All Packed Up, But I’m Staying Home: Vintage Suitcases
02.12.07By Deanna DahlsadLet me introduce you to one of my most practical obsessions: old suitcases.
Suitcases are neat for many reasons.
One is price. Often just a dollar, or a whopping five, I cannot stop myself from grabbing them at every thrift store, flea market and garage sale that sells them for such a pittance. It’s easy to get a collection going when they are so cheap.
I just love my (mostly) round Tourister Tiara case — how swingin’ 60’s stewardess is that?! I love traveling with that one so everyone can see it. (It was also just $3.)
You need not limit yourself to old cases either.
Vintage, retro, even brand new cases they have their own charm and visual appeal. Alligator, velvet, vintage travel stickers and graphics, vibrant vinyl, and textured plastic… the options are many.
But best of all is their use.
I may be, in fact, a hoarder so you might think I am rationalizing yet another collection but I do have periods of intense organization. These periods involve touching nearly every single thing I own and finding it a home — not just a place to put it, but a home. One of the most practical means of doing this is via suitcases.
Have stacks of old sheet music? Grab a medium sized suitcase, and fill it. Have pounds of old paper booklets? Grab a small suitcase and fill it. Have more quilts than you can display? Fold carefully and place in a large suitcase. More plates than plateholders (or wallspace)? Wrap them carefully and store them in another suitcase. And on and on and on.
Suitcases keep the objects safe from dust, uncaring hands, spilled cans of pop, pets and children and even dreaded sunlight. For old papers and textiles, just pack with acid-free papers and voila! Items are stored safely and also ready to show off and share with others.
Now what do you do with all these filled suitcases?
Stack ‘em by size — largest on the bottom, smallest on the top — right there on the floor. Stack several cases of the same size, and you have a new endtable.
They also slide under beds & onto shelves, sit behind sofas, and squeeze into closets. With all these logical locations in your main living space, there’s no need to worry about dampness as you would in basements etc.
Some cases do double duty.
My Samsonite makeup kit does as designed, carrying makeup when I travel. But when we are home it stores my makeup in the bathroom linen closet. In fact, it performs so well I now own three — they stack nicely — and the total for all three was $4.
My pink vinyl Mary Kay case with handles ($6) can be a very chic purse for girls night out, but on nights in, it’s home to one of my finest wool felt hats.
Those who sew and other crafty folk can use suitecases to hold fabric and other supplies, keeping them not only safe and clean but making the most of small spaces by stacking on eachother or sliding onto shelves. You can easily label them for ready reference.
Three old clear plastic hat boxes store my crochet yarn and hooks. One stacked on top of the other keeps everything together, easy to eyeball for identification, and simple to carry to the couch when I am ready to work a project. And all three were still a fraction of what a new craft storage tote costs.
Old cases are charming and unique works as they are but if you find your thrift store suitcase has seen better days or is just too plain for you, DIY types can update and decorate them in their own personal style.
You can decoupage travel stickers, wallpaper, graphics from old magazines, or otherwise spiff them up. You might even take matters further by making them into furnature or even works of art. (Who says ‘altered arts’ are just for books?)
Whatever you do, I suggest you consider first if you’ll want to damage the piece or otherwise alter it so that you can no longer safely store items inside.
And of course, never alter (ruin) a rare item.
After all this, if you still find yourself with unwanted suitcases, please consider donating them to Suitcases For Kids.
Next time, I’ll show you some great ideas for vintage trunks.
