In her work as a conservation specialist at the National Postal Museum, part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., Linda Edquist has worked to preserve countless letters and other objects in the museum's enormous collection.

How can you use some conservation techniques on your letters at home? Watch Linda demonstrate, in these video interviews.

1. Introduction
2. Storing your collection in boxes
3. Organizing the different material in your collection
4. Creating the space to do your preservation work
5. Deciding which pieces to work on first
6. Experimenting on your least valuable piece
7. Erasing pencil marks from your documents
8. Removing staples
9. Humidifying hard to open letters
10. Flattening and displaying letters
11. Liberating crammed materials
12. Understanding the role of the preservationist