A Woman's Video About Losing Her Vintage Collection in the LA Fires Is Going Viral—Here's What She Has to Say

Amid the ongoing devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires, which, as of Wednesday, have burned through over 40,000 acres and left a trail of destroyed buildings in their path, LA residents are mourning the loss of their homes and the meaningful belongings that were still inside. As people start to rebuild, companies are sending free replacements of clothing and beauty products to help them start over. But for many, like Kalita Hon, certain possessions are simply irreplaceable–and go deeper than being just “things.” In an emotional video, the TikToker got visibly emotional as she opened up about the “different type of heartbreak” of losing all the vintage pieces she’d worked so hard to accumulate over the years.

“It took me so long to build the vintage closet of my dreams, and now I’ll never be able to rebuild it,” she captioned the tearful video, which was shared on Friday, January 10. @Kalitaku kicked off her TikTok by pushing back on the toxic positivity of people who dismissed the mourning of “things” that were lost in the fire.

“Oh, your house burnt down? Don’t worry. At least you’re safe. Everything you own is replaceable,” she began before clasping her hand over her mouth and responding, “No, it’s not.”

“I thrifted all of my clothing,” she explained, “I’ve been collecting vintage clothing since I was in middle school, so these pieces are most definitely not replaceable. When I tell you, I’m just literally having nightmares of my beautiful vintage fur coats just catching on fire right now. My insane, beaded, handmade, vintage dresses that are just going to be up in flames.”

In an interview with InStyle, Hon explained that she was abroad when the fires started, so she didn't have the opportunity to choose which items to save. She left home with a suitcase, assuming her house would be there when she returned. Her house is still standing for now, but the fires reached her street this week and have stayed there for five days.

“It is just so sad because I really wish they were replaceable,” Hon continued. “I really wish I could go out and buy another one, but unfortunately not. These are all one-of-a-kind pieces that I have been collecting for years.” Among Hon's most prized pieces are beaded dresses, penny lane coats, and Frye boots. "'I'm personally not super into high-end designer brands. For me it's the rarity of the piece and how hard it is to thrift and how hard it is to ever come by again. Those one-of-a-kind, insanely cool, detailed pieces that can't even be replicated nowadays were the most valuable to me." 

As viewers flooded the comments section with messages of support, Hon clarified, “I’ve realized that I can be both grateful that I’m safe and mourn the things I’ve lost” in response to a person who wrote, “I HATE the ‘at least you’re safe, things can be replaced’ response. Losing everything you own is traumatic.”

Besides her vintage collection, items left in Hon's house include her mom's wedding dress, photos of her parents that were never digitized, and the stuffed animal she got as a seven-month-old. "Whenever anyone asks the silly question, 'If your house burned down, what would you bring?' that was always the first thing that I would bring. Before my electronics, before my clothes."

TikTokers validated mourning the loss of possessions, especially sentimental mementos, and one-of-a-kind belongings tied to childhood memories. “A lot of items are not just items. They’re history,” one wrote, while another commented, “The fashion archives that have been lost… it’s hurting my heart. Art, history, love.”

"I'm incredibly privileged that I'm safe and sound, I have a roof over my head, and I still have my life," Hon said. "But at the same time, I feel like it is very valid for people to mourn items that they've lost because there is a lot of sentimental value attached to certain items."

Since she posted the video, vintage collectors and store owners have reached out to Hon to offer her pieces of their own and empathize with how she's feeling. "It is really incredibly comforting as someone who is in kind of a precarious scenario, just knowing that there is support in case the worst happens," Hon said.

Miley Cyrus, who recently opened up about her experience losing her home and all her belongings in the 2018 California wildfires, previously revealed she’d lost three unreleased records, irreplaceable polaroids of Elvis Presley from her grandmother, and other sentimental memorabilia when her Malibu house went up in flames.

Amid all the celebrity homes burning down in the fires, one TikToker wrote that they were mourning the “loss of history” from all the “vintage clothes” and “movie memorabilia” that were no doubt inside their residences.

Read the original article on InStyle