I Cleaned Out My Dead Grandma's House

These are the things I wasn't leaving without.

Jewelry

I'm sorry, there's really no good dupe for heirloom jewelry. There's really not even a good dupe for Nanny's jewelry. She had so much, she wore so much and left so much untouched. I found: necklaces, rings, broaches, a vintage pocketwatch, two bolo ties and bracelets. The only place I've spotted jewelry that makes me feel close to how I felt looking at hers would be at a local shop, KIN and occasionally on Etsy. Take your jewelry seriously, it pleases Venus.

KitchenAid Stand Mixer

Between trash bags of old pantry items and mole hills of old hair shears, I looked up and saw god. On a shelf above the fridge, nestled between Tupperware containers and reusable trash bags, was a KitchenAid. I swear I heard it whisper "fear not" as I proudly announced to my sister (already the proud owner of a KitchenAid) that I would be taking it. And indeed I did. Although lifting one of those while your arms are fully extended overhead and you're on your tippy toes is not recommended.

Philips Hue Lightbulbs, and a Lamp

I tried bartering with my boyfriend to give me his smart lightbulb, fail. I lurked at prices online trying to convince myself they were worth buying, fail. Unopened Philips Hue box on the living room floor, score. Now that I have the lightbulbs, I would buy them. You can set routines to use them as a sunrise alarm clock, control the brightness and color and turn it on or off from your phone. As for the lamp, I wasn't set on it until I found the bulbs.

Anchor Hocking Food Storage Containers

I bought a set of these containers my first year at college and still have most of them to this day. I don't like involving plastic in my food, so they're great for leftovers, salads and packing lunches. The lids are also super secure. Like, I have a hard time getting them on sometimes, secure. So, my sister took the vintage Pyrex and I took these containers.

Knickknacks and Keepsakes

Again, not something replicable but you can find similar pieces at thrift stores and on odd corners of the internet. I found a glass trinket box, an egg-shaped crystal, old portraits of family members, newspaper clippings, marriage certificates, immigration papers and many more precious finds for my genealogy hobby.

What a sad and beautiful thing to help pack up somebody's life.