemite. Instead of buying repeats of the same plates I already have, I keep a list of plates I have and need in my purse for reference. Currently, we have 2 boxes of leftover plates that aren’t hanging up on our walls but we’re planning on hanging the rest of my collection up on the other walls within the dining room. We simply hang the plates up with metal plate hangers according to the size of the plate in a close pattern with no real rhyme or reason to the hanging! We just hang up the plates where they look the best!
I simply love our plate wall because it makes such a statement when you first come through our front door! It’s the first thing our guests notice about our house when they walk in and I love that! Collecting things is so much fun, especially to do as a couple! We love going out on an antique hunt together, so when we can’t find that perfect piece we’re looking for we can always stumble upon a state plate that’s cheap, so we’ve won in our minds!
Happy Collecting y’all! XO! -Emma Loo
(For those of y’all who have already asked…our dining room paint color is Valspar Mark Twain House Ombra Gray!) 
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