Hope Chests

I'm part of a sewing forum, and I just got on it a little while ago to catch up on what's been happening there.

Lo and behold! Hope chests are the topic of the hour. I just wrote this post to add to the discussion there, and thought I'd share it here:

"...I really like hope chests. I think they are a wonderful idea - mainly because they teach a girl to think seriously about what her life will be like when she gets older. Preparing ahead of time is just good sense! I have the extra time to plan (and extra money to spend) NOW - why not make use of that fact?

My hope chest itself is very special to me. Reading through these posts reminds me that I'm one of a few girls who actually has a CHEST for her things. My Daddy likes to work with wood, and he made mine for me when I was about...16, I think.

It was supposed to be a Christmas or birthday present, but things happen, and I got it in the middle of the year. I didn't mind a bit. It's a lovely chest. It isn't made out of expensive wood - just pine - but I love it. I chose the color I wanted it to be stained, and Dad had me give him an idea of what style I wanted. I also selected the handles - the trip to the hardware store for them is a memory in and of itself.

The most special thing about the chest is that Daddy burned his name, the date, and a special message to me from him inside the chest, on the very bottom. Sometimes I'll take everything out (quite a job!) just so I can read that message.

I know everyone has different ideas of what should go in a hope chest, but my goal is to fill it with things I will actually USE in the future - and that includes sentimental things, since they have value to me. ...But most of the things in there I have bought or made myself for use in the home I believe God will give me someday.

Some folks say to select neutral things, since your tastes may change before you have a home of your own, so for a long time I was afraid to buy too much for my chest. I did make one queen-size quilt, which filled nearly a 1/4 of the chest.

This year, though, I've begun to realize that my tastes (in color, at least) haven't changed since I was 12 years old, so there's a pretty good chance I won't change before I marry. Now I feel free to buy and make those personalized things I've thought about for years.

I now have 2 quilts in my chest,...
...an afghan (it's huge! I love it. Memories of working on it for months...),
... some random serving dishes, all in blue and white (memories of shopping for it with my older sister!)...
...a hand-powered food processor (too cool!..it's in blue, of course.)...
... a quilt my mother made, which covered me for years, until it became to worn to use...
...a book that ladies in my life put together for me when I graduated, full of words of wisdom...
...my old journals...
...my high school diploma...
...a lovely teapot...
...a fall-themed tablecloth...
...a small stoneware baking sheet...
...and I don't remember what else. Just a few odds and ends, like a veggie peeler, and such.

Outside my hope chest - around the house, wherever I can find room to store them:
...Books...
...more books...
...three pizza stones (love these!)...
...a kitchen chopper (in use!)...
...a lovely little blue-and-white teacup from my sister (again, in use!)...
...photos...
...a bookshelf my brother made, to match my hope chest (this is really special)...
...and, my most recent addition: a high-quality set of stainless steel pots and pans. (The story for how I got these is AMAZING!)

Also, I have a few projects sitting in my sewing area, waiting to be finished:
...another quilt...
...12 cloth napkins...
...fabric for a table runner, or anything else I decide to make...
...and who knows what else...

Now...if only I had picked up those great deals over the years, I'd be filled to the bursting point! I still keep thinking of that GORGEOUS huge white tablecloth I could have gotten on sale...if only I hadn't listened to that voice that said "your tastes might change later." Ah, well...memories! The stuff life is made of. "


So... what about you ladies here? What do you think of hope chests? Do you have one? What is in it? Do you want one? What would you put in it?