
Do you have piles and piles and bins and bins of your children’s artwork cluttering up your house? I sure do and my daughter has only been in preschool for two years!
Here’s a great way to preserve your budding artist’s masterpieces:
- Scan or photograph all their paintings, sculptures and drawings.
- Either make prints and put them in a traditional photo album or upload them and design a digital photo book.
- Enjoy those masterpieces forever in a book on your shelf vs. a bin full of clutter.
Take a look at Shutterfly’s children’s art-themed book called Mini Masterpieces. They also have several more professional-looking artist portfolio themes. Once you set your mind to it, the project won’t take as long as you think. Then when you have a beautiful photo book in your hands with all those special memories, you’ll feel less guilty throwing all their bulky art in the trash.
Did you hear me? I just said, “Throw their art in the trash.” Of course, you might want to hold on to a few key masterpieces that are just too hard to part with, but for the majority of drawings and paintings, they are now preserved for all eternity both digitally and in a printed book, so belly up to the bin and start tossing!
(I must admit this is easier said than done. I completed the first book of my daughter’s art several months ago and haven't had the courage to send the original art dumpster diving just yet.)
And don’t forget what a treasure this is to your children. My 4-year-old may not realize the effort it took to create the book, but she sure does appreciate it. She thanks me profusely for her art book and is so very proud of it. She’s gained a valuable sense of self-worth knowing Mommy thought her art was special enough to create an entire book of it. And that, in itself, is priceless.