Previously we discussed how to use scanned photos to create a digital scrapbook album which can be printed into a hard bound book. But what about the originals?
While it is true not everyone can have a copy, originals are still important documents. Be they newspaper clippings, photographs, certificates, drawings, or rationing stamps (got some of
those!) the "real thing" will fade and
disintegrate over time without proper care. The scans allow you to view the same information
indefinitely, but there is something
priceless about holding a document handled by others decades before.
Museums and historical archives have been
using various techniques for years to preserve artifacts. While you may not be willing to go to the lengths taken to preserve, say, the Declaration of Independence, there are still great options
available.
Archival Mist is a product carried in most
scrapbooking stores. This spray is a fine, clear mist which coats any paper document and
neutralizes the acid. I use it in my daily scrapbooks when I save items, such as a birthday card, not made specifically for
scrapbooking.
Individual pockets, soldered from typical page protectors, can be created for any document you wish to protect, as well as handle. By making a pocket the size of a postcard sent home from a grandparents honeymoon trip and
attaching it to the front of the scrapbook page you can see not just one side, but two. Proper pin-prick air holes continue to allow dangerous acids to escape from the postcard while the plastic protects it from fumbling fingers.
Most of us have saved snippets along the way. Whether it is your wedding announcement or a child's hospital band from birth, these artifacts will fade and fall apart. But at
Designs of Mine, preserving memories is what we are all about!