What do you do with all your summer mementos?

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I don’t know about you, but the summer treasures are piling up quickly in my home. I’ve got shells and pieces of sea glass my oldest son and I found on the beach together, a cool postcard, leftover tickets from the carnival…

Right now these trinkets are just sitting in a big pile on my bureau.

I’m a little conflicted about whether to keep them or to let them go — recognizing fully that I cherish the experiences associated with these things, not necessarily the things themselves. Which leads me to ask the question: if I don’t cherish them in the absolute, do I believe holding on to physical reminders will keep the memory of those moments fresh in my mind longer?

I’m not sure.

Since I’m reluctant to toss them, I figured I would scour the internet to see if I could find ways to creatively display or contain them. I was inspired by what I found and I thought I’d share some of the best ideas here with you.

Make a Crushed Shell Frame

This beautiful idea comes from the lovely blog A Pumpkin & A Princess, which features a very clear how-to tutorial. I actually really like the fact that the shells are crushed because many of the pieces Will and I found on the beach are less than perfect – plus I think sea glass would go well with the crushed shells. You could also do a variation on this with mostly paper souvenirs too – just glue them on a plain frame for added interest.

Use a Slide Sleeve to Hold Treasures

This idea comes by way of Family Fun. It’s so simple (and cheap), and would work really well in the play room or kitchen. It’s not so “permanent” – so might be just the thing for those items you want to hold on to for the rest of the summer, but not longer.

Create a Summer Memories Jar

The crafty and talented Kelli Crowe came up with this fun time-capsule idea for displaying knick-knacks. Although she made hers in honor of the new decade – this would be a neat thing for families to do at the end of each summer. Ten years from now, I know I’d sure love to be able to look back over a decade of memories displayed like this on the family room bookshelf!

Display Treasures Artfully in a Shadowbox

Shadowboxes are always an easy and versatile way to display mementos. Check out DIY Ideas for a quick tutorial on how to put one like this together artfully.

What do you do with all of your summer mementos? Do you still have some from your childhood? Or do you think they’re just a waste of space and we should find a way to enjoy them in the moment, but let them go.

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Posted by Sarah on Jul 22, 2011 print article e-mail to a friend

http://twitter.com/errandbiz Sue Blumenfeld

Don’t feel as if you HAVE to buy souvenirs just because you are visiting some place different. Hold on to the memories NOT the stuff!
Lyndarva

I had a clear glass ginger jar lamp that I put the shells my son found on trips to the beach as he was growing up. It is something useable and practical. I have used the lamp for years and it brings back a lot of memories. I wish I had some more of these lamps.
SarahButtonedUp

LOVE that idea! Thanks for sharing it.
SarahButtonedUp

Amen to that! Our worst problem is what to do with the “freebies” like pretty rocks and such.
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Jamie

Take pictures of the mementos and mix the memento pics in with scrapbook pages of photos of the event- check out Stampin’ Up! My Digital studio (http://mydigitalstudio.net/)
Kmbliss

I have a mementos box for each member of the family (me, dad, two boys). They’re the cheap photo boxes you find at craft stores, Target, etc. I just toss birthday cards, movie ticket stubs, Disneyland maps, etc. in our boxes throughout the year. We’re vintage and antiques dealers so we like to hold on to tangible bits of life, especially with the kids. It’s fun to reminisce once in a while.