a woman in my area went to an estate sale that was being run by the bank. She got there late and they were loading the items that didn't sell onto a truck. They had a small sewing basket in their hands and the woman asked if she could buy it. When she got home she went thru the basket and found 2 brooches. She ended up taking them to the jeweler and then to Christie's where they sold for enough for her to pay for 4 years of college for her daughter. What better place to hide valuable jewels than in a sewing basket.
Knowing just how expensive college is in America, that's an incredible find. Here's hoping that daughter is able to find a dream job with that college degree.
@@hauntedshadowslegacy2826 this happened a long long time ago. Don't know what the daughter ended up doing. The town jeweler was the one that told me about it.
That's amazing!!! I collect buttons and in a $3 button box (the ones that are cut off of old clothes, nothing nice) I found a gold tooth!! I know it is a bit gross but it was about 5 or 6 grams of gold....🤣🤣
I love seeing Hans and Zenobia, romance born out of kindness during the Potter House series and finding Hans a new home. The ripple effect of your life is something I’m in awe of.
Looking @ that container of scissors, i had to chuckle. Everytime my mother lost her scissors, she'd look & look & LOOK for them. NEVER finding them, she'd go buy another pair. When she died, i collected a FULL plastic grocery bag of scissors!!! I told her...LOOK! I found your scissors!!!!! 😂😂😂
I hope the man who bought the clothing might do an episode with you to show the most unusual outfits and shoes. I'd love to see them and it would make a really good episode! He could think of it as a free ad for his sale of them later on. Please, please....
I've been wondering if the clothing man might find money or other good stuff in pockets, shoes, etc. People do hide stuff in shoe toes and pockets. It would be fun to see a video or two about the clothing, as you suggest, Laura Seeger.
That would be amazing! I know there is stuff in there that I use to wear in the 70's it would be cool to see it all!! Alex just doesn't have time!! Dont you love this???
Does anyone else feel their lungs constrict, think about how much stuff they've accumulated themselves, and think "that weight vest Hans is wearing could have coins stacked as weights"?
As someone who thrifted 90% of what I own, I count on people like you who donate mass quantities of good stuff. Finding that treasure amongst the trash is incredible.
There are numerous TV shows that attempt to help people who have suffered difficult life circumstances and ended up hoarding. They usually end up denigrating the person, their belongings or their situation. You are very much the opposite! You are always excited to see their keepsakes and treasures; you depict their difficulties with compassion and grace; and you ultimately display them as interesting and unique people who had a valuable impact on the world around them. Thank you!
I agree and think the levity has it's place in this. Alex needs a way to decompress through this process and his jokes are just a way to relieve some stress, IMHO. Sometimes things that were once very nice become so old and unusable due to neglect that at the point that Alex comes in, those items loser their usefulness and need to be tossed. I bet it's tough to decide what to keep and what's trash.
That's the symptom that creates the phenomenon of hoarding. People lose the mental ability to make the distinction between what could be still useful and what needs to be tossed. It becomes easier just to hang onto everything until they can no longer function in their own home that has become a warehouse for " STUFF".
Our grandmother was a hoarder and hundreds of purses were thrown away until I discovered she had folded up hundreds of dollars of currency which she had had sewn into the linings and carefully sewn shut. She was hiding money from grandad. Hate to think of how much money went to the dump!
Exactly how I felt when I watched hoarder episodes couple months ago. Since then, I kept asking what if? Up-to-date, I got rid of 40% of my stuffs. It's getting harder to get rid of more. Having said and did that, I am not even close to be a hoarder, but definitely, giving away things i don't use or need makes me feel better, healthier and wiser.
"I don't know what that is...some sort of big thing." That's how I would feel uncovering everything. This series is both addictive and motivational to go through my basement. After just one more episode.
I don’t comment often but have been watching since the Potter’s house series. Thank you. Just thank you. During these times your videos are saving my sanity and faith in mankind.
