I’m a sucker for sentiment. So for me, a beautifully appointed home is more than a collection of well-chosen furnishings. It’s a tribute to who you are and what you hold dear, filled with the objects that help tell the story of your life. If you wander through my home, you’ll see treasures here and there that have been passed down through my family, each a link to the people I love. These heirlooms of old are comingled with wonderful new pieces I have acquired, which will become the heirlooms for future generations of Garritys.
What about your home? Have you dotted your décor with old or new heirlooms that brighten your spaces and pull at your heart strings? Here four of my favorites to consider:
Well Crafted Furniture
Those of us who love antique furniture can be eternally thankful to the craftsmen of old who fashioned these pieces so well that they have stood up to the rigors of time and still look beautiful. The take away is: When something is well made, using high-quality materials, it’s a keeper for generations to come.
Chances are, you have some pieces like this in your home, whether it’s a chair you inherited from your grandmother, an antique you’ve discovered in a shop or a darling vintage piece you picked up for a song and refurbished. Put them front and center in your décor! Sometimes people ask me if it’s OK to mix up different styled furniture, such as including an antique chest or chair in a room that features more contemporary décor, and the answer is an emphatic yes! My favorite interior spaces are an eclectic assortment of different pieces that look as they’ve evolved over time.
When you purchase new furniture for your home, whether a sofa or a dining table or hutch, stop and ask yourself if this is the kind of timeless, quality piece that you will be able to hand down in future years. While some pieces of furniture in your home will have a shorter lifespan, like a trendy table or chair, the bigger pieces should last a lifetime (or two or three). My advice is to invest in the highest quality furniture you can afford. For example, at Nell Hill’s, we carry upholstered furniture that is so well made, from the kiln-dried hardwood frames to the hand-tied springs, that they will remain lovely through the years.
Intriguing Artwork
Your fireplace mantel, that place of honor in your home, is the perfect spot to spotlight your heirloom artwork. The photo above is of the mantel in my little lake home, and the artwork enshrined there is very, very special to me because I have stared at it all my life in my parents’ home. The painting of the boy fishing was done by an Atchison, Kans., artist, given to my father years ago by the artist’s own father. The other piece is a charcoal done by my Great Aunt Christine. When my mom moved from our childhood home, she gave these pieces to me, and it’s heartwarming to get to see them every day, once again, a bit of Mom and Dad that will be with me forever.
Artwork doesn’t have to have sentimental family ties to be an heirloom. Perhaps you’ve collected a few pieces by local artists or finer works from area galleries. If so, you have a timeless treasure worth passing down. Similarly, artwork doesn’t have to be worth a lot to be an heirloom. Like the art from my parents’ home, it can simply be a lovely or intriguing piece that is special to you.
Sentimental Pieces and Collections
Both Dan and I really enjoy collecting items from our childhood. In fact, we have become hogs about it. For example, the lovely porcelain cookie jar in the photo above was Dan’s great grandmother’s. As fine and frail as it is, it was one of the few things to survive her early years as a pioneer, when the family lived in a dugout. I will always treasure this testament to all Dan’s ancestors endured, and survived, as they helped tame the West. You’ll find it showcased in a prominent, but safe, place in my home décor.
Dan and I have been blessed to have received lots of wonderful heirlooms from Dan’s mother, like this old shaving mug, which I also display as part of the ever-changing tableaux that polka-dot my home. Many of these pieces weren’t worth much when our ancestors purchased them, but now they are priceless treasure to us. I don’t consider myself the owner of these bits of family history, just the caretaker to keep them safe and honor them in my daily life, until it’s time to pass them on.
Now it’s your turn. What sentimental pieces can you spotlight in your décor? It could be anything! Display old family photos, vintage linens or collections. We framed a calendar that used to hang in one of Dan’s ancestor’s stores. Are there pieces that are brand new that will be heirlooms in your family’s future? The dessert server in the photo above is filled with little boxes I’ve collected through the years, gifts for my descendants.
Beautiful Silver and China
Silver, china and crystal are the quintessential heirlooms. And, they are marvelous additions to your everyday décor. Check out how I’ve used this gorgeous silver buffet cover in my lake house kitchen, in the photo above. This beautiful cover helps conceal the less-than-lovely burners on my stove, and become an elegant focal point in this utilitarian spot.
If you don’t have china, silver or crystal that have been in your family for generations, no worries. Acquire your own gorgeous collection and showcase it in your home’s displays. A simple silver tea service elevates the look of a side table, making it a visual heaven. Who cares if it’s brand new!
I got hooked on silver trays when Dan’s mom gave me a few from her collection. Since then, I’ve been adding new pieces, using these stately beauties every single day in my decorating and entertaining. Don’t have your own? We have a fabulous selection at Nell Hill’s!
When you think about it, many of the items that people in previous generations used to fill their home weren’t of great value when they purchased them. It’s only through the generations that these pieces have become costly. Case in point: depression glass. What lovely accents can you weave into your home right now that will become the collector’s item in the future?
Next Week … Good lighting is a key ingredient of a well decorated home. I’ll share the lighting I selected to illuminate our little lake home when we remodeled.
Fall Shop Tour
Pretty and Painted: A New Way to Look at Wood Furniture
Finding the Perfect Upholstered Piece
From the Archives: 3 Steps to a Beautiful Bedroom
Carol says
June 30, 2014 at 2:45 pmI have a cabinet of crystal pieces that I highlight at night with small lights. Everyone notices it right away. Some of the pieces I’ve picked up at estate sales and tag sales and someday my 4 granddaughter’s and grandson will have some pretty pieces. We laughed at one of our granddaughters when she told of using some pretty pieces I had given her mother to take her part of the refreshments for one of the class parties. They all wanted to know where she got them and she said, “my grandmother always uses pretty dishes”. Teach them young.
