Preserving Family Memories and Heirlooms

June 16, 2007

 

Flickr Photo Credit: Free Parking

Family heritage is important to all of us. It connects with our past through the creating and handing down of memories, and with our present through the sharing of those memories with current family members. But how do we preserve this heritage?

Some, like my grandmother and parents take up the leadership mantle and research family history and geneology.

I’ve taken on my own documentation project this year through a project called “heritage recipes”. I’ve passed the word to various matriarchs in the family to collect and contribute recipes that have been around for generations, or that a particular loved one is famous for. I’ll also be including some from really close friends of the family who’ve been an important part of our life over the years. Some of these recipes I already had. You’ll notice them up on the blog already. The others, I’m hoping to get collected and documented by Christmas, when I’ll send out an electronic newsletter to everyone to come and check out the recipes and any holiday photos we’re able to take. This will make them available to any of the grandkids and cousins who may need them, be they away at college or living abroad.

Having started this project, I started thinking about the various ways we can preserve family memories, heritage and heirlooms. Since every family’s treasures are different, I knew the list would need to be diverse and include ideas that could be extremely flexible. Here’s what I came up with:

• Hand Tools - I’ve seen lots of things done with these over the years, usually with the antique ones. I have an old flat iron and a metal shoe frame for nailing the soles back on that belonged to my father’s parents. I’ve used them as doorstops at various homes I’ve had over the years. Some people display them on the walls of porches, barns or log cabins. One of the neatest things I’ve ever seen done was a tranformation my Mom coordinated on an old rusted hand saw that belonged to my maternal great grandfather. It was one of the few momentos my grandmother had of her Dad, and was in pretty rough shape. Mom took the saw to an artist who painted saw blades. Here in Maine, it’s a common art form to paint scenes and murals on large circular saw blades and two person antique bucksaw blades. People display these at the entrance to their driveway, across their fireplace mantles, etc. So my mother found an artist who did this type of artwork and brought her the saw. She also brought along an antique photo of the farm where my grandmother grew up, which had since been torn down, and where my great grandfather used this saw a great deal. The scene on the saw blade was to be a representation of the farm where my grandmother grew up and that my great grandfather had owned. The wooden handle which was also in pretty rough shape  was cleaned up and painted black. This fresh coat of paint blended in with the scene and enabled the wheat grain carvings which you could barely notice anymore to be prominent once again. Gram had a room decorated with lots of wrought iron, and this saw hung prominently there for many years.
• Old Photographs - Antique black and white or tinted photos of family members recreated in multiple copies and framed in a collage format with a neutral colored frame (black works well) are a great way to develop a unique gift to give multiple family members. My Mom also did this one year with several family heirloom photos of which there was only one remaining copy. Some of them even had to be restored. She’s also done it with individual photos that everyone wanted, and had them framed for aunts and uncles.
• Online Digital Scrapbooks or Photo Albums - These are a great way to share birthday parties, special events and trips with friends and family. They can enjoy them online, and order prints of any ones they like in a size that suits them.
• Shadow Box Frames containing belongings and nick-nacks of a beloved family member. I made a Christmas present for my husband one year by shadow boxing several colorful hand tied fishing lures his father had done prior to his death. His Mom also gave me an old compass, more fishing ties, and some old black and white pictures of his Dad as well. I’m looking forward to doing another shadow boxed gift for him and possibly copying some of the photos to do framed gifts for his brothers. I’ve seen this done with Christening outfits, infant spoons and bronzed baby shoes as well.
• Crazy Quilts - My grandmother always made random design patchwork quilts out of the old clothing of family members. While it was also a frugal way to provide bed linens and recycle old fabric, I know how much my mother and aunt loved to find pieces of their old prom gowns on the blankets in the guest bedroom when we used to visit.
• Applique Quilt Pieces - This is sort of related to the crazy quilt idea. This mother of one of my close friends in high school made a smaller decorative quilt with hanging tabs one year. Each of the nine squares featured a cottage style house with the windows, chimney and door pieces (as well as the house shape) done out of scraps from the old flannel shirts of her father and brother. I like this idea because if you are trying to find momentos for several family members of a loved one who recently passed, this is a way to be able to do something very special for everyone even if the person in question did non leave behind many belongings. Families of all financial means could implement this type of project.
• Save old sports jerseys and turn them into pillows or quilt squares. Teens love to take quilts to college made out of their old race T-shirts or varsity jerseys. A great way to maintain the memories of their student years.
• Old wool and fur coats can be turned into stuffed animals. Even grown adults who are not into the country bear decorating theme could tie a holiday ribbon around the neck of an heirloom Teddy bear and place under the Christmas tree. This would also be a nice idea to help grandchildren feel connected to a grandparent who has passed on.
• Braid a rag rug out of the clothing from a loved one who is no longer with you.
• Use the costume jewelry or button collections of a previous family matriarch to decorate miniature picture frames and distribute them to relatives with her picture inside. (These make great holiday tree ornaments!)
• Keep a journal for future generations or an online blog for the current one. I know many people who treasure antique journals from generations past. We’ve been keeping our blog as a way to keep in touch with friends as well as explore various business options. Find a format that works for you.
• Have portraits painted from old photos or have nice family photos done while you are all still together.
• If an old building or family homestead is about to be torn down, take a photo or find one from days gone by. Have it copied or use it as a basis for a formal painting or some sort of modern art print you can have produced for siblings. You’ll be glad you did.
• Accept the responsibility of stewardship. By this, I mean take care of those heirlooms entrusted to you. If you are nomadic, like I have been, this may be an extra burden due to the storage and shipping costs and the stress of worrying over the condition a treasured piece will arrive in after a shipment. However, it is still your responsibility if you choose to accept the piece from a family member to preserve for future generations. If you don’t feel up to the task, find a family member who is.  Many things can be considered family heirlooms. Antique furniture, silver, china, homesteads, photo collections, and yes, even family trusts. Leaving funds for future family to keep up a waterfront property, charitible organization or other project is just as much a legacy as traditional heirlooms.
• What if there’s only one of something and several family members want it? For example, a teapot, a piece of lace or some antique garden tools might be items siblings all have fond memories of. Have a professional photographer take some really great still life shots of the item or items in question. Something very tasteful and worthy of framing. Usually, this is enough for most people to let an item go emotionally. See how it works for you.

Some other resources for preserving family heritage? I did a little research on the net, as usual. Here it is.

• An article on preserving important family artifacts.
• This article is a how to piece for scanning family documents photos and other artifacts such as watches.
• A blog entry about preserving the lore that goes with certain family heirlooms.
• This page tells about ways to preserve out of the ordinary family hand-downs.
• A post from a woman who catalogued thousands of artifacts for her family. Wow.

Before I wind up this post, I’d like to mention one more idea that I’ve featured before, both on TheLessonMachine.Com’s blog and our monthly newsletter. It is something I saw done with style in the office my Arizona insurance agent. She had all of her daughter’s art projects (the flat ones anyway) from that particular year at school. She also had some award ribbons and certificates. They were all collaged together creatively inside an extra large wooden frame. This was hung with pride in her office and looked fabulous! There are many ways to preserve memories for our families. If you’ve done something unique, let us know! We’d be happy to feature your efforts.