Custom Curiosity Box

Begin with the Custom Curiosity Box and included Timeless Presents tote bag, then choose from our range of optional contents to create a collection that reflects your person’s interests, abilities, preferences and circumstances.

This is not a traditional reminiscence box. The contents are not chosen primarily to prompt memories or encourage someone to talk about the past. Familiarity is used as a form of accessibility: recognisable shapes, materials, sounds and ways of handling may help an object feel approachable and make its possibilities easier to discover. The aim is not to test memory, require language or produce a particular response, but to offer interesting objects that can be encountered in the present moment.

The box itself has been chosen with the same principles in mind. Its warm wood, vintage-style straps, brass-coloured fittings and varied textures give it the character of a familiar keepsake or treasure box, with tactile details that can be seen, touched and explored. The coordinating cotton tote provides a practical and recognisable way to store, carry or introduce selected items.

Choose from tactile, visual, musical and interactive objects to create the combination that feels right for your person. Each optional item has been selected for qualities that may make it discoverable and invite interest, such as its texture, colour, sound, movement, familiarity or possibilities for handling and exploration. The collection follows our wider design principles, including an adult appearance, strong and approachable visual interest, varied textures and objects that do not demand a particular activity or outcome.

We will also include practical information to help you begin using the collection with your person, including ideas for introducing the box and exploring its contents together. There are no rules and no expected response. An item might be held, moved, listened to, talked about, used in an unexpected way or simply noticed.

People’s interests, abilities and responses vary, so please consider the individual, their circumstances and the environment in which the items will be used. Supervision may be appropriate for some people and items.

The Custom Curiosity Box and its optional contents have not been assessed or accredited by the Dementia Services Development Centre (DSDC).