Caring for Your Cherished Memories
If you see something, say something
If an item emits an odor or you see decay, address it IMMEDIATELY. It will not go away or disappear with time. In fact, it will only get worse and will damage your memories.
Make it pass the smell test
Musty or vinegar smell in your scrapbook or memory box? DO NOT spray it with Febreeze or use fabric softener sheets or other deodorizers.
To remove the musty smell from old books, first make sure they are dry. Place the books in a cool, dry space for a couple of hours. If damp, open the books, stand them up, and fan the pages to allow drying. A fan will help circulate the air. If the smell remains, one option to remove it is paper containing Zeolite molecular traps. Known as MicroChamber® products, these papers have proven very effective in removing odors. We suggest placing a sheet of the lightweight, 100 percent cotton interleaving tissue between the front board and the endpaper, every 100 pages throughout the volume, and again between the back board and endpaper. Close the book and set it aside until the odor has been reduced. You may need to replace interleaving several times, putting new sheets at different locations in the book.
Party Crashers
The wide variety of materials contained in scrapbooks may attract bugs and vermin. Note the scrapbooks which have food or other organic items such as a hair or tobacco and regularly check those scrapbooks for infestation.
The Attic or The Basement?
When storing items, the area with the most consistent temperature is best with a stable temperature no higher than 70oF and a stable relative humidity of 50%.
Attics can be freezing in the winter and hot in the summer. Basements can become cold and wet throughout the year.
You Light Up My Life
Light from both sunlight and fluorescent light bulbs causes fading. Ideally, memorabilia should be stored in lignin free boxes and placed on shelves, not on the floor. At the very minimum, keep your treasures away from direct sun light.
No News is Good News
Newspapers are highly acidic and can contaminate other materials. They disintegrate easily and can crumble or tear upon folding and unfolding. If you must keep newspapers, separate them from the rest of your materials in acid free folders or bags. Best practice: print a copy (many newspaper archives are now available on line) on archival paper.
Drop Acid
Store your items in acid free boxes and envelopes whenever possible.
Zip it!
Don’t have “archival” storage materials? No problem, just use food storage bags (like Ziploc) to keep your items clean and safe. Food storage bags have a zero pH and are therefore safe for ephemera.
Shoo Shoe Boxes
Do not use cardboard boxes to store scrapbooks or other ephemera. Cardboard will damage your materials. If you purchase new shoes, throw out the shoe box and use the moisture absorption packets to reduce humidity in your storage boxes or closets, if necessary. Storage boxes should be low-lignin or lignin-free, and buffered throughout.
About Face!
Store photographs with the emulsion side away from the seams of an envelope.
When considering paper or plastic enclosures for photos, select enclosures that pass the Photographic Activity Test (PAT). This text ensures that the enclosure will not react chemically with photographs. Supplier catalogs should indicate whether a photographic storage product has passed the PAT.
Spinal Taps
No matter how your scrapbooks, photo albums or books are stored, (in a box, upright, on its side), NEVER pull the item by its spine to remove it. This means do not pinch the spine to pull it or place your finger in the top part of the spine (the headcap) as a hook. This will cause the spine to tear. Gently grasp the item on both sides with the thumb and fingers pull it out slowly.
Pencil Me In
Write on the back of a photo or envelope, if necessary. Use the appropriate lead pencil: a too soft pencil will eradicate over time and a too hard pencil may poke through your material.
Just Say No!
To scotch tape. Commercial adhesive tapes are highly acidic and will damage your materials. If you must use adhesive tape, use an acid free tape designed for scrapbooking.
Take a photograph, it will last longer
Digital prints are not photographs. Photographs are a chemical reaction on a paper surface. Digital “photographs” are simply ink on paper and are not considered “archival quality”. Should you have digital prints in a scrapbook, be sure they are printed on professional quality paper with appropriate ink. In most cases, this means digital prints should be made at a professional vendor (even photo printer in a drugstore) as opposed to at home where the paper and ink may not be sufficient to maintain the images over time. However, studies show that under appropriate conditions, digital prints, can last up to 90 years, which is in par with traditional photographs.
Two words: Manufacturer’s guidelines
When reformatting or duplicating ephemera, use the recommended inkjet cartridges and paper for your printer. Your images will look better and last longer.
The L word
Lamination is not recommended for ephemera, especially for items which have intrinsic value. Lamination can extend the time over which an item can be actively handled, but it will also damage the paper, and is not fully reversible.
