How to Acquire Heirlooms

If you have antiques or want to start your own collection of heirloom quality furniture, you need only a desire and a checking account. Heirloom quality furnishing and items make a terrific statement in your home as to the care and quality of your furnishings as well as enhance your decorations with their natural beauty.

Heirlooms

An heirloom is a treasure. It can take the form of jewelry, linens, furniture or any other item that you and your family treasure. You great-grandmother’s wedding ring is an heirloom as is your mother’s dining room table – provided they have value to you or someone else. Most heirlooms are especially well built and last for centuries with proper care.

Shopping for Heirlooms

If you don’t already have heirloom quality pieces of your own to decorate your home, you can shop for them in a variety of ways.

Estate Sales

The first is to visit estate sales in your area where families are selling items from the home of their departed relatives. These estate sales might offer you terrific bargains on heirlooms, but they may also require a bit of refinishing and care to bring them up to the quality of their past.

Antique Dealers

Another option is to visit antique options or shops. Trade fairs, displays, shops and warehouses of antiques offer a collection of items gathered by those with a presumable eye for quality and beauty. Browse the collection for items that appeal to your decorating sense and budget. Don’t be afraid to bargain and always ask plenty of questions.

Buy New

While heirlooms often seem old, there is nothing stopping you from buying items such as grandfather clocks that will become an heirloom in the future. Seth Thomas clocks, for example, are a fine statement in any home and will be treasured by generations to come. Find quality craftsman through select furniture stores or by referral from design agencies and have your furniture crafted by hand.

Decorating with Heirlooms

When using heirlooms to decorate, be sure to place the items in areas where they will be protected. Use table runners and placemats to protect surfaces and consider sheets of glass on top of dressers and tables to keep the wood preserved. Clean and polish the heirlooms regularly to protect the finish and be sure to properly insure any pieces of value.

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How to Insure Your Belongings

It doesn’t matter how little or how much you own. Once you’re established and on your own, you need to insure your belonging. This can be done through a single insurance company or agent or through separate companies if the price and need warrants the diversity. Here’s how to insure your belonging.

Your Home

If you own your own home, you need home insurance. This will include some natural disasters such as fire, but you may need separate insurance for flooding, wind and hail damage. Your home is your most expensive and valuable possession, it should be insured first. Home owners insurance should also include all possessions within the home, so be sure to list and photograph all items should you need to file a claim. Also be sure you have enough property insurance to cover the replacement costs of everything should something terrible happen.

Your Car

Car insurance covers you in case of an accident or theft. You can set your limits and deductible at various rates, but be sure you meet at least the minimum requirements for your state or area. Strongly consider adding uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage in case you are involved in an accident with an individual without insurance. If you have a new car or one that has payments higher than the vehicle is worth, you might also consider gap insurance to cover the difference in your loan and the insured value should the car become totaled.

Renters Insurance

If you don’t own your own home, you still need to insure your possessions. Most insurance companies offer renters insurance which insures just the property inside the apartment. Should a theft or natural disaster occur that damages your apartment and your belongings inside, the renters insurance should be enough to cover replacing those items.

Collectibles Insurance

If you collect items, especially antiques or other items of value, you should insure those collections. The same is true if you own antique cars or motorcycles, even if they aren’t driven.

Jewelry Insurance

Jewelry over a certain value – and you determine that value – should be insured. Jewelry retailers or your traditional insurance provided can help determine the best policy to cover expensive jewelry. This same insurance can cover other expensive items such as coins, collectibles and investment grade antiques.

Item Insurance

Many items such as appliance and electronics offer an insurance policy with purchase. Determine if the policy is worth the cost of replacing or repairing the item should it break. Also be sure to consider any manufacturer warranty.

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