Boy do I agree with that! Plus it's an adventure into times past. "FUNKY TOWN"! I noticed she did alot of embroidery and macrame. I was teaching a coworker to sew for all of a few hours when she decided she was no longer interested. I bought a $600.00 designer coat at Goodwill for $16.00. We were going to deconstruct the coat just to see how well it was made. The fabric,design of the coat and the charmeuse lining were to die for. I worked with someone who could wear a size 2 so I gave her the coat. My friends wind up with gifts from Goodwill. The store has crap furniture,no glassware but it does have designer clothes. I found a designer shirt and bought it for the fabric. Then I decided it was too pretty to cut up. It is a see through organza shirt. The colors are hot pink magenta, purple and lavender. There are also citrus green pieces. All are iridescent. Some pieces are embroidered paisleys . Some are ruched. It is a visual delight for $2.99. A hot stuff 80 year old is getting it. I loved the Potter's house. It is just fun
Ours was ffdd, for fast forward Deana D........n, the eldest daughter. haha. The kids still say it, even though they are in their forties and have kids.
20 years ago I had enourmus ambitions for building a gaming computer into the case on such TV. Turning the screen part into a aquarium that was the pause stillbild on the national channel here. I never could get my had on any, and propably for the best. would be a hassle to visit LAN parties.
yes we say sewing notions here in the U.S. or Sewing supplies, definately not haberdashery. lol but that does sound like something Mary Poppins would say. haha.
Hmm, I would also think haberdashery is the finished product, especially accessories, while notions is things like thread, elastic, trims. Interesting.
Haberdashery definition is: NORTH AMERICAN men's clothing and accessories. BRITISH small items used in sewing, such as buttons, zippers, and thread; notions
In Canada, where we are bilingual in more than one way (English & French, British & American), haberdashery falls in the men's accessories definition. What Alex was looking through is definitely in the notions department. 🙂
@@bonniebryant3238 helping hans.. have you seen the set of videos where Alex did GoFundMe campaign for Hans. It is one of my most favourite series.. even better than Potter's. I saw the videos again just yesterday.
@@yesyess78 thanks, I have not seen that series but I will add it to my watchlist! I looked up helping hams but it was a young guy with a British accent. I’ll have to look again.
@@ArtfulShelley Possibly he left it there both so he can locate and use it later, and also because it would be dangerous to have an exposed blade in the middle of a bin of tools that someone will be sorting in the future.
Huge shout out to Hans and Zen for their willingness to help and always, awesome spirit. The world would be a better place if everyone was a friend like them.
The "dresser" that you were looking in for keys looks like the bottom part of a secretary desk as it has a keyhole. Flip it open because there are usually a bunch of cubbies and secret slide out drawers to explore.
If it's anything like some old bureaus I've seen, the upper part will have hidden slide-outs to stash valuables in! It's worth checking to see it any wood has a strange seam/gaps/ feels loose!
Many antique sewing machines also have two hidden drawers at the top. You open what looks like the top drawer, then there's a tab you push up on to release the hidden drawer. The hidden drawer is only like an inch or so deep, but that's enough to stash cash, coins, or important papers. I have one that was my great grandmother's. When I discovered the hidden drawers in mine, I found some old social security documents, a sales receipt from the days of when stores would let you put purchases on a tab and you could pay it whenever you had the cash, and a court papers for my grandpa driving drunk.
the couple who lived in the house seemed like they were pretty creative, paintings, macrame, sewing, jewelry makers, musicians, travelers, they must have been pretty interesting
I have been impressed in both of these hoarder situations how respectful you have been. I understand that a lot of the things are not worthwhile to sell or are only useful to go to charity. Frankly charity is a much better use for them than sitting around collecting more dust, so you're only doing a good thing. Don't let people get you down about this stuff, you're doing your best.
hes really offering a valuable service in these situations. People arent exactly lining up to do this without charging an awful lot. He isnt going to end up trying to squat in the house or anything destructive, or bail leaving things damaged or unfinished. The guy this was left to really lucked out it was Alex who responded.
I'm extremely grateful I got to watch the Potter's house series before having to tackle my mama's hoard. It taught me a lot about what things are worth something, and an appreciation for recycling things that can be donated. Before that, I would've gotten a dumpster and put many more things into it.
