Every home has a few of these. They are never useful and they are never in the way. They sit in the same spot for years, until you shift a pile or clear a shelf, and you’re suddenly looking at it, going, “There is no reason this thing should still be here.”
Here are 15 of those objects begging for their final trip out of the house.
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Velvet-covered photo album with plastic sleeves
It’s thick, and heavy and smells faintly of musty paper. The pictures inside are curled at the edges, and some are stuck to the plastic sleeves. You meant to digitize these years ago, but now it just sits on a shelf collecting dust more as decor than repository.
Ceramic soup tureen from an old dinner set
It would have come with bowls and a ladle, but those were lost or chipped away over time. The tureen itself is heavy and cumbersome and you can’t remember the last time you had enough people over to use it. These days it’s taking up valuable shelf space in the cupboard.
Glass ashtrays in a house where nobody smokes
They may have belonged to a parent or a guest or even you when you were younger, but they haven’t seen a cigarette in a while. If you’re past the habit, maybe you should part with the accessory, too.
Travel alarm clock
You once took it with you everywhere you went. Now it’s lost and spare in a drawer. It still ticks as if it could be packed again. Touching it, you can almost remember travel of a different sort.
Stack of cloth napkins that never match anything
These are the extra napkins from different sets that somehow don’t match anything you own anymore. You’ve been meaning to throw them out, but you tell yourself you’ll keep them in case you ever need to make a “special dinner”. These napkins lack the quality for guest use but are decent enough that you don’t want to throw them out.
Wicker magazine rack with nothing current inside
Okay, it might have old phone books or magazines from three Christmases ago stuffed inside. In any case, these days they’re no longer necessary with the internet. They used to be a living room centerpiece but now they just gather dust.
Sewing kit from a hotel stay
The thread breaks when you attempt to use it and the needles are stained with rust. It’s been good for nothing for years, but you keep folding it away somewhere (just in case).
Decorative plates
Proudly displayed, or stuffed in a back shelf. They were never intended to be eaten from. But lacking a little nostalgia, they’re junk, not treasure.
Giant dictionary in the age of instant search
It’s from the days when looking up something meant having to go to the library. It takes up a lot of space on the shelf and you haven’t used it since you were at school. At this point it’s just another thing to lift when you’re cleaning.
Fold-out cloth measuring tape from a sewing kit
You used to have one of these for sewing or household crafting, but now the numbers are worn off and the fabric along the edges is frayed. You likely have a plastic or digital tape measure now that’s more convenient.
Fabric-covered hot water bottle
The fabric sleeve is faded from washing, and you only ever used it during colder winters or for certain aches. But it’s been replaced with electric heating pads or other quick fixes. It’s one of those things you forget you own until you rediscover it while searching for something else.
Recipe cards written by people you no longer remember
They were probably given to you from another family’s generations, or left in a secondhand cookbook you purchased. Although you won’t make these ever again, they stay unused and still give you an uneasy feeling when you think about throwing them away.
Drawer of hotel keycards
They seemed like neat souvenirs to keep around at first, but now they’re just a pile of cards from places you only stayed once or twice.
Rubber stamps from an old hobby or job
They used to come in handy for mailing envelopes or adding a personal touch to crafts or documents. Now they’re sitting in a box with ink pads that have long since dried up.
Collection of tiny souvenir spoons
These are meant to be souvenirs, so they don’t match anything in your kitchen, and they’re too tiny to be useful for eating. Right now these items serve no purpose as show pieces since they primarily gather dust.
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