where do you store your special bits and bobs ?

[mamaLou13]

e.g. Photo albums (and/or loose photos in my case), children's artwork, special birthday cards etc etc. I want somewhere to put them all together but not sure where/ what. I was thinking a chest at the end of the bed but think it may end up getting filled with other crap and become a junk box.
What do you do with yours?

Hello mamalou
I was just going to start this very thread to ask folk how long and how much of this stuff people keep.
Done some filing this morning and there is so much of it....

Will watch this thread as I currently have them in different locations around the house.

Each of my DC have a big storage box with baby books (some less complete than others ), birth/christening/selected B'day cards, school certificates, etc.
We keep them in the cellar in this house and they were in the attic in the old house. I have a box in the back of the wardrobe and I put the things I/DC want to keep in there until we next have chance to get the memory boxes out.
I try not to keep too much and to make what I do keep worthwhile. MIL gave DH a load of tat 'memories' for his 21st and 30th birthdays, some stuff is lovely eg, his first rattle, babygro, couple of school books/reports, but some stuff DH can't make a connection to, eg an empty bottle of whisky (his first piss up perhaps)!

I am a bit crap at photographs though especially since we got a digital camera. I haven't printed anything off our Wedding photographer CD and we have been married for 4 years. The ones pre digital are in albums in the cellar, the others are on disc/memory cards/the computer.

Big "memory" boxes. One for me, DH and DD. Photo albums/baby books are on a shelf separate though, like notso I forget to print photos out so DD is three but nothing since her 1st birthday!

All our boxes are in a cupboard under the stairs and I do worry about them in a fire as I wouldnt be able to grab them yet they are all the things I want saving. In regards to paintings etc, my DD already has a big collection which I'm aiming to scan and get a photobook done of them as it will save on space. I'm expecting DC2 in 10 days so I know I will have a bunch of other stuff for them soon and need yet another box!

I have a big storage box for each child, too

If you have a non-divan bed, \link{http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.901-6379.aspx?utm_source=GoogleShopping&utm_medium=GSF_NormalFeed&utm_campaign=GSF_TescoDirect&utm_content=901-6379\these} are great (you can get them from loads of places, Tesco was just the first link I found) - you can get about 8 of them under an ordinary double bed

DO NOT EVER store them in a cardboard box anywhere they might possibly get damp; we lost a lot of photos & kids' artwork that way in a self-store place with a leaking roof (I didn't even know they were there, DH moved them without telling me - I was not happy)

I think im gonna switch to the underbed ones, thanks ponders. I would be more able to grab from there in a hurry than under the stairs. Dh'll have to grab the kids!!!

I have an expandable file for drawings and use one section per year. I only keep drawings etc that have special meaning ie A particular afternoon spent drawing that I want to reflect back on. Cards etc are thrown in a cardboard box from ikea.