I have some 1940's that I cherish sigh.. so much so that I won't use them just look at them they are so pretty. Whoever had mine apparently didn't use them much no scratches on the inside or outside, colors are still shiny and bright. Anna In Ohio.
The red one is worth the most. For some reason that's the one that gets broke most often. Popular size i guess. Those bowls go for pretty good money. My grandma has a set.
@@lynettebyrnes1458 I don't know their history, but in the comments on the last video Alex said they were a ballerina and concert pianist. I imagine they both toured and traveled a lot.
@@sayit-sayit I am not a writer, please explain more. Because it opens the imagination to the life she led? Her travels and being wealthy. Or the decline into mental illness?
@@lorihanlon2525 I need to know people to write good and believable characters. I could stop there but I'll elaborate as requested. My interactions with people have been limited to the dark side of humanity, to say the very least. It's not her wealth or travels per se, that have drawn me to her and others like her. Meticulous hoarders, that is. Not the nasty ones with pet, vermin, and human excrement all over a house filled with useless garbage for which there is no repurpose. What interests me is the organized hoarders with a pleasant then melancholic back story that triggered them into 'saving' every damn thing they could. Belongings of deceased loved ones. Things the hoarder purchased before and usually after the demise of loved ones or the events that triggered their breakdown. Hoarders that have lived in the same house for decades... That's something that I've never experienced. Three years, tops in the same dwelling. Usually a year or less in the same place. (I move a lot and usually on an overnight whim after a bad dream or a series of unbearable nightmares. I have horrible, vivid dreams that drive me insane and make it impossible for me to live in a city. Night terrors, I've been told they're called. Dreams that find me awake in the driveway in the snow or rain or blazing sun or far out into the forest or down the street if I live in a city, making it unsafe for me to live in a city. Unsettling, to say the very least. PTSD and panic attacks and anxiety disorders and all that crap that I refuse to take pills for.) I'm interested in hoarders that purchased and took great care of things that they hoped against all hope, would fill a void that I truly cannot understand but can empathize with. Her travel and wealth? No... I've had a taste of both and have enjoyed them. Akin to tasting a soufflé or truffles or blowfish, they bore me now. Been there, done that, as they say. I can see the world from my the safety and privacy of my laptop with my satellite pointed in the correct direction no matter where I live and I move constantly. And money can only buy so much. I've had stacks and stacks of it throughout my life and keep it tucked away digitally only to be passed on to nameless, faceless, voiceless foster children when I die... Damn sure can't buy happiness or a sense of well-being and peace... Believe me, I've tried. It's not for sale. Not anywhere in the world and those claiming to have it for sale are charlatans. I've met them all and paid them handsomely in vain, trust me. I've been all over. There is no happiness or serenity to be found in constant travel. I, miserable as I am, seem to follow me everywhere I go, oddly enough. Despair is not racist and will follow you all over the world no matter how much money you throw at the winds of change. Happiness. Serenity. Such elusive commodities. I wonder if that's what she was trying to buy. Spent millions trying... How much does one person really need besides food, shelter and a couple changes of clothes? Extras? Sure, I have luxuries. I have a top of the line parka and pair of snow boots, both purchased from a thrift store along with everything else I own. And a pair of sneakers for warmer months, few as they may be, thankfully. And an ax and a good set of cutlery and cast iron pots and pans. And a bra that I have stitched many times. Think I've had it for nine years now. Full of patches and repurposed wire. A barbaric device I wear only when I go to town every other month or so, if that. Oh and three rifles and a handgun I bought from a man on my way to the frozen north. I buy ammunition every month and have for nearly three decades... If I hoard anything, it's ammunition. Best to not drive up on me unannounced. ;) It's her emotional bonds and devastating loss that draw me to her story. Bonds and loss that I don't quite understand on a fundamental level. Self preservation and protection and love of offspring, I get. Love of parents and siblings? Not so much. That video for me was a glimpse into the life of someone I will never meet. I'm a loner. A recluse. An introvert. The crazy hermit lady that lives down that long dirt road with the 'No Trespassing' signs. I live out in the middle of nowhere where it takes two weeks at best to have a package of basic supplies delivered to me. A place where Amazon Prime and Triple A is useless. 