I now have 5 slide cabinets for storing my microscope slides, each of these with multiple drawers. Some of the drawers are lined with velvet, other some paper, or some are even the bare wood. The paper in them could have been there for decades and is often the wrong size. I got to think about how best to store my slides to provide long term protection, which led me towards archival storage approaches used museums and big collections. I know about archival card and paper for storing photos, but what to use for glass microscope slides? A look around led me to Conservation Resources Ltd in the UK, and after a conversation with them they recommended I use MicroChamber(TM) shelf liner. This is a lining paper used for shelves and cases, and incorporates some pretty impressive technology including activated carbons and alkaline buffers designed which work together within multiple layers of precise porosities, to provide a chemical trap for oxidizing gases, their associated acids, and degradation by-products (see here for background to the technology).
The paper comes on a roll and can easily be cut to length and width using either scissors or I used a little hobby paper guillotine.
It is grey on one side and white on the other, and I was told while either side could be towards the subject, it is normal to have the white side upmost. Here’s a drawer from one of my cabinets with JA Long diatom slides on the MicroChamber shelf liner (top row) the MicroChamber shelf liner (middle row) and the bare section with purple velvet which was what was there on the drawer (bottom row).
Perhaps not the most glamorous of topics in the research I do but a vital one. Many of the slides I have are over 100 years old, and some with dirty surfaces or even fungus on them, very often from improper or incorrect storage. As I image my slides I clean them, and then now I can store them in a manner which will hopefully keep them safe and in great condition for many years to come.
Big shout out to my lovely wife for the festive table cloth. Thank you dear, and Merry Christmas everyone.
As always, thanks for reading and if you’d like to know more about my research I can be reached here or here.