My thoughts and suggestions on how to organize keepsakes. Whatever you save will need to be maintained, so you want to plan carefully on what you will save. 

Hello Friends! I hope the long weekend was a nice and relaxing time for you. We were able to catch up with friends and family and enjoy a little rest and relaxation too!

This weekend, I also went through many of my mom's items and while each piece holds special memories, I know I cannot keep many items. Items like keepsakes can become clutter if you are not careful, and today I am sharing my tips on organizing mementos and family keepsakes.

Keepsakes are stored because of their emotional appeal. Organize such objects of sentimental value into beautiful and thoughtful memory boxes, scrapbooks and gift items. You may even want to consider a cabinet or case to display them.

Keepsakes must be kept safely, however, holding on to every little object and not storing it properly, will only add to the clutter that fills most homes. A great way of treasuring souvenirs, mementos and other objects of sentimental value is to organize them and store them in a variety of ways.

How to Organize Keepsakes

A Memory or Keepsake Box

A useful and extremely easy way of organizing keepsakes is to make memory boxes like these. A memory box can be organized according to the occasion or for children according to each year. A child’s memory box, for instance, can hold artwork, school certificates, sculptures and any other object that a child will bring home. I strongly suggest taking photos of artwork and storing them digitally. Lots of beautiful artwork will make its way home and while it is nice to display for a while, you will not want to maintain it all.

 
Baby keepsake boxes are also something many people like to hold on to. These boxes can hold locks of hair, hand and foot imprints, christening gowns, and any other baby-related objects of sentimental value. Yes, I have one for each of my kids stored in a closet. I recommend choosing one archival quality box to hold these items. If you are saving clothes for a family member, use an airtight storage box. If not, I recommend donating to the charity of your choice.

Memory Scrapbooks

Creating a memory scrapbook is a great way to store souvenirs and mementos related to a particular occasion. Photographs, notes, important details can all be stored in a memory scrapbook. Such collections can easily be created for holidays, family gatherings and important occasions.

Photo Storage

Since most photos are now maintained digitally, it is a good idea to store them on either a separate drive or a cloud service, such as Dropbox or Flickr. I recommend sorting the photos by year and season to make it easy to retrieve later. Printed photos should be put into an archival safe photo album, after sorting them. Consider scanning photos and only keeping 10-20% of the actual photos.

Memory Gifts

Another great way of storing and organizing keepsakes is by creating unique and thoughtful memory gifts. Several websites, such as snapfish.com, offer services of creating special collages, calendars, and photograph t-shirts or coffee mugs. These memory gifts can be a great way of treasuring a special day or person.

Important Papers and Documents

Papers such as birth certificates, passports, Social Security cards, military discharge papers and other important records should be kept in a fireproof safe or safe deposit box.

Clothing & Accessories

Clothing and accessories should be professionally cleaned and stored properly. Wedding gowns and christening clothing are some of the most stored clothing. Special garment bags can preserve these items for years to come. Clothing can add to clutter very quickly. If you are holding onto a piece of clothing that you have not worn in years, it is time to consider getting rid of it. Take a photo for memory-sake and make room in that closet.

For more great home organizing tips, check out:

Paper Organization Tips - Tips how to store the information that is in paper form.

Cheap Organizing Solutions - Organization storage does not have to be expensive. Check out these frugal organizing solutions.

Organizing Rubber Stamps - Great tips on organizing rubber stamps and other small craft supplies.

What keepsakes do you hold on to?