127 miles from the nearest, sizable town of 14.2k. A beautiful, frozen wasteland as far away from Florida as I could get where I fit right in with nobody to peek at me while I live out my days. I spend my days writing with music blaring as loud as I please (mostly opera and classical), watching wildlife and RU-vid, reading, and tending to my small, indoor garden, my two cats, and my dog. I spent my youth in foster care since eight years old after a horrific life of emotional, sexual, and physical abuse and neglect that only got worse when I entered 'the system'. One of 'professional parents' from which there is no escape unless you runaway to live in the woods where nobody can get to you, which I did on many occasions until I ran away for the last time, never to return to the waiting monsters that wanted to touch my flesh for their own pleasure. In the Florida foster care system, I met the worst of the worst of humanity. The truly depraved find a way to place themselves in the path of vulnerable children that have no adults that love them and will speak up for them. And they get paid! Paid to physically, emotionally, and sexually abuse children that are delivered right to their doorstep like a fkn pizza! A steady stream of voiceless, forgotten, disposable children to do with as they please. How wonderful for them. It truly is the perfect lifestyle for pedophiles. Those people I've met. Too many of them. I watch these videos to learn of different kinds of people. There are good people in this world. I know there are. I just haven't met very many of them, hence my reclusive lifestyle. Done with people. All of them. If I never look another person in the eyes, I'll be just fine with that. I've always worn sunglasses and my knitted hat when I've ventured into town and I couldn't be happier that we all now have to wear a mask to shop for basic supplies at the nearest Walmart that is 127 miles from my cabin. This woman lost people that she loved. She began a hording life after that loss. I don't relate with that because as a former foster kid, I had a grocery bag of belongings at best at any given time. (At this moment, I could pack my car in 10 minutes and move to a new place with all of my belongings.) I have zero attachments to material objects. I also didn't form strong bonds with parental or sibling figures and have never been married or even in a long term relationship with a man or a friend for that matter. And I never gave a crap about fashion like this woman obviously did. So long as I was clothed and had an outfit to wash and one to wear, I was golden. I have three sets of clothing at this moment and a parka and two pairs of socks, one wool and one cotton. This woman intrigues me. This woman with tons of belongings and a gaping hole in her heart for lost loved ones. Forgive my long-windedness. You asked me to explain further. I summarized the best I could. I'm a writer that suffers from the opposite of writers block. Writers diarrhea, I call it, affectionately.
I’m a junk journal bookmaker and I see so many things we could use in my community.... old magazines,vintage books with interesting covers,photos,buttons,ledgers,old papers with the dates,handwritten letters etc... these are treasures for us... google junk journals and you will discover what they are,this has been my passion in my retirement,and a good hobby to occupy my days since I’m obligated to stay home since covic19 pandemic.I don’t know why RU-vid suggested this series but I am hooked and enjoying it.This also reminds me to stop procrastinating and clean that basement before I suddenly die.....
@@patadamek3165 You`re right about that. What a job it`s going to be storing, sorting, cleaning, posting.. It could potentially take years to make a descent return on his investment of time and money. He was smart buying it though..that`s for sure
To each their own, but second-hand clothes in a particular size will be a hard long sell and a specialist market. He also has to pay storage fees, cleaning fees and we don't know if natural fabrics were damaged by moths, damp etc.
Hey Alex - If you ever have old tools to donate look into the non-profit Edmonton Tool Library, they accept tool donations..(and lend them out to Edmontonians)..cheers
I think you’re doing a great job. If you had a year to go through everything that would be different, but you have to be realistic. You’re saving what you can, delegating what you can and donating what you can, giving all sorts of items a second life.
@@l.m.2404 I don’t sew but learned a long time ago to have a scissor handy and now have one in every room in my house. Open any drawer and I have a scissor 😀. I had a houseguest notice. Said it was awesome that I had a scissor everywhere.
