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[sunshine45]

@GingerPeach

all of our family actually reads books that you hold. no one downloads ebooks. i think pretty much every room in the house has some books on shelves or on display in some way. 

[ccassaday]

We keep trying to get my dad to throw things out because we don’t want his junk.

[NycVixen]

As a Millenial, I'm still interested in old and any kind of books, old photographs, some collectibles, some paper ephemera, old equipment and old magazines.

I love to read and prefer a real book than reading on a screen. I don't do a lot of collecting but I do collect some things. I love history and looking at old photographs I would describe as a passion of mine.

Maybe I'm not the norm for my generation since I gave up Facebook years ago and shun oversharing, selfies and most social media for personal use. I use it for work. I love things that are made well where the craftsmanship shows like they took pride in their work. Anything old or new that fits in this category is up my alley.

But I agree with this article. I love clean, modern design with a traditional feel. I don't like too much furniture. I try to have less things in my apartment as possible. I don't have anything being displayed that collects dust. Everything I own or collect can be worn, read or used in some way. I don't believe in collecting things for the sake of. I must be able to use it.

[Lucky Charm]

I'm not 60 yet, but am still buying antique Chinese and Japanese porcelain pieces for a beach house I'm decorating.  

And the competition is fierce at auctions and estate sales.

Same for art prints, am finding artists I've never heard of.

My homes are not spacious at all, therefore, the objects I choose have to really speak to me.

Hate using that phrase.  

Hard to describe, but I like pieces that I wouldn't tire of staring at.  Something that gives me a teeth clenching smile knowing that they're mine.  Excited for others to see.

No thought as to whether my children would or wouldn't want what I have.

It's about me, and my eclectic decorating styles. 

(DH leaves it all up to me )

And the thought of going through my parents things (and I love to do that now) leaves me depressed.  But not burdened.

[chrystaltree]

I'm 57 and my girls are in their early 30's.  My nieces are in their 20's.  My sisters I inherited my mother's and her mother's "stuff" and Now I have my own "stuff".  When we moved into our condo, we didn't just downsize in terms of space; we downsized in terms of lifeystyle too.  We don't do formal dinners for 20 with my grandmother's china and my mother's crystal and silver flatware anymore.  Much of that stuff is now in storage.  I thought that I would pass it down to my girls when they married and bought homes....and they did that but they don't want those things.  There's a lot they don't want.....

My jewelry.  Except for the expensive diamond pieces that their dad has given me (which they'll sell, I'm sure); they don't want my jewelry collection.  They aren't into jewelry the way I am and their tastes in jewelry are very different from mine.

They have their own china/flatware/crystal.  They don't need any more.

Family photo albums.  They want the albums but just to have the photos put on discs or stored up in "the cloud" somewhere.  They will look at photos on a screen or on their phones and print them if the need arises but they won't be interested in snuggling on the couch and flip through the albums.

I'm the one who got rid of all the "heavy, dark furniture" that was my mother's pride and joy.  

I have some of my mother's "nick nacs" on display but larger collection of her capidomonte and other stuff is in storage.  At some point, I'll go through it and take more pieces out for me and my sisters but our girls won't be interested it.  

My mom collected cookbooks, they were her treasures.  I kept one that belonged to her mother and two that belonged to her but the others.....in storage.  No, my girls will not want them.  

[faeriemoon]

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@Lucky Charmwrote:

I'm not 60 yet, but am still buying antique Chinese and Japanese porcelain pieces for a beach house I'm decorating.  

And the competition is fierce at auctions and estate sales.

Same for art prints, am finding artists I've never heard of.

My homes are not spacious at all, therefore, the objects I choose have to really speak to me.

Hate using that phrase.  

Hard to describe, but I like pieces that I wouldn't tire of staring at.  Something that gives me a teeth clenching smile knowing that they're mine.  Excited for others to see.

No thought as to whether my children would or wouldn't want what I have.

It's about me, and my eclectic decorating styles. 

(DH leaves it all up to me )

And the thought of going through my parents things (and I love to do that now) leaves me depressed.  But not burdened.

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I did the same using a lot of the blue jars and urns and crocks because they fit in with the color scheme.  Plus I think shells and sea treasures look good paired with that sort of porcelainware and crockery.

[Nightowlz]

My dad passed away in Feb so we had to go thru his things. 

He left certain things to certain people which they can take or sell.

My dad's step daughter is in the picture & wants it all free.

She thinks all gifts she bought dad are now hers to take back home with her. The attorney asked does she not understand when you give someone a gift it's no longer yours???

She already has many things of our mothers that should have gone to us kids not my dad's new step daughter.

So dad really did not have much we wanted plus he lived in another state.

I told my sister I would set it all outside & burn it before I gave it to the step daughter.

I brought home the old cedar chest that's been in or family for years plus a Staub dutch oven. I was not going to be there fighting over stuff.

While I was there the step daughter told me this this & this was all hers & better be here when she came back for it. I told her I could take home anything I wanted. LOL!!! Got her all riled up.

I would have told her what I really thought about her while I was there but my older sister asked me not to get anything started so I did not start anything. I did write her a letter when I got home. I will mail it when all is said & done.

I'm just glad I never have to see her again not ever.

It's not easy going thru someone stuffs when they die.

I'm going to clean out the whole house & DH is cleaning out the garage. Getting rid of everything we have not used in the past couple of years. When we go I don't want all this stuff around we have now. I never went thru so many papers at my dad's so I need to get that done so nobody else has to do that either.

[151949]

1. I think if you have things like china,crystal and silver you should live with them as long as you can.After your in the nursing home they can do as they please with them.However, not all millennials feel this way. My niece was very happy to take my china that I didn't want to bring to Florida.

[Mj12]

@GingerPeach Great article - thank you!  I agree with 90% of it.  My son and his wife (in late 20s) are very much interested in our book collection, and each visit they take a few stacks home with them.  Otherwise I agree with it, absolutely.  And it is very important not to guilt adult children into taking anything.

Finally - whoever may not like to collect or be given "stuff" (myself and my husband included) this in no way, shape or form means we have little or no connection to generations that have passed before us.   I have wonderful memories of both of my parents (and their parents) and I don't need any material things for that.

[beach-mom]

Articles like these make me sad, but I know it's reality and I have to accept it. I have a lot of wonderful family antiques, from maternal grandparents (my much younger male cousins weren't old enough to be interested; my older cousins had already inherited their mother's wealthy parents' estate), aunts and uncles who never had children, and one uncle's parents. I do treasure them, and I use them. But I have a LOT. 

But the problem is when I was young it was popular to "collect" your own things, and I did. Everyone was alive then with still growing families; DH was in school and we had to really save to get even the china I wanted. Years later we inherited three full sets. 

I've been thinking more and more that I would do it differently. I kind of miss the days when we didn't "have" so many things, when our dining room table was my parent's patio table, when our one living room chair was my great-grandmother's rocking chair from England, and when I really could take time to TREASURE everything in my home!