Organise it – Keeping your kids artwork
By Organising guru – Sharne Kuper
If you have kids, the stuff coming into your home on a yearly basis can be overwhelming. A lot of it can be broadly categorised as ‘stuff’ and holds little sentimental meaning, however there is nothing quite like the art and craft made by those precious little hands which can send mums into a spin. I have had clients who cannot part with a thing that their child has created and with one client in particular the art collection started to take over the study to the point where it became an archive of her daughters work and could barely be used as a place for her and her husband to conduct their business.
I would like to tell you that it is ok to toss some of your kid’s artwork. Over the years from daycare to pre-school and then primary school they will bring home hundreds of pieces of artwork and if they are especially creative perhaps even thousands. You cannot reasonably keep them all. If you were to present your child with all of their childhood artwork as a young adult it would be overwhelming and you would be passing the burden on to them of keeping it all. What would be wonderful is to pass them a collection of their best.
When artwork is first brought home many families like to display it on the fridge, on a picture line or in a frame. But once this has come down what do you do with it next? Depending on how organised you are and how much time you have you may like to decide which is the best to keep as each week goes by or perhaps as I often suggest with my clients you put them all in a cardboard A3 size box. Then at the end of year, alone or with your child’s input you choose what is the best and then decide how you will preserve and keep it.
HOW TO KEEP THE BEST
I did a little research before I wrote this post and was surprised to find that most mums used basic non-digital systems to keep what they deemed as their child’s best artwork. This includes:
- Art binder or art folio with plastic pocket sleeves
- Flat large folder
- In a box
- In mailing tubes
- Cut shapes from the artworks and then create a collage to frame
- Take photos and add to annual family photo books
If you are more digitally minded and like the opportunity to limit the actual original artwork then an app is a great way to get organised.
There are a number on offer but during my research if somebody was using an app it seemed that Keepy was the app of choice. However to broaden your selection Artkive and Canvsly are 2 others on offer that seem to get regular mention. See a brief outline of what Keepy has to offer and seeing as though they are all free give them a go to find what works for you best: –
- Keepy offers you the opportunity to
- Take a photo of your kid’s creation, tweak lighting and colour and organise by artist, location and date. Also offers a special cropping tool for kid’s art.
- If you have pre-existing photos of their art on your phone you can import these to the app as well.
- If you have more than one kid it allows you to have multiple profiles
- Add video, voice, and text comments from your kids, family and friends
- Enjoy everything from all devices including your own private web gallery
- Upgrade options to maximize your storage space. Standard option is free to add 15 photos per month and then upgrade options are offered.
There are some differences across these apps. One worthy of mention with Canvsly is a smart account share feature that makes it easy for multiple parents or caregivers to maintain kids’ galleries without gaps or overlaps. Canvsly and Artkive also allow you to turn their paintings and drawings into books and other keepsakes.
Image credits: morguefile.com Feature image: www.brit.co (check out their great article on ‘how to turn kids drawings into gifts’
“Sharne is a Sydney based Professional Organiser. After spending most of her career in fashion she has found her calling in helping people reclaim their space and simplify their lives. “I love doing what I do and seeing what a difference it can make in peoples lives is very rewarding”
2 Responses to “Organise it – Keeping your kids artwork”
Great idea. I recently took photos of my daughter’s art work and created a Shutterfly book. Love having it all in the same place.
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Yes I have been meaning to do that too.. Oh for about 10 years now! I am sure it looks fantastic 😄
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