The Things Retold field notes
Guides to preserving
family stories.
Practical ways to keep the memories behind your objects, recipes, photographs and familiar voices. Begin with one thing. Leave room for what you do not yet know.
Find your starting pointHow to document family heirlooms: a practical record template
Document a family heirloom with photographs, its story, sources and a simple record template. Preserve what you know without turning guesses into facts.
4 min read20 questions to ask your parents about family heirlooms
Use 20 object-focused questions to record your parents’ memories. Includes follow-up prompts, a short interview plan and a note template for uncertain details.
5 min readHow to record your parents’ stories and keep the audio
Plan a family voice recording, test the sound, capture one story and verify your saved audio. Includes a session checklist and a simple recording log.
5 min readHow to preserve handwritten family recipes and their stories
Preserve recipe cards with clear images, faithful transcriptions and the memories behind each dish. Includes a recipe record template and storage guidance.
5 min readHow to organize and label old family photos without losing context
Organize old family photographs with stable IDs, useful captions and a simple folder structure. Keep uncertain identities, original order and edited copies clear.
4 min readHow to back up family photos, stories and voice recordings
Build a practical backup routine for family photos, written stories and audio. Learn what to export, how to check a copy and why syncing alone is not enough.
5 min readDownsizing sentimental items: keep the story before deciding
A gentle, practical process for sentimental belongings: photograph one item, record its meaning and separate the family story from the decision about the object.
5 min readAbout these guides
Things Retold publishes these guides for families starting a small archive. Our focus is the story behind an object, with practical steps you can also use in an ordinary folder or notebook.
These articles were prepared with AI assistance and checked against the linked guidance from archives and oral-history organizations. We distinguish our suggested workflows from attributed guidance, label fictional examples and keep uncertainty visible. We do not claim specialist conservation, legal or appraisal credentials.
We also make the app discussed here. Product descriptions reflect its current early-access features; the guides do not promise future prices, automatic recovery or a professional valuation. Send corrections through our support page. These seven guides are currently available in English.
Begin with one thing
A place for the object
and the story behind it.
See how photos, words and recordings come together in a fictional family archive.