Alex, we’ve been in your shoes. Not in a whole house but cleaning out hoards. It does hit the feels when you have to discard certain things. We fully understand the time constraints, hard decisions, the overwhelming feeling, and trying to focus. We commend you on your efforts and love binging our way through all your series. Loved the redo on the potter house and felt the pain of the tenants destruction. Keep doing what you do!! Thank you for keeping us inspired 🤘🏻💗
This house keeps giving, and it was - as I expected - a wealthy person's property. It is not the stuff you usually find in a more "ordinary" hoarders house. This is the best series on youtube for the moment. 👍👍👍
Check all the sewing notions boxes! I have my grandmothers. My mom had never gone through them, and since my grandmothers death in the 80’s, they hadn’t been searched. They just sat in my mom’s bedroom. After my moms death I went through the boxes and unpacked them. There was a slit in the satin of the wicker sewing basket. My grandmother had put $100 dollar bills in the bottom for a total of over $2,000. My dad was totally shocked. In the tins full of buttons and stuff I found jewerly including a ring now insured for $5,000. I also found change, some silver. You never know what you’ll find in those tins!
@@lindakkilgore I saw that after I posted this! LOL - great minds and all. My dad said, “there was all that money there all this time and your mom and I never even suspected it! I offered it to Daddy, and he said, “Nah. It’s like your grandmother wanted you to find and have it.
anyone here checking how many minutes left in the video ?? it's like your'e already feeling sad because it's ending... damn it ..I'm already looking forward to tomorrow....LOL..
Also an unimaginable amount of work, work-hours, storage, sorting, cleaning, staging, photographing, indexing, researching, authenticating, listing, selling, packing, shipping, etc. I think Alex said a few times that he is aware there's a very good deal there for the man who bought the clothing and shoes and bags, but it is also allowed Alex to recoup his initial cost AND to lower his additional costs in labor for just even clearing the stuff out, let alone doing all the rest of the work that's involved and doing so under a time limit besides. There is a profit to be had in the furniture, tools, jewelry, art, piano, organ, and who knows what else, and Alex is able to get to other stuff in the house that he has the experience and the set up to sell, and the other person gets to take on years' worth of work for years' worth of profits. Everyone wins.
This is a good reminder that having money does not make you happy. As long as you have what you need you create your own happiness. And that is obviously not with “stuff”.
No one indicated the lady wasn't happy. She enjoyed travel, music, sewing, and wearing lovely things. She never had to worry about affording them. I hope she had a very happy life.
@@nancymontgomery8897 I think buying and piling stuff up isn't a sensible or happy thing to be doing, it indicates a dysfunction - therefore "unhappy". I know what I would be doing with fivemill plus, and it wouldn't be buying too many clothes.
@@elipotter369 Having a mental disorder doesn't necessarily equal unhappiness. Some people are shopaholics and feel a thrill or rush when buying stuff. This young lady had enough money that it wasn't getting her into financial trouble. The garments were clearly purchased decades ago, some as far back as the 1960s and 1970s. The hoarding probably started in her later years. It can be related to dementia or other brain disorders.
Hoarding is usually trying to fill a void... I haven’t seen a genuinely happy hoarder(which is a mental illness in itself)... it’s not an insult to learn from something you know? If you feel that insulted by my more than innocent statement maybe you can learn from it aswell...
If people think you are not feeling in this process, they have not watched you enough. You and your family are the real deal. Good people to the core. This home and it's contents could not be in more caring hands.
Microbiology professor here. I happened upon your video today (very interesting!) and felt compelled to message you. Respectfully, I urge you to get yourself (and everyone else) an actual medical grade respirator for working in this house! You are looking through materials that have been undisturbed for many decades, and in that dust lies potential pathogenic spores. Bacteria, fungi, and various parasitic microbes will sporulate in that kind of environment, waiting to get inhaled into a nice warm, wet human body. Your surgical face mask is better than nothing, but you really need a respirator (with replaceable filters). Let me know if you need help evaluating what is available - I would be happy to help!
@@judysocal8682 Ha hah! I just watched that series and I was yelling at the screen! (-: I can feel Alex's chest tightening when that dust storm starts swirling around...
