People usually keep a bunch of photo albums with paper photos, negatives, and positives, sorted in all sorts of envelopes and cardboard boxes. Or collect souvenirs and different kinds of memories around the house. But, when it’s time to move, the question arises: what is the best way of storing family memorabilia? The first step is, obviously, to find the best storage in Ottawa to keep all your items safe. Other than that, here is our guide that will help you out!
Storing family memorabilia – should you even do it?!
When it comes to storing family memorabilia, you may find yourself going through boxes and boxes of stuff that you don’t even need. If you don’t have any patience to go through that stuff, we hear you! But, just know that this may impact the price of your move. You can easily ask for a free moving estimate and see how much it will cost you to move all those items. This will help you in your moving process.
But, if you decided to keep some of it, you first need to get through all of that! That is the best way to see if you really (really!) need to keep all that stuff. Hey, maybe you can sell some of your dad’s baseball memorabilia and even get some money out of it! On the other hand, maybe you’ll find yourself enjoying in seeing all the family heritage that was collected over the years. Either way – the choice is all yours!
What to do with all the old photos?
Well, when it comes to photo part of memorabilia, maybe it is time to digitize this family treasure! And the first thing you will need is a photo scanner. Yes, we know this may be a long process. After all, this is how it should be because otherwise, you may end up losing your photos in some old box. Besides, that why it’s important to hire a reliable moving company in Ottawa that can move your items safely.
How to sort old photos
Let’s start from the beginning: don’t freak out! When you find yourself in front of you are old photo albums and boxes full of photos, try to stay calm. Just know that all these photos that mostly come from the corresponding negatives you have. So, take them out immediately because you don’t have to scan them. Most of the photos from old legacy albums also may not have a source, that is appropriate negative, so they should be prepared for scanning. The third source of the material consists of photos obtained from relatives and friends. They come from weddings, birthdays, parties, as well as children’s pictures from various school sources (like proms and excursions). They should also be separated for scanning.
Well, the trouble arises when you realize that all of these photos are partially mixed. So the first recommendation is to separate and date of all the paper groups or individual photos you come across to and that don’t have their negative version. Be sure to consult your parents, grandparents, and anyone you can (still) ask for the place and year, the names of the people in the shots, so keep them sorted by age ready for the final scan. Once you move, you can place postcards and photos in the same or similar frames and form the desired shape on the wall.
What about the negatives?
The negatives are generally easier and more appreciative of dating, but the scanning process is more complicated. Whether stored in rolls or tiled into five or six exposures (frames), they represent the frozen continuity of scenes, so dating the entire negative generally involves identical dating of each frame individually. Also, transparent positive films can be a bit of a nuisance. Frames, cut and placed in frames (slides), are usually grouped for projector display and are often selected according to a theme or need, which usually excludes chronology.
What about other memorabilia?
If you have some family memorabilia that are not photos, what can you do? Well, storing other items also means gathering them into boxes. However, before you do that, you again need to see which one you want and which ones you really need to relocate. For example, what will you do with the shells you have gathered on the beach? Maybe you can put them in interesting glasses or jars and it will become an irresistible summer home decoration.
How to arrange items that usually just collect dust
Most people buy things on trips that are both inexpensive and easy to carry home. All those little things like a replica of the Eiffel Tower, a tower in Pisa, or Michelangelo from Florence seem like the logical and easiest choice to buy while traveling. But when you get home, you often don’t know what to do with them. In order not to get lost in the mass of other objects, we suggest collecting them and putting them together in larger containers. Or – instead of just carrying with you, why not just see what you really need? If you do decide to keep some of them, we suggest marking the cities with associated items.
Turn interesting fabrics into pillows
Maybe you have some interesting fabrics or old clothes you don’t know what to do with. They are cheap, beautiful and authentic, but in the end, they often end up unused. Besides donating you can maybe make pillowcases, curtains for smaller windows, etc. Either way, you can always get creative when turning your memories into objects you can use.