Arti Unlimited and Professional members can use our new AI-boosted ARTIAssist to enhance their stories and memories with historical and factual details about the items they Artifct.
Exclusive articles, interviews, and insights covering downsizing & decluttering, genealogy, photos and other media, aging well, travel, and more. We’re here to help you capture the big little moments and stories to bring meaning and order to all of life’s collections and memories for generations.
Do not lull yourself into thinking stories have been told, social media can speak for you, your ‘stuff’ or photos can speak for you, or anything in between. It's easily done and sometimes nearly if not impossible to bring those stories and histories back.
Do You Identify With Any of These?
You fancy yourself a storyteller, a history lover, and think you've put a lot of good stories out there in the world. And if they are good enough, they will live on, like a great campfire tale.
You tell stories now and then but know you have some still have some unique stories to put out in the world.
You stick to telling a few really good stories and write off the rest as somehow lesser. (This is what we often hear from Arti community members.)
Let's Improve the Survival Rate of Your Stories
No matter your storytelling style, we have five important questions for you to consider:
1. Did you tell the story?
You might not yet have told the story, period. Or maybe you didn't tell this person.
2. Are you sure?
There's little risk in telling it again. You can always say, "Stop me if I have told you this before ..."
3. Did you tell it more than once?
Depending on the study, it takes between seven and nine repetitions for someone to reliably remember. Well, maybe if the story is a real doozy there are exceptions!
4. Were they really listening?
Polite indifference can mask a wandering mind. How sure are you that they were listening? Likewise, crowded family rooms and dinner tables and multi-tasking realities may mean your story didn't travel as far as you think.
5. Were they ready to hear it?
It doesn't count if you told a 5 year old, or a teen bopping along in their own world, with or without headphones, or even someone yet to become a parent who maybe just thinks your story has nothing to do with them. They need to hear it when they are ready to listen.
We can lull ourselves into thinking everyone knows our stories, but reality is often quite different, and time is ultimately our shared enemy. Tell it again. Even if you're certain they know the story already, even if the story is only, “My sister gave this to me.” And maybe this time, record it where they can access it always.
We’re sharing a story each from our founders that they love to tell. Share yours with us at Editor@Artifcts.com to add to this story here in ARTIcles by Artifcts or respond to our post in Instagram or Facebook!
This week we’re taking a break from our usual stuff-centric ARTIcles by Artifcts story to share with you some observations we’ve had over the past few months on all things "On Aging," which is the theme of the American Society on Aging’s 2023 conference. (You can read more about our attendance at this week’s event here.)
We’ve all heard the saying: there are two things in life that are certain—death and taxes. Well, we think it’s time to add an obvious third to the list: aging. There is no avoiding it, and it’s clearly something we don’t talk about or plan for nearly enough.
In 2021, there were 55.8 million people aged 65+ in the United States, and by 2030, the number is expected to rise to 72 million. An AARP poll found that an overwhelming majority of those older adults (77% in fact) want to age in place in their homes. Maybe you or a loved one are in this position?
And yet…how many of them (and us!) know where to turn to find the resources and information to live longer, better, more connected lives either at home or in an independent community?
We have been fortunate at Artifcts to naturally develop a phenomenal network of individuals and organizations dedicated to helping older adults age well, and age with grace and freedom of choice, yet we feel that having such a network should not depend on one’s chosen profession. Our cofounders had to put this network to the test earlier this year with our respective families as we pondered next steps and life transitions and even helped support some of our loved ones as they moved into assisted living.
Have you worked with a great company, service, organization, or technology that helps people age in place? We’d love to hear from you! Better yet, post about them in your public forum of choice and start a conversation around aging. You never know who you’ll help.
We know who to call to do our taxes; we should know who to call to help us and our loved ones to live well and age better.
Artifcts in lieu of flowers is a concept born from the Arti Community. We are each the keepers of unique moments in one another’s lives. No one person can possibly be our own personal keeper of all of our memories and stories. No device for that matter either! Today we’re proud to announce the launch of what we have lovingly named “In Remembrance.”
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It has always been possible to create and share Artifcts privately. Now with Artifcts “In Remembrance” anyone can create an Artifct and share it with someone who is grieving a loss. It's a meaningful gift for someone who is greiving, whether the loss was yesterday, a year ago, or many decades in the past.
