Photo Storage

Okay, so this product isn't on the sb.com store, so I don't know if you all will even know what I am talking about....

I bought a photo storage box--clear plastic that has 6 individual photo storage boxes in it. It's by Iris and is just called Photo Case (but it's a case, then has 6 individual cases in it). Get it?

Well, the individual boxes aren't latching as tightly as I'd like. My husband boo'd the latches and said they'd eventually break off because they aren't separate from the box or something wacky that only he'd know. (Honestly, where does he pick up this information?)

If anyone knows what I am talking about or owns one, what do you think about it? I am contemplating returning it, but I can't find a superior product that is similar, but with batter latches or buckles. I really like the idea of the product, but I sway back and forth because I paid a pretty penny for it and it honestly isn't living up to my standards out of the bag.

Which brings me to my next question: what do you all store your photos in before you scrap them onto your pages?

I haven't seen the one you are talking about and having problems with. That's a bummer that you made a pretty penny for it and it isn't working. I use the photo storage boxes from M's.They are cheap enough for me to buy and store the pictures that I will scrap and doubles of photos or ones that I will not scrap.

I don't do the storage step. When I get my photos home (sometimes nearly 2,000 photos - last month I had an order for 418) I sort them into chronological order and put them in files in order of place or event.

If its a place that I have special patterned paper or embellies for, like China, I add that to the file folder along with the photos and memorabilia also goes in the file folder.

Then I just take the files one at a time from the front and scrap them. All my stuff is together.

So I don't have a storage system to store photos because I get them ready to scrap right away, even if it is a while before I can get to them.

I just keep mine in the paper envelopes until I scrap them (usually within a couple of months). The ones I don't use get stored in the cardboard photo boxes I get from HL.

Initially I bought some plastic storage systems, but those filled so sooooo fast that I switched to the cardboard boxes. I now use those for my old photos that I keep coming across because I want/need to get them out of the envelopes (and store the negatives somewhere safe.

I store mine in a smallish cardboard box in the envelopes they came from the film developing place. I write on the envelope with a perm marker what the pics are of and put them in order by date... it's the cheap way for me.

• Sunnydi Said:

THIS, THIS, THIS!!!!

I have tried a couple different ways because I had so many photos. First I bought a photo box similar to the Cropper Hopper one. I don't think that's the same exact one I have becasue mine has a top on the other side that opens to store large pictures and papers up to a 12x12. Then I found my grandpa's old army case, it was an aluminum suitcase type case and I thought that would be really nice to store pics in. (It was actually a little big for me) Then I saw that a couple of the girls I scrap with have the cardboard photo boxes and envelopes in them. I started this and it works great for now. I bought 2 boxes (50 each, 4 1/2x6 1/2 pastel envelopes from walmart) I went through my pics, seperated them and wrote on the top of each envelope in pencil so i could erase and relable, what was in each envelope. Works great and each box even when full isn't too bulky to carry with you to a crop. the boxes aren't expensive and the envelopes were like $10 for 100. I also keep them from birthday, Christmas, greeting cards that aren't written on to hold a little large pics. I'll stick with this for now.

I use a photo box and keep them in chrono order. I keep a running word document with the date and place of the pics in the front of the box.

My husband said if I keep the smaller boxes in the larger one I should be fine. So I am going to keep it for now. I need to check on the return policy to see how long I can "try" this out before I make my final decision. Thanks everyone!

What you have is an IRIS box. I agree that the inside cases don't necessarily lock tightly, but when you have all 6 of them in the box, does it really matter? They're not going to fly open. I use this same system to store my wooden stamps and love it - I buy the double sized ones though, that have 12 inside cases.
Great wooden stamp storage By Dwelch

I have the Iris box you are talking about and thought the same thing about the closures. It has been over 2 years and I am in and out of them constantly and NONE of the closures have broken off yet.

dwelch--Yes, I thought I mentioned in the OP that it was by Iris, sorry!

I was worried because I am going to a retreat in May and I wasn't sure I would have enough room to bring the whole box so I was going to pack just the pictures I needed...thus the individual box(es) needed to keep closed!

• MisasMom Said:

Do you ever take just one or two of the individual boxes anywhere?

I have very few printed photo's, I keep them all on my computer and print as I go. The few that I have from back when my camera was film are just in a basic photo box. I do remember seeing something like you are talking about at my local M's back with all their scrapbook organizing supplies. I don't remember the brand name, I think that it's M's version of the crophopper stuff. But it was a clear plastic case with little photo size plastic cases in it (I'm thinking about 6?).

I have a case similar to the Iris box. Bought at Office Depot on sale, so not a huge expense. I use it to keep individual paper flowers by color, not photos.

I print my pictures at home and scrap as needed. Any extra prints, I place in a white envelope, label it and place in a HL photo box.

I usually print as I go, but I have a retreat coming up so I wanted to make sure I had enough pictures at the go. Plus, Walgreens is having a 55% off sale, so I wanted to take advantage of that......135 photos later! Now I have enough photos for 3 albums (some were printed before the Walgreens sale) and I need a place to keep them!


One of my friends told me she prints whenever she can get a good deal on prints (she mentioned 8 cents or less a print) and I actually think that's a pretty good method too.

mstasha--The Iris box I have does have 6 containers in it. It's actually just 1/2 of what DWelch has pictured here.

I have two of the big Iris with 16 boxes inside each. I like it. Don't have a problem.

I do carry just the individual boxes with photos and embellies to crops without any problems either.

I have about 20 of the cardboard photo boxes. They're pretty so they look OK stacked on a table in a spare room.

A couple of years ago my hubby was bored, so he went through all the loose pics and put them in somewhat of a date order, then I keep the boxes in date order so when I want to scrap something I know where to look.

Now I need to start going through the old albums and pulling pics to put into the cardboard boxes.

I'm bad when I scrap the old film-pics because I seldom use the pics that I have printed. I either want a different size or I want to edit it, so I usually print them at home, or sometimes send them to snapfish when they have their penny sale. However, this means I still have the original picture so I'm not really getting rid of my boxes of pictures. In fact, the last bunch I was scrapping, I started out with 26 pics and I now have 33, plus the 26 in the album. (I printed some of the edited ones, then decided I wanted a different size, so now I have extras.) This isn't how it's supposed to work!