Deb Braun says
June 30, 2014 at 4:18 pmThis blog really touched my heart as my home is full of these cherished goodies. I am now inspired to place my husband’s grandfather’s picture next to his mustache cup. Thanks!
Susan Gibbons says
June 30, 2014 at 4:33 pmThinking about putting a christening dress on display….maybe in a shadow box?
Teresa Person says
June 30, 2014 at 4:35 pmYour displays are lovely…I, too collect many silver pieces and display them… Love to use the trays to corral small items…. As an artist I wanted to preserve my silver tea set by painting a still life including all five pieces ….Now I will have that also to pass on to my daughters someday…thank you for sharing… Teresa
Sherry Rodriguez says
June 30, 2014 at 5:54 pmI have 3 pocket watches that belonged to my father and a engraved ID bracelet that my father gave to my mother before they were married. I keep them under a cloche on a shelf.
Janet Smith Snodgrass says
June 30, 2014 at 6:16 pmIf my mother or grandmother touched it ——- I KEPT IT 🙂
or so my family says ——- Janet
Betty/Betsy Woods says
June 30, 2014 at 7:30 pmMary Carol never disappoints…I love this idea.
Marilyn Rue says
June 30, 2014 at 7:46 pmLove the dining room table. Do you have it in your shop?
Joann Augspurger says
June 30, 2014 at 9:00 pmLove your intermingling of heirlooms, vintage and new. I continue to share your web address with friends. Love the fact that you are so willing to share.
Stopped by Briarcliff a few weeks ago and have found a new love. Beautiful store!
Carolyn Jackson says
June 30, 2014 at 9:32 pmI treasure every piece of china and glassware I have which came from my maternal grandmother’s side of the family when they came to Galveston from Germany, especially since they survived the devastating hurricane of 1900. I also have beautiful furniture pieces from my husband’s family. Your ideas provide me with fresh new ways to display my treasures.
Lori Pellegrin says
June 30, 2014 at 9:43 pmThank you for the permission to live in the creation I call home. Sometimes I wonder why my surrounding make me feel so comfortable. I wonder if others decorate around treasures from their past. I have many of these little treasures mixed in to my cozy cottage. The knock down wardrobe that came from my grandmother’s house is in my bedroom. It was the closet shared by my dad’s three sisters. I remember wanting it when I was only half as tall as it is. I have a dance purse used by my aunt Sara. My grandparents marriage certificate is framed and hanging in my hall. It is quite ornate and large. June 1st 1904. My own pie bird collection is above the stove in the kitchen. The grandfather clock that my dad made as well as his garden watering can and some kitchen tools of my mothers.
I visited your Atchison store while I lived in St Louis. It an awesome place. I look forward to your newsy email. You’re my Midwest connection.
Your faithful reader, Lori
When I moved from St Louis to California 10 years ago, I had to select what would go and what I could part with. The treasures of my family won out. I wish someone will have interest in my treasures, but I enjoy my cozy cottage.
Betty says
June 30, 2014 at 10:59 pmI treasure a pretty white pitcher that holds about a pint of liquid. I grew up on a farm and my father had a small house built for his mother (my grandma) on our property. We had milk cows, and it was my job to regularly take this pitcher filled with fresh milk to my grandma after the cows were milked. I have this pitcher in a prominent place in my china cupboard.
Leigh Ann Thomas says
July 1, 2014 at 8:11 amI have brought up from the basement a box of my mom’s silver to be used,displayed and loved in my home. Please tell me what kind of silver polish you use so i can bring out the beauty
mary kooser says
July 1, 2014 at 8:16 amLoved your most recent letter. I too use heirlooms, mine and other peoples. It layers the room with lushnes. Repurposing the item is another delight!
Thank you all for your talent and wonderful work.
Jayne says
July 1, 2014 at 8:47 amI love this post. WHile it is true, commerce depends on people buying new things and going for new trends, if we all went for the newest look, our homes would look disappointingly the same. This highlights the satisfaction you gain when you use family pieces and beloved heirlooms to make your home look like YOU!
Gail Bailey says
July 1, 2014 at 7:33 pmThank You for using family heirlooms, my house would look empty without all the special pieces from family & friends. I think about those people & smile everyday as I walk through. Great memories.
Jim Weishaar says
July 2, 2014 at 8:23 amIs that handsome hurricane in the mantel photo currently available?
franki says
July 3, 2014 at 7:20 pmALL over the cabin!! It was just so fun meeting you at your (designer’s heaven) store in “Briarcliff!” It truly was one of the high lights of our 3,000 mile journey. Mary Carol is a “design goddess!!!” franki
Mary Carol says
July 4, 2014 at 8:50 amThanks, all, for sharing your wonderful stories. They really touched my heart. We are all custodians of the past, and it’s our job to preserve and pass on cherished memories to those who come after. You all are doing it beautifully, and creatively!
Marilyn, we do carry that table at Nell Hill’s Briarcliff. It will be 20% off between July 15-Aug. 15 during our Wood Furniture Sale. Give us a call at 1-877-746-4320 for more info.
Jim, we always have hurricanes in stock, but things fly out the door so fast, it’s best to call if you want a particular style. Our toll free line is 1-877-746-4320.
Kathryn Wilkerson says
July 28, 2014 at 8:03 pmI have some of those silver pieces you have pictured here, but they are black! What should I use to polish them?
New to this blog! I love it.
Mary Carol says
July 29, 2014 at 1:39 pmAny kind of silver polish will do, then buff it to a beautiful shine with a soft cloth. You will be amazed!