Like many, I am a sentimental person who loves collecting memories and reminiscing about them. I mean isn’t life about our relationships and our experiences? They should be celebrated. But I do think that there is a fine line between keeping mementos that make you feel good when you see them and clutter that keeps you from living for the future.  

I have three ways that I like to use to draw that line with sentimental items: 

1. The “Get into the Basement” Approach. 

Surprisingly, this actually has nothing to do with keeping these items in the basement. Growing up, when the tornado warning sirens would go off, my Mom would wrangle all of us to “get into the basement.” I would have a few minutes to grab my most prized possessions on the way down that I would have in the case that we lost everything else.  

Think of those invaluable and irreplaceable items that you would bring with you. You can probably name them quickly and I would have to guess that there are less than you would think. These are your favorite sentimental items, the ones that are non-negotiables to keep. And I think it is safe to assume that they are not hidden in a box in your basement to look at once in a great while, they are throughout your house. Think of these items when contemplating choosing to keep other items or not. 

2. The “Fill your Life with Favorite” Approach. 

That is a great segue into my next approach. If these items bring you joy, peace and comfort then use, display, and fill your life with these favorites. So what about those boxes stashed away in the basement or taking up space in a spare closet or storage unit of items that you struggle to part with? It is okay to keep sentimental items stored. But I would suggest defining limits and capacities. Fill them with your favorites, in order by priority and update each time you add. Does the new item that you are adding add more value to you than those currently in the box? Add and then remove something else if you are at max capacity. 

I recently collected all of my boxes of these items and opened them up. There was a reason that I had not done so for so many years. It wasn’t because I did not value these items, I just had too many to sort through in one sitting. It became a burden. And actually,  some of those items did lose value to me over time. We collect and then we store. We rarely go back to update what should be in those boxes.  

I chose to give myself five of these boxes as my capacity. I have two for my childhood/adolescence, one for my husband and I’s adventures, one for our wedding mementos and one for sentimental clothing. I began putting these items in the boxes in order by priority of my favorite. It became clear that I did not need everything or every item to help me reminisce about those times. And sometimes taking a picture and texting to those that would appreciate it after all of these years fulfilled the purpose of why I had kept it in the first place. 

 We change, evolve and grow. Some sentimental items may no longer have the same value to you as they once did. It is okay to let go, move forward, and open space to create new memories. 

3. The “Where do they Live” Approach. 

Know where you are intentionally placing and storing these items. Some items I display throughout my home. For example, I love decorating with pieces that we bring home from vacations. Not only do these pieces look great in my house, but they also trigger happy memories when I see them.  

I keep our wedding card box of mementos on the top shelf of an upstairs extra closet. This way it is easily accessible but not in prime real estate for storage. We pull it down every anniversary to reminisce. My sentimental clothing box is next to it- It is where we keep my husband’s old baseball jerseys, my dress from the night we were engaged, etc.  

We keep our “Adventure Box” in a wooden decorative covered basket on a shelf on our living room built ins. Every time that we add an item, we update to keep it filled with our very best. 

And my favorite idea to share was from something that my husband and I started ten years ago when we first met. He had a cork board at his apartment on the wall. We put our first movie ticket stub on it. Then we added score boards from card games, event invitations, plane tickets and brochures from our first trip together, etc. By the end of our first-year dating, that empty cork board was exploding onto the wall.  

Instead of these items getting lost in a box, I purchased a large sketch book, busted out my scrapbooking skills and collaged them into the book. The capacity for each year is one open fold of the book (two pages). We cut these pieces down and tape them on by prioritizing our favorite memories. The cork board is now clear and open for new memories, these items are not tossed in a disorganized box but displayed in a book that lives in our living room… And you better bet that it is on my short list of things to grab when I “Get in the Basement”. 

Good luck with your sorting and organizing. I hope you feel a little lighter when you are complete. Enjoy your reminiscing and remember just how far you’ve come to be where you are today. Looking forward to your future memories!