Choosing to share an Artifct “In Remembrance” sends a non-editable copy of the Artifct, marked with a black ribbon, to the Special Artifcts Collections of the individuals, circles, or sharing lists you select. Recipients need only a free account to access these Artifcts.
They will be able to view and download any photos or video and audio snippets you include in the Artifct, too. Maybe they will frame your photo! No need for messy storage and sharing here, there, and everywhere, email, text messages, share drives, chat groups, or temporary memorial sites.
How Can "In Remembrance" Help You?
If you have experienced grief, you know that the waves of pain and near paralysis that wash over you as the minutes, hours, and days go by can be all encompassing. With the best of intentions, people may gift you mementos, photos, stories and memories, and more. But it can be hard to recall them when you need them most. And you are only one person! So many people grieve the loss of a single person. What about all of them?
Through In Remembrance, the objects, photos, video clips and more of our loved ones and the stories behind them can be shared with us so they are accessible from anywhere and at any time we need them. Grief has no timetable. Neither do Artifcts.
Beyond Grief: Artifcts are About Life
The reason traditional estate planning is dead is that it has nothing to do with happiness or helping you live a fulfilled life. [...] What about planning to build the life you will ultimately leave behind when you die? - Daniel Scott, Forbes
Daniel got it right. What is life about if not the moments that make it up? Legacy planning is what estate planners now look to to help people be prepared in life and thoughtfully build that life.
Artifcts supports preparedness in life, too. We capture together the categorically valuable items we collect – the art, jewelry, collectibles, and more – and equally important the items that mean something to us because of the stories, personality, and life lessons and wisdom they impart today and long after we’re gone.
For every Artifct you create, we’ve included a small prompt “In the Future” - what are your wishes? What do you want to become of this object? Is it a family treasure to keep always? Will you donate it or bequeath it to a loved one? Consider that to ensure pieces of your legacy live on as you’d wish.
Bonus: You can also now let us know what we should do if your account is inactive for more than a year after your membership lapses and, ultimately, if you'd like to contribute to research via Artifcts! Check it out in your Account Profile under Security & Longevity> Preserve Your Artifcts.
The entirety of your Artifcts collection is a piece of your legacy, too. Make sure you preserve your Artifcts by naming your Legacy Contacts so we can ensure your digital Artifcts live on as you’d like them to as well.
There's a fear factor motivating some adult children to prematurely help - some more aggressively and/or cheerfully than others - their parents downsize, whether to downsize and literally move into a smaller home or downsize at home to more minimal possessions. The end goal for these adult children is sort of "Not it!" Do not send all that stuff to me. I don't have room for all my own stuff, never mind your stuff, too.
The question for the parent in this scenario becomes one of legacy - will you leave a burden of stuff, or one of memories, rich with who you were in your lifetime, and who you were together, too? Shared now and shared later, maybe through these stories and memories you’ll help release people from holding onto so much stuff that the stuff becomes that burden the adult children fear, clouding the memories.
Simple everyday objects, with meaning. But will you keep them always, or maybe just the memories?
On that note, meet Sue, a member of the Arti Community. And not just any member. As she approaches her first anniversary with Artifcts, she is also our top Artifcter, surpassing even the founders of Artifcts who had a head start and a natural predilection for Artifcting.
Who is Sue? If you search @Sue on Artifcts, you won't see a single Artifct. We did promise everyone that your Artifcts need not be made public. Everything is private by default, and Sue loves this freedom.
Artifcts co-founder Ellen Goodwin sat down with Sue to learn who she is, what she Artifcts, and most important of all why she Artifcts. It was such a treat to chat with an Arti Community member directly and a fascinating conversation. Enjoy!
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Ellen Goodwin: Hello Sue! We want to know all about you. Who are you, and what brought you to Artifcts?
@Sue: I am a piano teacher. One of my personal collections is miniature pianos. I am also my family’s keeper and a genealogist. I have collections from both sets of grandparents, my parents, and of course my collections as well as my husband’s. This house is like a museum! Name anything, practically, and I probably have something of that.
