Many of us struggle with holding onto sentimental items for the sake of nostalgia or an inability to let go. While particular objects may no longer bring you joy, sometimes the prospect of throwing them away feels unreasonable. A good old-fashioned decluttering operation can be profoundly liberating, and thanks to the wonders of modern technology, memories can be easily accessible without the need for hoarding an obstructive amount of physical items such as photographs and old video tapes. Here is how you can organise and store sentimental items while maintaining a clutter-free home environment.
Decide What You Want To Keep
Sorting through sentimental items can be profoundly challenging. Between long-lost memories and painful reminders of departed friends and family members, it can be an emotional process. Avoid tackling your stockpile of mementoes alone - ask a trusted loved one to provide emotional support as you sort through your belongings.
Instead of focusing on items to throw away or donate, turn your attention to the things you’re certain you want to keep. When it comes to departing with an item, remember that you’re parting ways with a physical object rather than a treasured memory.
Glass Front Cabinets
Once you’ve sorted through your sentimental items, your next tricky task will be finding homes for all the remaining objects. Suppose you have a myriad of collected mementoes and souvenirs from past adventures, such as holidays and special occasions. In that case, you can avoid the chaos of messy shelving units by displaying your items in a glass-front cabinet. This way, you won’t have to dust your various trinkets nearly as often, and they will be kept safe and sound, proudly on display.
Labels
Suppose you have a collection of sentimental items that aren’t worthy of display but are still worth keeping. In that case, you may have stashed your belongings in various drawers, storage boxes and cupboards, which is an excellent way to keep things tidy and out of your way. That is, until you need something and can’t, for the life of you, remember where you put it. Save yourself the hassle by labelling your boxes so you can locate items quickly and efficiently.
Photo Albums
Compiling a photo album is an excellent, creative way to preserve old photographs. While physical photo albums aren’t nearly as prevalent as they once were, they can offer a wonderfully tangible way to reminisce. You can purchase photo albums from most craft shops and department stores in various colours and sizes. Choose your most treasured photos and arrange them in your album, along with annotations detailing the dates, locations and anecdotes.
Photograph Boxes
For all the treasured photographs that didn’t quite make the cut for your photo album, you can store them safely and conveniently in designated photograph boxes. Photograph boxes are specifically designed to protect photos from damage and age-related fading caused by sunlight exposure and oxidation. Furthermore, with multiple sizes to choose from, you can purchase photograph boxes that keep your precious memories snug and safe during transportation and house moves.
Cloud Storage
Some photos, such as polaroids and historical prints, deserve to be kept in their original, physical form. However, to save space and reduce clutter, you can digitise your memories by scanning photos and saving them to a hard drive or utilising cloud storage platforms like Dropbox or Google Drive. These affordable (and sometimes free) services allow you to store data and view your photos anytime from any device with internet access.
Don’t Be Burdened With Gifts
We’ve all received an unwanted gift in the past that we’ve held onto for the sake of kindness. Perhaps you were given an item of clothing or ornament that doesn’t align with your personal style. While this item may remind you of the individual who gave it to you, don’t be afraid to pass it on for fear of upsetting a friend or relative. Consider that somebody else may love and cherish your unwanted item, so don’t allow it to sit there needlessly gathering dust.
Hand Down Heirlooms
Family heirlooms such as jewellery and ornaments may carry a great deal of emotional importance. Still, eventually, you will need to honour tradition and pass them on. While the passing down of heirlooms may vary depending on family values and cultural traditions, knowing when to let go can be tricky. Once you’re confident your beloved heirloom will be cherished and cared for, consider passing it down to your children or grandchildren.
