Over the years of selling on Ruby Lane, many customers have informed me they purchased an item because of its connection with the past. The collectible a reminder of a place and time or a person that connects them to the past, a tie that binds to their heartstrings. How often a customer relays the message “Oh, this brooch reminds me of my grandmother” or “My mother had a charm just like this when I was growing up”. Collectibles are so nostalgic! Nostalgia is defined as “a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time”.

There can be comfort in the past…the memory of an object can elicit a special memory. So does a scent! For example, the smell of a freshly baked apple pie can transport you back to your Grandma’s kitchen! During my childhood, our family spent summer weekends at a relative’s home. Recently, I drove through the area and a nearby factory emitted an odor that took me back in time. I found myself driving down the street just to look at the house where we had formed such happy memories, my relatives, however, are long gone from the home.

My grandmother was not really a saver; my mother relates how she threw everything away because she did not want any clutter. Still, I am lucky to have her silverware collection, the monogram initial “S” mirroring my own married name. I recall a time as she aged, when she instructed me to pick out something special for myself so she could see me enjoy it! I choose a Hummel, and that figurine is a treasurable remembrance of my sweet and loving grandmother.

Sometimes a certain collectible embodies a loved one. There was a customer who grew up in the United States but now resided in France. She purchased an antique compact as an affectionate memento her of her beloved mother and a military item that represented her father, both her parents had passed. I was glad to provide the tokens of sentimentality and pleased to hear the connection with the past.

Nostalgic tokens can preserve a cherished memory. What memento makes you reminisce in the past? Ruby Lane has hundreds of shops with a variety of collectible items sure to delight as you stroll down memory lane!

Written by Karen Soldwisch

Synergy Jewelry and Collectibles on Ruby Lane