What an amazing "collection" of things this is. It strikes me as quite the dichotomy, the giant jumble of shoes and each with an insert so that it will keep its shape. Care and chaos all in one tiny space.
truth and so many of them and how worn they were.... I can't wrap my head around that. some appeared to be well used. It takes me a long time to wear out one pair of shoes and they had so many. I keep things to a minimum so I can find them... I can't imagine so much stuff and $$$ to just go buy another to replace what I have already lost in my own mess... and hundreds of replacements. smh.
You get confused and muddled and then start buying stuff and collecting stuff. You don’t throw away things, you keep them as a way of holding on. A good example is when the woman went to Hawaii and bought pretty much entire floral outfits and then packed them away.
What an incredible life-long collection! It's sad that her compulsion to buy overwhelmed her. She had good taste though and must have been an interesting person. You have a lot of courage to tackle this project, which you are doing with compassion and good humor. May your work also be profitable for you and your lovely family.
Look at all papers might find stocks and bonds worth more than house if her net worth was 4 million in 1984. Good luck.Wonderful to see Zenova and Hans..
hahaha I love when you say about the scissors, every time she didn't find it she would buy another one... if you were around sewing people you would know they all own lots of scissors hahaha so much fun watching this.
Zinovia, dear lady, you are a rad WORKER BEE! I'm amazed at how much you cleared out today. You & Hans have hearts of gold. Thank you for helping Alex with such an enormous project.
I greatly appreciate the respect you take here and that you took in Mary’s house. As the granddaughter of someone with hoarding behaviour I know the toll it takes on the family. Don’t forget to check in the cushions and perhaps even in the clothes as I know that my grandmother has and still does stash wads of bills into cushions, sewn into clothes and stuffed into picture frames. Checking every nook and cranny is right! There may not be treasures everywhere but there can be treasures anywhere
Just recently bought two boxes of sewing stuff and they each had several Sterling Thimbles in them!! Paid $5 each and sold the thimbles for $20 each!!!
A couple of things I noticed, I'm a sewist and yes, we do have a lot of scissors, maybe not that many, but quite a few. Some will be dressmaking scissors which have have become blunt so she's just bought new ones. I know the sewing machines have gone now, but the really old ones are sought after as they sew heavier materials and it looks like she sewed leather, so those older machines will be brilliant for that. If you come across clothes that have no labels, they are most probably ones she has made herself. The TV if old, will take time to warm up, won't switch on immediately. I'm sure you know all this, but thought I'd add my knowledge into the fray. Loving your videos. Really enjoying seeing all these treasures and fun stuff.
Old sewing machine, most people wants ones from 40 or 50 maybe 60 because the motors are much stronger then modern and some can sew in thin leather , which is amazing and they are easy to care for and repair then modern.
@@JudyHart1 yep, he knows about Singer featherweights I believe, but I'm guessing he doesn't know about the really collectable attachments for them, like the Penguin foot.
Pfaf machines are the top notch ones. And many pre 70s machines were basically industrial type machines just rebranded for domestic sale. Those are workhorses and will sew heavy duty and can be repaired forever as long as you can get parts.
@@rosacanisalba Oh those machine are amazing. I am trained a seamstress and I can tell you that the sewing machine ( singer) I got as gift in the 90:ties ( not my choice of machine) , hasnt stand the test of time and the upkeep is way to expensive, you can fix them your self.
I’d also be looking behind all the pictures hanging on the wall, take the backing off them and look for money. Also look for keys on top of the door frames...I’d check pockets of all the clothes and jackets... check the curtain rods and if the ends unscrew then unscrew them and check inside the ends of them.
Whenever I see those old metal sewing machines, I get so excited. I know people in your shop are probably most interested in the pretty antique and vintage Singers, but these 60s and 70s machines are AMAZING workhorses that are so much better than non-professional modern machine! I just love them. They are worth their weight (and those all metal parts hold up!). I found an Olive Green Ward Signature at the thrift store for $12, and it was missing some important parts, so I paid $100 for a full repair and service and it was absolutely worth it. Even though they are not necessarily big ticket items, they feel like a treasure when you find them, because they don’t make them like that anymore, and as you said, they are such a pain and expense to ship so you can’t always buy one off eBay!
