Every family has that box or closet with stuff nobody can quite throw out. No, it’s not exactly junk, but it’s also not useful either. We spoke to a few readers, and here are thirteen sentimental items they said their families don’t know what to do with. What would you try & do with some of these?
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Tapes from family camcorders
So many of us have a box of tapes that nobody can watch anymore, whether it’s VHS or Hi8. They’re all there, stacked in plastic cases, while the camcorder that recorded them is long gone. It’s not exactly easy to transfer the data on the tapes either. As such, it’s no surprise that people don’t know what to do with these things.
Sealed bridal-gown preservation box
You’ll find a massive white box on the top closet shelf, lying sealed shut with a plastic window showing a puff of lace. The dry-cleaning tag’s still taped inside. Since the gown hasn’t seen daylight in years, nobody’s sure whether it’s yellowed or still pristine, and the box itself is more of an heirloom than the dress.
Passed-down wedding rings and loose stones
That’s not all for weddings. Old jewelry boxes usually have wedding bands & rings with engravings inside, maybe even stones taped in envelopes, although they don’t fit anyone now. Unfortunately, selling isn’t easy because of the sentimental weight, which is why the rings stay in drawers.
Inherited Lenox china with missing pieces
Every family seems to have a “good” set of dishes that barely leaves the cabinet & the Lenox set usually comes half-complete. There’ll be a chipped gravy boat and a few missing cups, as well as mismatched saucers filling the gaps. But the real issue is that replacements are expensive, so the collection usually just sits wrapped in tissue, as nobody wants to fork out the cash to fix them.
Baby hospital keepsakes in a memory box
Inside a few boxes are hospital bracelets & a knit cap, along with a smudged footprint card. Sometimes, you’ll also see the first pacifier in there, too. None of it’s useful, but it’s so small it just stays packed away forever, and families never quite know where to put the box, and they tend to just leave it in storage. Can you blame them, really?
Grandpa’s green tackle box with old lures
Fishing gear often gets passed down among families, usually from grandparents. The boxes usually contain cracked bobbers & rusted hooks, and they may also hold old spools of line or a broken scale. Nobody actually uses the stuff, of course. But the box still stays around because it belonged to him.
Family bible with recorded births and deaths
Usually, big family Bibles have pages filled out with births, marriages & deaths, maybe even with some pressed flowers or scraps of paper tucked inside. Most covers split, and the edges fray. Yet people still keep them because the family history’s written inside, while the Bibles themselves are too heavy and awkward to store.
Handwritten genealogy charts & binders
Most genealogy binders are stuffed with handwritten tree & census copies. However, they’re also not always organized since the dates don’t match and the branches trail off. The binders take up a lot of space, but nobody wants to risk breaking them apart, so they stay intact. And that happens even though nobody actually flips through them.
High school yearbooks & autograph books
Yearbooks never just disappear, and they sit in boxes, filled with faces you may or may not remember. They usually have “never change” written on every other page & phone numbers without an area code. Don’t forget about the smaller autograph books, either. There’s a whole stack of yearbooks that nobody looks through, yet nobody throws them either.
Old cell phones & SD cards full of photos
Junk drawers are infamous for housing old phones, like flip phones & early smartphones. They might even be a slider or two. But most of them don’t even turn on anymore, while the SD cards and micro cards likely don’t even work anymore. Everyone swears they’ll get the photos off. Someday.
T-shirt quilts & memory blankets
Sure, memory quilts sound practical. They’re too big for a couch throw & too small for a bed, while washing them risks pulling seams apart, and that just doesn’t seem worth it. Yet families keep them because each square reminds them of something old that they don’t want to give up.
Vacation postcards and handwritten travel journals
It’s easy for postcards from trips to pile up quickly, whether they’re of state parks or landmarks. Alongside them are travel journals that include daily entries about mileage & gas prices, as well as where the family stopped to eat. It’s a whole record of trips. But it’s not really practical, and that’s why it’s usually stored away in boxes.
Heirloom sewing machine with boxes of notions
Sewing machines aren’t exactly small. Most people tuck them into heavy cabinets and have bobbins & thread in every drawer. Honestly, it doesn’t matter that some still work because the cords are cracked and the pedals get stuck, yet families rarely ditch them. They have too many memories with them because they once belonged to a parent or grandparent. Throwing them away would be like throwing away memories.
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