How to Preserve Your Personal Treasures

Light, whether from lamps or sunshine, is one of the most insidious threats. Use special glass that filters UV light in any framing or cabinets where your keepsakes are stored. Levenick tells the sad story of an antique doll that her late aunt kept in a display case for 40 or 50 years. After she died, Levenick took out the doll and found it was crumbling and discolored. “Even the porcelain in the body of the doll had yellowed,” she says. “That’s because of the light that came in through the glass.”

Here are more tips on preserving your treasures.

Clothing

Where in your home you store clothes is crucial, says Sarah Scaturro, chief conservator at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Hot, stuffy attics and cool, damp basements are no-nos. You should also avoid closets near exterior walls where temperature and humidity might go up and down constantly, causing shrinking and swelling that can damage fabric. “Putting keepsakes in an archival box with acid-free pH-neutral tissue under your bed is a great place to start,” she says. Make sure items are clean before you store them, since stains and dirt can do damage over time.

Photographs

Mary Oey, head of conservation at the New York Public Library, says that temperature and humidity control are particularly important for preserving old photos. Too much humidity, for example, can cause the gelatin-based emulsions to soften, causing photos to stick together. Relative humidity can be measured using a digital hygrometer, available at most large hardware or department stores for about $10. Oey also advises placing photos in polyethylene or polypropylene plastic sleeves, available at office supply stores. The sleeves can be stored in a three-ring binder that should be placed in a box to provide additional protection against dust, which can cause scratches.

Vinyl records

The American Library Association recommends replacing the original plastic sleeves with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) ones. Paper sleeves that contain text and/or graphics can be preserved with the LP if the disc itself is encased in an HDPE sleeve. HDPE sleeves, which have a frosted appearance and a very smooth satiny feel, can be purchased online or at some retail stores (such as Walmart and Best Buy). Keep records in a dark, clean environment with a minimum temperature of 65 to 70 degrees and a relative humidity of no more than 50 percent. Store them vertically on shelves, with full-height dividers every 4 to 6 inches to minimize warping.

Books

The Library of Congress (LOC) recommends storing books away from radiators and air vents in a dry (about 35 percent relative humidity) and cool environment, with minimized exposure to light. Keep them upright, not leaning, and shelve books of similar size together,so that the covers are supported by the books around them. How you handle a book when you take it off the shelf is also important. LOC advises removing it by gripping both sides of the spine in the book’s middle. To further protect the binding, don’t leave the book lying open.

Important papers

The National Archives recommends storing family documents in a space that has less than 65 percent relative humidity at a temperature below 75 degrees, to prevent mold growth and reduce the risk of insects munching on the paper. Be sure to avoid locations that are vulnerable to water leaks or flooding, and store papers on a shelf so they don’t get wet. It’s also good to use boxes made from acid-free materials (available online or at office supply, craft and home furnishing retailers) that are big enough for documents to lie flat or upright without folding or bending. Make sure you don’t overstuff the boxes.

Sometimes the best way to preserve a keepsake is to make it into something else. When it comes to your old rock-concert T-shirts, for example, Levenick suggests making them into a quilt or hiring an artisan from a website such as Etsy to do it for you. “It’s a wonderful way to enjoy what you have,” she says.