I agree, although I'm not familiar with the brand you mention. As a retired textiles and design teacher in Australia. I had 24 metal Bernina sewing machines in 2 classrooms (9 in each room and the rest in the storeroom to rotate when some had a problem.) They always worked well and some were 30 yrs old. They did a lot of heavy duty work with lots of students using them. The part I didn't like was cleaning and checking them all at the end of each semester so I could identify any that needed a professional service. Usually no more than 6 a year needed a service. I personally have an Elna sewing machine I bought im 1976 and still use today. It was Elna's top model back then.
I have a 1970 singer stylist and man I love my machine so much smoother than todays cheapo plastic machines and I have a white treadle sewing machine from the 1800s I love both of them!
It's obviously fun to see Alex finding goodies and treasures, but in these hoarded house episodes, honestly, one of my favorite things is seeing the junk and debris and garbage get cleared out, and the rooms restored to clean order... I never thought it would be so satisfying to see floors! I wish I could get this excited about cleaning my own house...
@@Pammellam Mmm not all millionaires buy huge, fancy houses, and if this person had been living in the home prior to becoming wealthy and had sentimental attachments to it, it would make sense that they didn't move out.
@@Pammellam I have known quite a few millionaires that live in regular houses. They don't care about showing off a big house, they'd rather spend their money elsewhere. One that I know races Porsches and shares at least one garage with Jay Leno and his house is a regular house in Omaha. His wife makes jewelry. This woman's hobby was clothes.
When we cleaned out my mother n law’s home ; we found money and coins hidden everywhere; even under a water bed frame. We gave a lot of items and furniture to the historic society that she was a member of and they had a big sale in her memory. I like watching your series a lot. Thank you all from us in Arkansas. USA
20:38 Hey I have that set of bowls! The Yellow Green Red nested set. Growing up, the yellow one was the spaghetti bowl on spaghetti night :) Family treasures.
It's so much fun to see how you kid with everyone helping you. You all get along so well, fun to watch and makes me laugh at times. I can't believe how far you have gotten cleaning this place out.
I'm seeing two generations in that house: mom and Dad, then the daughter inherited it. I haven't seen all the episodes yet, but I'm seeing the evidence of this entire house being a workshop, at one point in time. That explains all the sewing machines, and all the fabric; and all these small rooms set up with a coffee pot: that's where the workers lived. All the Purchased Clothing, again, that feels like a retail outlet.. maybe buying the clearance or seconds or store buy outs. For all of that to be so neatly stored, this wasn't just a hoarder: this was a Business, and it lost the brick and mortar location.
Interesting theory. I wonder if Alex knows more about the history of the place than he's mentioned, or if he might find out. I'm sure we all want to know more about who these people were.
Interesting theory, and you might be correct about the house being set up for workers. Someone clearly had some sewing and crafting talents! But I think Alex did say there weren't any descendants for the home to go to. I've been specifically looking for evidence to indicate there were ever any children in this home, but I haven't found any. Almost no toys or children's clothes, except a couple sealed toys hanging on the kitchen wall and a few comic books, all of which are also things an adult might collect. A person who shops and collects as much as this woman did would surely have kept belongings from raising her child(ren), wouldn't you think? My personal guess is that the traumatic event this woman suffered from that perhaps led to her extreme shopping and hoarding habits was either a fashion/clothing business that shut down (as you postulate), or her husband passed away (presuming she was married). Or perhaps she was troubled by not being able to have children? Or a health issue, although I didn't really see evidence of that either. Who knows? Just some guesses.
What I found fascinating in the first video is the framed black-and-white photograph of a young couple in one of the rooms. This is something you see in every old Bulgarian house and are usually two or three generations back. They are very formal photographs and I think they were common elsewhere in central and eastern Europe. There is linen in the front room that was made in what was then Czechoslovakia, so my thinking is that the family were initially immigrants to Canada who bought their trades with them, which includes music, leatherwork, hat making and fashion. I sense there were a lot of people working together at one point, as they would have done in their country of origin, until the older generation passed and that foundation was lost. That's the story I've made up based on what I've seen so far!