I keep wanting my daughter to come down to North Carolina and go over things with me. Find out what she wants, and what she’s not interested in so I can do something with it. But there’s never enough time. And my son-in-law really doesn’t want all this stuff. So he gave me Artifcts as a Christmas present last year.
Sue shared this reality with grace and humor. Watch now!
Goodwin: What did you Artifct first?
@Sue: Christmas ornaments! Well, all things Christmas, really. I have heirloom ornaments, multiple Santa Claus figurines, and other items, so before I packed them up last year, I Artifcted them.
Goodwin: And then you continued Articting, focusing on collections or at random?
@Sue: As I have bits of time here and there, I have just started. No particular order. Just what my eyes light on in a moment in time. Sometimes Artifct collections. I laid out all my jewelry one day and enjoyed working my way through it, sometimes Articting pieces individually, sometimes Artifcting collections, like brooches.
I have Artifcted my grandfather’s weapons collection as well, including antique knives, some of which date back to the late 1800s. My grandson caught sight of the knife collection, and was interested, so he’ll inherit them. His great grandfather’s collection!
Goodwin: And we hope you’ll share the “why” behind this knife collection with your grandson, as well as the “why” of all of your own collections, like your pianos!
@Sue: Piano has been a passion of mine for a long time. I found out recently through my genealogical research that my middle name Beth is for Beth of Little Women, the pianist of the family. I don’t remember who gave me my first miniature, but my mother kept adding to it, and then I did eventually, too. Each is very different. Now my senior graduating piano students get to choose one from the collection, a remembrance from me to take with them. I have only Artifcted the very unusual pianos, like one from ivory, another from Dresden. I am Artifcting the ones that are special so my daughter knows which are which.
Goodwin: You told me that you Artifcted a collection of family bibles, nearly a dozen. I’m curious. What’s next for them?
@Sue: I inherited 40 boxes of heirlooms, pictures and genealogy papers, which I am still going through. These bibles were among the boxes and now sit in the open air on top of a family cabinet in my genealogy research room. I love the Cheatham Apocrypha Bible in particular, so that is the one I’ll definitely keep. It’s also the only one that still has the family pages in it. As for the rest, I don’t know what to do with them. I might see if the state genealogy archives wants them.
Goodwin: You have 100s of Artifcts. Are there some really marvelous stories among them that stand out?
@Sue: Yes! Well, it’s all in the eye of the beholder, I guess. I was really surprised to find a lock of Gertrude’s hair. Oh, and great grandfather’s bowler hat. That’s an heirloom with a great story.
@Sue: "I found this in one of the boxes that I inherited (all genealogy based).
With it was a card signed by Gertrude which probably dates to the same year, 1904.
Gertrude Cheatham married August Johnston 24 Apr 1905."
@Sue: This hat belonged to John Mortimer Cheatham who lived in Missouri his whole life (1843-1915).
The hat box is signed by Eugene Scherman of New York, so I imagine this is who made the hat.
Today, Grandmother Gertrude's fox lives with the hat.
Goodwin: How do you Artifct? Do you use the app, a tablet, both?
@Sue: I take the pictures on my phone, because it allows me to skip the step of transferring the photos from my nice camera to my computer. If I want to add more details or long stories, then I edit the Artifcts later on my desktop computer.
Goodwin: Have you tried new features as Artifcts has announced them?
@Sue: There is so much I haven’t fully taken advantage of yet, but I did recently ask for my first estimate from Heritage Auctions with your “What’s it worth?” feature. It was a set of four meerschaum smoking pipes. Each used. They had significant market value!
My daughter and extended family will inherit the items they wish to keep; she can always sell the remaining items. I think it’s important, however, to keep at least some of these things in the family—especially the older things. Maybe someone will choose the pipes.
Goodwin: As the co-founder of Artifcts, I'd be remiss not to ask ... What would you tell those who have yet to Artifct? Why should they do it?
@Sue: Watch and listen to her response! (Or read below.)
It’s mainly the stories about the stuff. Nobody else is going to know what it is. I am trying so hard to get them written down and on Artifcts with the pictures, too, because otherwise once I’m gone, the story is gone. I think it’s important for the children to know what was the most important to me, what meant the most to me, and why.
