“Dear Jan, I often see photos of wonderful reminiscence props. Where can I get my hands on some like this? We don’t have anything like it.”
Ffion, Activity Coordinator
Dear Ffion,
The use of props can really bring a reminiscence session to life. There are many companies selling reminiscence materials – a quick online search will present countless results – but the beauty is that it doesn’t have to be expensive to obtain a good selection.
Of course, you don’t always need to own these items. Borrowing materials for particular sessions can be just as beneficial. Speak to your local museums to see if they hire out boxes of materials. Libraries and secondary schools may also have materials you can borrow.
Here are my suggestions for gathering a good selection of props. You’ll see that they aren’t all old – sometimes modern versions will be just as powerful to include in sessions as the original versions that your residents will have used themselves.
- Feather dusters, yellow dusting cloths and marigold gloves – these can all be found fairly easily and purchased cheaply
- Furniture polish – the older the better as these will smell more familiar to your residents – beeswax polish is a good one
- A tin of brasso
- Pears soap, coal tar soap, calamine lotion – these are all still available to buy and have strong scents which your residents will remember well
- Perfume bottles and make-up samples – ask your pharmacy for empty perfume sample bottles
- Recipe books – keep an eye out in charity shops and at car boot sales for old-fashioned recipe books, or ask relatives of residents that you know were keen cooks if they have any of the resident’s own collection that they’d be willing to lend you
- Old tools – again, search charity shops, or ask volunteers or residents, but be careful to check for sharp edges before using in a session
- A traditional skipping rope
- A bag of marbles
- Traditional school exercise books and HB pencils
- Slate board and white chalk
Free online resources
Nestl have fantastic free printable reminiscence materials available to download. Click here to view.
Creating memory boxes
I think it’s a lovely idea to create individual memory boxes for each resident. For example, if someone used to work with horses, gather some grooming brushes, leather straps, a stirrup and some rosettes. Add photos of horses, magazine or newspaper cuttings or copies of family photos.
To do this task well, you’ll need to refer closely to life history notes and involve the residents’ relatives where possible.
Best wishes,
Jan
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