Summer is the season to make happy memories, whether they’re of holidays, day trips or special moments with family and friends. With the season coming to an end, now is the perfect time to collect your memories of summer and preserve them for years to come.
Store and share photos with Exaactly
Research carried out for Swiss International Air Lines has revealed that over 60% of Brits take pictures with their camera or mobile phone so they don’t forget holiday memories. Handily, Exaactly can be used to store and share all your holiday photos for free! Set up an Exaactly account and digital locker, then upload your photos to your locker. From your photo library you can create an Exaactly address to send, for example, one collection of photos to friends at work and another to family and friends. You can upload pictures in real time – if you want loved ones to follow your adventures as you go, sharing an exactly address before you go (jaunt24@@malcolm). Alternatively, add your photos to Exaactly and share your address at the end of your travels.
Display souvenirs
Collect souvenirs while on a holiday or a day trip, to display when you’re back home. They can be anything that reminds you of a summer adventure and will revive happy memories whenever you see them. Magnets from different locations are fun displayed on a fridge, while seashells from a favourite beach can be exotic décor.
Create a holiday playlist
Songs help us recollect so many important moments, and holidays are no exception. Why not create a playlist with the sounds of your summer? You might have heard new tunes by local artists while on holiday or have played familiar tracks that you now associate with treasured summer memories.
Map it out
There are loads of ways you can use maps to preserve your summer memories, so take your pick. Shop for maps that you scratch off to show where you’ve visited, or cork board maps where you add pins to mark your travel locations. There are plenty of DIY options too. Add a large map to your wall and stick photos to the locations where you took them. You can use your map to plan future travels too!
Cook the local cuisine
Taste is another sense that can evoke holiday memories. Why not try a cookery class on holiday? Then you can recreate the recipes you’ve learned when you’re back home. You could buy a local recipe book while you’re travelling too, as a souvenir of your adventure and to help you cook recipes when you’re back home.
Make a movie
Turn photos and videos on your phone into a home movie, so you don’t forget about them. There’s lots of free software you can use – even if you’re a beginner – to make your own short film. TechRadar has released its list of the top free video editing software for this year, with DaVinci Resolve, Lightworks and HitFilm all highly rated.
Read all about it
Create a travel blog to capture all your summer adventures, to make sure you don’t forget any special moments. Your blog can be added to Exaactly for loved ones to read and enjoy. You can also read back over it yourself to remind you of holiday memories.
Go for a gallery wall
A gallery wall is a fantastic option if you want your summer photos permanently on show. When it comes to photo placement you could freestyle, or you could follow some pointers for an organised approach. My Wall Decorator has loads of free gallery wall layout templates to get you started. Create a cohesive look with matching frames or go for a more eclectic look with ones in different colours and styles. Alternatively, turn photos into canvas prints to make them a stand-out feature in your home.
Make a holiday memory frame…
Want to display holiday souvenirs in one place? Then a memory frame could be the perfect option. All you need are your souvenirs and a box frame (a type of frame that’s deeper than a regular one) to pop them in. Photos, tickets, foreign currency – anything goes!
… Or a holiday memory box
You can make a memory box for all sorts of events, including holidays. If you don’t have space to display photos and keepsakes, a memory box is a handy tool for storing holiday mementoes. You can keep everything related to your holiday or summer in one place and go through the box whenever you want to reflect on happy memories.
Create a summer scrapbook or smashbook
Go old school and create a scrapbook. Add pictures to your scrapbook, as well as tickets for travel and events, notes and more. Create a scrapbook dedicated to this summer, or a longer term one that you can add to for years to come. Or how about a smashbook? Whereas scrapbooks tend to be carefully planned and laid out, you can have a free reign with a smashbook. It’s about playfulness over perfection. Smash in stickers, postcards, pictures, drawings, notes… whatever takes your fancy.
Share summer adventures on your CV
Create an Exaactly address, such as cv@@samantha, which can be linked to a library of content. You can upload pictures of places you’ve visited and notes on experiences. Uploading everything to Exaactly means it’s all on hand for you to add to future CVs at the touch of a button! Whether it’s the script of a prayer given to you by a monk you met, notes from a holiday job, or pictures from volunteering abroad, everything will be there, where it’s easily accessible.