Antiques & Memories

One activity that I have enjoyed over the last several years is browsing through antique stores, antique shows, and flea markets. It’s great to find treasures that I can use when creating lampshades. I have found beautiful trims, beads, flowers, and sometimes even a fabric or garment in pristine condition. It's wonderful to use these pieces and give them new life in a lampshade.

New old stock trim from an antique shop in Cincinnati, Ohio.

But another reason I enjoy browsing and antiquing is that it reconnects me with the past. Many items I find are from before even the lifetime of my grandparents, but I’m beginning to see more things enter the market that I recall being in the homes of my older relatives or neighbors when I was young. Many of these items were either dispersed among other family members, given to goodwill, or possibly tossed, so I had temporarily forgotten about them. But now, I can hold an object in my hands for a moment and my memories transport me back to a time, a place, or even into the presence of someone I spent time with during my childhood. Memories are truly a gift!

On a personal note, the things I kept for myself when going through belongings from my mother and grandmother aren’t valuable to anyone else (except some family members), but they are special to me. I have some costume jewelry I remember them wearing, my mom's measuring cup, and the old bowl my grandma used to make delicious popcorn balls.

My Grandmother in the 1910's

What treasures do you have from someone in your past?