@@rachelh5211 I commend you on your compassion. I, too, noticed a lack of childhood things. There weren't any rooms decorated for kids. I don't think that house ever had children. It might not have been her 'childhood' home. But there is an over load of Work Evidence left in the home. Down to someone making jewelry, and sewing in the kitchen! There were photos of her as a Fashionista in the 80's. Since there are no heirs, she is the one who had no children, and I'm thinking that was by choice. The 80's are the first generation of women who entered Adult hood following the first Feminism success, and in the US, following the acceptance of abortion. Without the excessive commericalism of the 80's, we wouldn't be cursed with the Kardashians today. With her being worth 4 million, in a small city in Canada, that tells me there is a major business to artifically pad her Net Worth. That house, looks like the remains of a large business, of someone who knew all that product had value, but they had no where to put it, and then no place to sell it. She came back to that house, at the end of her life, when she couldn't Jet Set around any more, or didn't have the money any more. Which is a lot of conjecture [on my part] about the daughter, because I'm not seeing much of her in that house, except all those shopping bags. My thoughts on those bags from expensive stores: the person bought the least expensive thing in the store, just to feel like she was still able to shop at Channel, Macy's, and Tiffany's. THAT is where I see trauma: she can't spend money like she did as a young person, so she ventures into the big shops to relive her glory days. She kept the Bags, out in the open, where she could see them. Not in the trash, or neatly stored in a closet. Those bags look like trophies to me. I had three hoarders in my family; two were trained young by the Great Depression, that everything has value in the right circumstance, and you can't let go of anything, because you have no guarantee you'll be able to replace something once it was broken. You will be able to engineer something, from broken parts of other things, though. The third hoarder was an addict: to alcohol and shopping. She would go to the Dollar store and spend $3-5 just for the hit of dopamine, from getting to spend money wtihout anyone holding her accountable. Once home, she would toss those bags of dollar store trinkets into the spare bedroom. By the time she couldn't care for herself anymore, that room was a sea of those little dollar store trinket bags. The room was level with the bed, of those little bags. I agree with you, that the 'hoarding' was based on a trauma, but that came after the business remains were neatly stuffed into that house. The trash and lack of housekeeping type hoarding, was the daughter in her last years.
Really? I wonder why. I have a good 1940's mint condition nesting bowl set 1940's I'll have to check out the prices. I don't want to sell it but curious at some point I probably will as no one in my circle appreciates vintage except to sell it for money. Anna In Ohio.
I have a set that is swirled. Like new condition. They are fairly rare. Got them as a wedding gift 52 years ago. I looked it up and some person had a set and were selling them for over 300.00.
I don’t think you could be more respectful Alex , you have treated the ladies memory well and are helping ensure that the things she liked live on. A lot of family’s would have just binned everything!
I get so engrossed in watching I forget to click the like button. You are truly blessed to have those who are helping you clean out this house. That's a lot of work and they are still cheerfully working away for you. Its giving me a new focus on going through my own house and pairing down with all my stuff. Carry on!
I'm reassessing my life. I want to give it away, sell it, throw it away? I have so much stuff that I think okay... it's of value and I see what happens. I don't want to be a burden after I'm gone cuz you can't take it with you right
Alex sets a good example by going the auction route. I have used them to sell furniture that I did not want to store before leaving for a sabbatical...what a relief. :)
Yes, write a list of the things you absolutely can't part with and then, give to family, charity and the recycling. My mom did that around three years before she passed. It was a burden she didn't want to leave on us. It was sad enough cleaning out her house, and thanks to her, it didn't take very long.
It will be trashed after you go. If you want it treated with respect you need to deal with it yourself. I did my home and its been a huge relief to live without so much stuff around.
@@joshr9417 the walnut dresser in the basement was really nice. Maybe not an Eames or the like but a nice piece with the look people want and solid wood. That’s quality.
You know you're making progress when your voice finally echoes inside the house. Thanks for giving us a peek into this lady's very interesting life. She clearly had some interesting hobbies and interests.
