50 Of The Coolest Things That People Inherited From Their Relatives

Many of us have lots of possessions that we could potentially pass on to our relatives because we think they're valuable. However, some of those items might be clutter that we simply have a hard time letting go of because we've been around it for so long. We asked Wellman, the founder of 'Four Thousand Mondays,' about how we can tell if an object is truly meaningful.

"From a practical standpoint, if you're unsure of the financial value of an item, get an expert to appraise it. For most of us, we're more concerned with the emotional value of an item, and we need to learn to be okay that we probably won't offend the ghosts of our ancestors if we donate their lace tablecloths," she told Bored Panda in an email. 

"When in doubt, play the 'Will I Regret This' game with yourself; if you donate Uncle Hector's hubcap collection, for example, will you wake up with a sinking feeling of regret? Or will you generally feel okay with yourself? If it's not worth much, donate it or sell it and get it out of the house."

According to Wellman, one of the best ways to determine if we should keep something that we think is precious is to ask the person we're saving it for. This cuts out a lot of guesswork and gets straight to the center of the issue. You could, for instance, ask them: "Would you like your great-grandmother's tea set from 1912?" 

"If your apparent heirs roll their eyes, maybe you sell the tea set at a consignment store. Ask your next of kin what they'd like to hold onto for sentimental or financial reasons, and then purge what you can muster."

Wellman explained to Bored Panda that we don't need fancy things to pass down to our heirs. "A positive legacy is a transmission of personal values; it's how others approach their lives as a result of having gotten to experience us," she said.

"Think about how people will remember and be influenced by your character, the examples you set, your ethics, the stories you told, the paths you paved for others, the things you built and contributed, the knowledge you shared, the silly idiosyncrasies, the way you made people feel after you left the room."

For some deep dives about living life to the fullest, feel free to take a look at Wellman's 'Four Thousand Mondays' website. You can also use her calculator to see how many Mondays you have left to live. It quickly helps put your goals and priorities into perspective.

No matter how wonderful or extravagant inheritances can be, they can be emotionally messy and physically tiring to sort out. First of all, you’re likely still mourning the loss of a loved one. If you were particularly close, you will need lots of time and support to accept what has happened, to heal, and continue living your life. So, you’re probably not even thinking about what heirlooms they left you in their will. 

Another issue is that even if you loved someone very dearly, you still most likely might have to give up some of the things they left you. Unless you have a very large home or you’re blessed with plenty of storage, you couldn’t possibly accommodate every tiny little thing they were sentimental about, from furniture and photo albums to hobby knick-knacks and a hundred different dolls they collected.

If your relative was a particularly energetic collector (or had a gentle inclination toward hoarding), you might find yourself having to sort through boxes and boxes of things.

Some of these items might be historically valuable, and you’d like to keep them. Others might have had a deep sentimental value to their original owner that might be lost on you.

But the reality is that many of the things you’ve inherited may have no real place in your home. You might not want them, or they might simply not (physically) fit at home. And holding on to hundreds of things out of guilt is no way to go through life.

Some of the items you find while sorting through your loved one’s home might be worth selling or donating to charity if they’re in good enough condition. Others, inevitably, might have to be thrown away… or subtly given to your other relatives to see if they’d like them.

AARP suggests going through your family photo albums one at a time to figure out which pictures your relatives may want to keep in the future. From our perspective, all photos are valuable. However, from a practical standpoint, you need to prioritize what you leave behind if you have dozens and dozens of albums.

The same goes for toys, furniture, artwork, etc.: ideally, you sort out what’s worth keeping from what you have a superficial attachment to. It really helps if you have someone you care about by your side as you’re doing some spring cleaning. Another perspective is often helpful. 

At the end of the day, you choose what to do with your inheritance. If you’ve been handed down a gorgeous signet ring, massive family photo album, gilded spellbook, stylish car, high-quality tools, or a magical sword, then everything’s pretty clear: you take good care of these items until you can pass them on to the next generation.

In this case, it’s very obvious that these items have a long and storied history that’s worth preserving.

It can be a huge help if the person leaving behind their things mentions what is and isn’t important and why in their will. It’s easy to assume that absolutely everyone will know not to throw away a respected family heirloom, but not everyone might know their own history in such detail.

If the heirloom is slightly unusual (like a vintage toaster, quality iron waffle maker, or old-timey radio), you might need some guidance and a gentle reminder that what you have is genuinely good, even if it doesn’t glitter like gold.

All that being said, it’s a reminder that you shouldn’t rely just on your will to remind everyone that your family has an important legacy to preserve. It’s very important to maintain this living knowledge throughout your life. A big part of that is doing research into your family’s roots, recounting stories from the past, and maintaining family traditions.

Now, the family traditions themselves don’t have to be anything overly elaborate—though they can be! What’s important is that your family has traditions and you all get together, not the specific details of how you do things. Getting together for a meal every Sunday can be a wonderful tradition.

It might even eventually turn your pancake pan or waffle maker into veterans of a thousand brunches and highly coveted heirlooms. However, keep in mind that the items themselves have to be made of quality materials and with excellent craftsmanship to stand the test of time.

Which of the heirlooms that we’ve featured in this post impressed you the most, dear Pandas? What are the most interesting things that you’ve inherited from your family? What are the coolest things you hope to leave behind for your kids? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.