Domenique Zuber wrote in recently with a question we get asked a lot here at 20x200, and was kind enough to allow me to reprint it to share with you:

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the art you offer every week. And I love it so much that I've bought more prints than my walls can handle. So, do you have any tips on how to best store the ones that I don't currently have on display? I live in a small place, I don't have flat files, and I'm just not sure how to best tuck away my precious prints to ensure their pristine longevity...

Thanks, Domenique! The first thing you have to consider when storing your art away is what you'll be placing it in. Here at Jen Bekman World Domination HQ, we actually employ three art containment methods; enjoy an image from behind our iron curtain courtesy of my three-year-old cameraphone + my 133t Photoshop skillz:

• Archival storage boxes are easy to find (Dick Blick has a nice selection that won't break the bank) and you can store a lot of prints in them, just make sure to slide a sheet of smooth tissue paper between each print.
• If you've got canvasses or frames to store, wrap them in bubble wrap. Make sure as you wrap that you're not disturbing the surfaces of the artwork, and that when you lean them against each other, nothing protudes from one to poke its neighbor. You can get rolls of bubble wrap from Kinko's or Staples—make sure to get extra if you enjoy popping!
• For large prints that you really don't have space for, you can roll them up very carefully and store them in cardboard tubes. My apartment is short on space, so this is my method of choice. If you're storing multiple prints this way, make sure to use tissue paper between each print like you would in a storage box.
• Our Raul has one last method to consider, if you're especially short on space: "I actually have a bunch of prints in plastic sleeves and then in heavy envelopes in a file cabinet."

Regardless of how you decide to store your art, the second decision you'll make is actually the most important one—where you store it. You want to choose a place that is cool and dry with relatively stable temperatures and good air circulation, avoiding humidity, heat and extreme cold. Bad places: beside a bathroom, fireplace, washing machine, dishwasher, radiators, anywhere that will be in direct sunlight. Attics and garages are out too; basements might be okay but you'll have to be careful. If at all possible, keep stuff on shelves in case of flooding.

How and where you store your art are really all there are this to affordable home art storage. If you have a lot of pieces stored away, you might want to keep a ledger or spreadsheet of what you've got and where it's stashed, but that's about it.

If you've got any questions you'd like answered, or tips you'd like to share with us or your fellow collectors, feel free to send them in to lia at 20x200.com or to leave a comment!