If an item emits an odor or you see decay, address it IMMEDIATELY. It will not go away or disappear with time. In fact, it will only get worse and will damage your memories.
Make it pass the smell test
Musty or vinegar smell in your scrapbook or memory box? DO NOT spray it with Febreeze or use fabric softener sheets or other deodorizers.
To remove the musty smell from old books, first make sure they are dry. Place the books in a cool, dry space for a couple of hours. If damp, open the books, stand them up, and fan the pages to allow drying. A fan will help circulate the air. If the smell remains, one option to remove it is paper containing Zeolite molecular traps. Known as MicroChamber® products, these papers have proven very effective in removing odors. We suggest placing a sheet of the lightweight, 100 percent cotton interleaving tissue between the front board and the endpaper, every 100 pages throughout the volume, and again between the back board and endpaper. Close the book and set it aside until the odor has been reduced. You may need to replace interleaving several times, putting new sheets at different locations in the book.
Party Crashers
The wide variety of materials contained in scrapbooks may attract bugs and vermin. Note the scrapbooks which have food or other organic items such as a hair or tobacco and regularly check those scrapbooks for infestation.
The Attic or The Basement?
When storing items, the area with the most consistent temperature is best with a stable temperature no higher than 70oF and a stable relative humidity of 50%.
Attics can be freezing in the winter and hot in the summer. Basements can become cold and wet throughout the year.
You Light Up My Life
Light from both sunlight and fluorescent light bulbs causes fading. Ideally, memorabilia should be stored in lignin free boxes and placed on shelves, not on the floor. At the very minimum, keep your treasures away from direct sun light.
No News is Good News
Newspapers are highly acidic and can contaminate other materials. They disintegrate easily and can crumble or tear upon folding and unfolding. If you must keep newspapers, separate them from the rest of your materials in acid free folders or bags. Best practice: print a copy (many newspaper archives are now available on line) on archival paper.
Drop Acid
Store your items in acid free boxes and envelopes whenever possible.
Zip it!
Don’t have “archival” storage materials? No problem, just use food storage bags (like Ziploc) to keep your items clean and safe. Food storage bags have a zero pH and are therefore safe for ephemera.
Shoo Shoe Boxes
Do not use cardboard boxes to store scrapbooks or other ephemera. Cardboard will damage your materials. If you purchase new shoes, throw out the shoe box and use the moisture absorption packets to reduce humidity in your storage boxes or closets, if necessary. Storage boxes should be low-lignin or lignin-free, and buffered throughout.
About Face!
Store photographs with the emulsion side away from the seams of an envelope.
When considering paper or plastic enclosures for photos, select enclosures that pass the Photographic Activity Test (PAT). This text ensures that the enclosure will not react chemically with photographs. Supplier catalogs should indicate whether a photographic storage product has passed the PAT.
Spinal Taps
No matter how your scrapbooks, photo albums or books are stored, (in a box, upright, on its side), NEVER pull the item by its spine to remove it. This means do not pinch the spine to pull it or place your finger in the top part of the spine (the headcap) as a hook. This will cause the spine to tear. Gently grasp the item on both sides with the thumb and fingers pull it out slowly.
Pencil Me In
Write on the back of a photo or envelope, if necessary. Use the appropriate lead pencil: a too soft pencil will eradicate over time and a too hard pencil may poke through your material.
Just Say No!
To scotch tape. Commercial adhesive tapes are highly acidic and will damage your materials. If you must use adhesive tape, use an acid free tape designed for scrapbooking.
Take a photograph, it will last longer
Digital prints are not photographs. Photographs are a chemical reaction on a paper surface. Digital “photographs” are simply ink on paper and are not considered “archival quality”. Should you have digital prints in a scrapbook, be sure they are printed on professional quality paper with appropriate ink. In most cases, this means digital prints should be made at a professional vendor (even photo printer in a drugstore) as opposed to at home where the paper and ink may not be sufficient to maintain the images over time. However, studies show that under appropriate conditions, digital prints, can last up to 90 years, which is in par with traditional photographs.
Two words: Manufacturer’s guidelines
When reformatting or duplicating ephemera, use the recommended inkjet cartridges and paper for your printer. Your images will look better and last longer.
The L word
Lamination is not recommended for ephemera, especially for items which have intrinsic value. Lamination can extend the time over which an item can be actively handled, but it will also damage the paper, and is not fully reversible.