Anyone who knows me knows 1) I have hoarding tendencies and 2) I am incredibly nostalgic. I absolutely love family mementos; I have kept every birthday card, ticket stub, and post-it note I have ever received. I keep those meticulously organized, but that’s a post for another time.

My family is the most important aspect of my life, and it is necessary, to me, to keep reminders of them throughout my house – that’s what makes it feel like home! Photos are invaluable, but I’ve found a few ways to incorporate meaningful items that are not photos, as well. The items below would otherwise be tucked away safely in a memory box somewhere. Why not display them?

I was inspired by Pinterest to rummage through my mother’s recipe book and found the holy grail of family recipes to frame. This recipe for Fruit Pizza belonged to my paternal grandmother and is written in my mother’s handwriting. I gave my mom an electronic copy of the recipe in exchange for the well worn, hard copy. I have it hanging in my kitchen, which conveniently allows for quick reference too!

Another piece is a cartoon from the comic section of the Philadelphia Inquirer. One lazy Sunday morning, E and I were reading the paper and eating breakfast. He came across this comic and sweetly told me “that’s how I feel when I see you!” It was simple but touching, and I had to save it.

My generous aunt frequently gifts me items that belonged to her mother. One such gift was a delicate, embroidered handkerchief – I gently steamed and folded it to fit this frame, and I love how it turned out.

Finally, my uncle is a highly skilled sketch artist, something I only recently discovered. He gave us a set of beautiful, hand-drawn greeting cards for Christmas. I immediately thought to myself, ‘forget mailing these to friends and family, I’m keeping these for myself!’ Only kidding – now that I have one framed and hanging in my house, I’m willing to share.

 

Other mementos that can be framed include:

• Greeting cards – for example, something with the beautiful signature of your grandmother or a parent
• Newspaper article clippings – say, from a child’s birthday or your wedding day
• A playing card – possibly serving as a souvenir (idea courtesy of a dear friend, GCR)
• Scarves, linen napkins – along with handkerchiefs and other thin textiles
• Dried, pressed flowers from a vacation or loved one’s garden
• Magazine covers – I am on the hunt for a vintage Sports Illustrated-esque magazine cover featuring Penn State
• Paper napkin with a bar or restaurant’s logo – a memory of a first date or old college haunt

This is only the start of my collection; I plan to hunt down many more pieces (such as the above ideas) from all sides of my family and I hope to get more creative with the way in which I display them. To be continued!

If you are the keeper of family mementos like these, I highly recommend arranging them similarly and giving them as gifts! Framing items can be done very inexpensively – all the frames above are from Home Goods and did not exceed $12.99. More importantly, there is no more meaningful gift than a memory from someone so thoughtful; the recipient will certainly be as thrilled as I was.