Archiving is such an important part of preserving your special memories. As an extension of our special archiving feature in Scrapbooking Memories Vol 7 No 10, here we share some extra tips from archiving professional Tracey Golds.

Tracey Golds is the Manager of Paper, Photographs & Copying Projects Preservation at the Sydney office of the National Archives of Australia, and here she shares some essential archiving tips to keep in mind when preserving your treasured memories.

1. Prioritise your records and make sure that the most unique and important items receive the best care, but the least intervention.

2. Keep important original records intact to make sure that they remain unchanged for future generations.

3. Retain links to the original context of the articles you are archiving. For example, keep records in their original order in files and albums and retain old mounts, inscriptions and labels. Even if you can't identify the significance of these links now, they may provide clues for future generations. Another example is to include sources of information and dates - for newspaper clippings, always add the name of the newspaper and the date of publication.

4. Practice the principle of 'minimal intervention' when repairing, mounting or carrying out any processes on important original records.

5. Make and use copies to protect important original materials from handling and use.

6. Assess potential risks to records from large and small disasters and reduce them as much as possible.

7. Keep records in a cool, dark and dry place.

8. Clean storage areas regularly and check records for signs of mould, insect or rodent attack.

9. Protect records inside inert enclosures (inert plastics or good quality paper or cardboard products).

10. Use inert or good quality materials to create records.