Get Organized
Storing Children's Artwork
Question: What's the best way to store family photos and children's artwork?
Cheri
Answer: Children's artwork threatens to take over the fridge, bulletin board, and
home life as we know it. By setting a few simple rules, you can manage the
incoming deluge of masterpieces by your little artists. I have a couple of
quick solutions to solve your display dilemmas. Both take up very little
space and if done routinely, take up little time as well.
Portfolio
Create a simple art portfolio using two pieces of posterboard
taped together on three sides. Leave the third side, or top, open for
dropping in artwork as it is received. You can use this same principle for
other schoolwork as well.
Each day, or week, when your daughter brings home her treasured work, write
the date on the back in pencil (or use a date stamp to save time). Drop it
into the portfolio for safekeeping. Or, date it, then replace the "display
of the week" with the new one, and file the old one away.
At the end of the semester or quarter, it will be time to purge your
portfolio. Begin by sorting by type of art: paintings, drawings, collage,
mosaic, seasonal, writing samples, tests, awards, etc. Then choose a
sampling from each category, perhaps several scattered throughout the school
year.
File the keepsakes, and get rid of the rest. If you can't bear to throw them
away, recycle them by giving them to relatives. Mail in a cardboard tube, or
shipped flat between two pieces of cardboard. Or scan the artwork, email it
to relatives, and throw away the original. You can turn that scanned graphic
into notecards, stationery, or greeting cards.
If your child can't bear the thought of you tossing any of her artistic
samples away, delegate this task to her. Move the storage into her room with
her things, and let her be in charge of sorting, dating, stashing, and even
purging. Amazing how they will decide they can actually bear to part with
things when their closet is filling up faster than they can find storage
containers!
Storage Chest
Purchase a stackable cardboard storage chest from your favorite organizing
company, such as Lillian Vernon or The Container Store. These sturdy units
have removable drawers to fill with archived treasures, then stack
vertically to conserve space.
Use them as your sole art storage system, or for "keepers" only with the
portfolio system I described above.
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
If storage is really a concern, take photographs of your daughter's artwork
and discard the original. Either take individual pictures, or line them up
for a group shot. A disposable camera kept on hand is a perfect solution for
this task, or you can use a Polaroid camera and take them individually.
Dedicate a special photo album or box for these treasures to be shared and
enjoyed.
Good luck,
Debbie Williams
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