A few years ago I found an old wooden box in a junk shop. It was a very old box originally made to transport bottles and I bought it for a bargain £2. It looked like it might just be the perfect thing for storing 7″ singles and once I got it home and tried it out, I realised I was right – the box was indeed perfect. Even better, the handles in the side of it designed to make carrying bottles easy also made carrying the 100 or so 7″ vinyl singles it stored very easy.

A couple of months later, and after my brother-in-law had declared his admiration for my new lovely vinyl storage doohickey, I happened to find another one in a different junk shop. For another bargain price I bought that one and promptly gave it to my brother-in-law, safe in the knowledge that these things were everywhere and could be purchased from junk shops at will and as easy as Mantovani LPs and Dan Brown novels.

That was 6 years ago and, of course, I’ve not seen another one since. Junks shops, charity shops, antique shops…I’ve tried them all, up and down the land and even some abroad. I can’t find another one, and I need at least another three.

I’m not going to describe the box here, or mention the name of the company emblazoned along the side, or indeed tell you anything more about it. The reason for this is that I watch eBay like a hawk, biding my time, waiting for my chance to pounce, and I’ve probably said too much already…

In the meantime, the nice folks over at Analog Apartment – a website dedicated to the pleasure of all things vinyl – have discovered a possible interim solution in the shape of Colorado Record Crates.

I’ve seen a lot of modern vinyl storage over the years and generally it ranges from expensive to ugly via impractical. These Colorado boxes on the other hand are simple, pretty affordable and – to my eyes at least – classic and classy. They are handmade in Colorado (USA), available in a choice of 3 stains, are stackable (both as top loading and side loading boxes) and available in both 7″ and 12″ versions. The boxes are priced at $20 and $30 respectively and are available from Twist and Shout Records.

One day I’ll track down those elusive, ancient bottle boxes. They can’t hide forever.

Tagged: Analog Apartment, Colorado Record Crates, Vinyl