This Reader Made Her Own DIY Keepsake Boxes For Her Kiddos
Want to preserve all those special memories?
As a parent, I often struggle with which items to keep and which to toss when it comes to my kiddo’s artwork, awards, trinkets, etc. I typically just throw them in a random storage bin with the best intentions of organizing them later.
Hip2Save reader, Kay, came up with a super cute (and frugal) idea on how to store all of those oh-so-precious momentos she has collected over the years. Check out her DIY crafting story about how she made keepsake boxes for her children…
I’ve been thinking of ways to store my daughter’s special school work, and not just school-related items, but also baby shower invitations, birth announcements, homecoming outfits, birthday cards, Valentine cards, certificates, ribbons, photos, artwork, souvenirs, etc.
I have three kids, so what I did was purchase a file box with a handle for each child. These boxes have a compartment on the top to store the little things, like my daughter’s lost teeth and my son’s hospital bracelet. I then labeled them with cute letter stickers from Dollar Tree.
I love that I now have a designated keepsake box for each child, labeled by name. When they turn 18, I will turn their “treasure box” over to them. I can’t wait for them to go through these boxes and see all the love in their lives, even before they were born, like when they read their baby shower cards and birthday cards.
I don’t know how to sew for my children or cook the most delicious meals for them, but I can use my organizational skills to keep their special memories for them. That is something I can do for my children that will mean a lot to them as they grow older.
Thank you, Kay, for sharing your awesome DIY memory box! What a wonderful way to preserve all of the special things you’ve collected for your kiddos over the years. That will sure be an amazing gift for their 18th birthdays!
Check out where to grab some of the supplies…
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I used little Caesar pizza kit fundraising boxes for my boys. We decorated them. They could only keep what would fit in the box. They learned to purge, to value memories, and
become organized. They learned to do the same with toys and their clothes. Anything too big for the box was remembered with a photo. I also kept a small box of their treasures.
We always used a child sized suitcase for each child that we could store away easily enough.
Make sure to let them look at eighteen, but hold on to them a little longer. My fiancée got all of their child memories at eighteen when they were still embarrassed and brash, and we lived in a tiny place with no room to store it. So much of that stuff is now gone, and now that we’re looking to start a family, it feels like such a shame that between us we don’t have any of that stuff.
I agree. Giving these boxes to your kids at 18 is asking for them to be tossed. Most kids are in college at 18 so not the best time to give them this. I would wait until they have their own place with room to store this otherwise the box will be tossed out quickly. I don’t mean they will not want the box, but they might need the space for other things.
What a good idea! That’s great that you are starting that when they are young; I waited until mine were older so it was much harder to organize. They will love going through all those memories when they are older! 🙂
Kay, this is an incredibly sweet and thoughtful way to honor your children. Surely these boxes will be treasured keepsakes forever!
my mother did the same thing for us. but i think if i did it now if i had kids, i would put it in fire proof safes.
I just found an overdue library book in my son’s memory box….
Yikes! 🙂
I did something similar. It works great!
Cool ideas but I really I need to de-clutter.
I am 60 years old going to be 61 soon. Going to have a 18 year old in college.