Now, they may not want to keep it, but if it’s Artifcted, it’s there FOREVER. So, they will always have that memory even though they may not have that item, because who wants 300 miniature pianos?!
And on that note, what's your equivalent of "300 miniature pianos?"
My Great Aunt Muriel is 97 years old and has spent roughly 75 years of her life in Tucson, AZ. For the record (and in my defense), I grew up in Wisconsin. We weren't exactly neighbors.
This visit to Great Aunt Muriel was born out of curiosity, frustration, and fear.
To me, she's somewhat of a legend. I've heard my parents talk in awe of her in recent years, remarking on her independence and mental sharpness. Others told me she is feisty and opinionated. I was curious. I also kept thinking, "You do know that I think I missed my calling as a lawyer, right?" I bet she and I will get along just fine!
My frustration was about how difficult it is to gather and preserve family history without it being your primary occupation or hobby. Chasing histories, I call it. And I'm not talking about black and white details that sit in databases behind paywalls of newspapers and genealogy sites. I'm talking about the stories that connect those details - the lives lived, the legends created, the humanity of it all. Within my own family I heard drips and drops about distant relatives going off in the gold rush, for example. Who were they? When did they go? What became of them? Any details at all or am I really just stuck with family lore?
And, of course, fear - Aunt Muriel's now an only. She's the last of her generation. My cousin put it into interesting perspective, "Just think, she's the last who knew our parents as infants!" Time is absolutely our enemy if I want to know her and to know pieces of the family's past. If I wanted her insights and advice, her laugh-out-loud replays of historical moments, the only time was now.
If you stop reading here and venture like Alice down the rabbit hole of Artifcts we created together and are featured below, let me tell you what you'll discover from these Artifcts: This woman was radically more than advertised. I hope you have a Great Aunt Muriel in your life. Go. See. Her. Today! And listen, a lot.
Click any image below to view the related Artifct.
When I arrived in Tucson, Great Aunt Muriel was prepared. She had photos and mementos, stories and family lore, all ready to share. And with her permission, I'm sharing a few of those Artifcts we created together with you. Of the many worries Great Aunt Muriel had for the future, lost connection and family bonding was clearly chief among them. Let these Artifcts inspire your own conversations with loved ones.
You could say this was time well spent. Well spent visiting. Well spent Artifcting.
From the ages of five to nine, little Nancy lived in the farm country of Missouri on a parcel of land with a house, corn bin, smoking shed, and barn all built by her grandpa. Life for her grandfather had been simple by today's standards. If he needed something, and it wasn’t easily accessible from the farm, he built it. If only we were all so resourceful! Some of the artifacts of his life speak directly to the resourcefulness of this everyday inventor. The screwdriver does not fit well in your hand? I’ll make a new handle. The meat needs efficient parceling in the smokehouse? Here’s a one-of-a-kind twine winder. The cabbage shredding makes a mess of the kitchen during each batch of kraut making? Here’s new tray to contain and slice it. Check out the Artifct Inventions of the Everyday Inventor. > The biggest tale Nancy grew up hearing was how her grandparents were the first in the area to have electrical power and running water. Her grandfather had installed the wiring and plumbing on the farmstead himself. Of course he did.
The tale no one thought to share was that Grandpa was not just an everyday inventor. Documents show that Stark W. Craddock held patent #1,418,778 for the “Permutation Lock,” issued on June 6, 1921, by the US Patent Office. He truly was an inventor even in the professional sense. “But never mind that,” he’d surely have said.
This history had faded from Nancy’s family lore. In some ways it was a sad tale, too, which may have been partly to blame. Nancy’s mother grew up following her father around, talking through his projects and processes with him. But back in the 1940s, little girls could not grow up to be engineers. No. So when her little brother Jr. eventually came along, it was he who trailed after their father and grew up to be an engineer for IBM.
Fast forward to the present day and the discovery, “Great Grandpa was an inventor!” It was when his great grandson Andy was pursuing his own inventor's path that he uncovered his great grandfather’s and layered in another piece of family history for all the generations to share. Maybe you have an inventor in your family’s past. Maybe you have an artist, an explorer, a historian, a solider. You will never know until or unless you ask. Happy Artifcting!
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