How To Prevent Your Autographs From Fading

In our many years in business, we are no strangers to faded autographs. Autographs fade all the time, it is natural. But, is there a way to keep signatures on your treasured items from fading? The answer is: 
Well, not really. It depends. There are certainly things you can do to keep this from happening as much as possible. Let me break it down for you: What causes autographs to fade?

The number 1 reason is light. Exposure to light (particularly UV light) is the quickest way for your autographs to fade. UV light can come from obviously natural sunlight, but also from your standard at-home fluorescent lights. Some people don’t realize that these lights do emit UV and can fade your autographs. Even if your autographs don’t get UV light from the sun, they can still get it from your lights.

Another reason your autograph may fade over time is the material it is signed on. If your item is signed on a porous material, naturally over time, the ink will fade into the ball and make it look lighter and fuzzy. Avoid getting autographs on white panel balls for example. I know they advertise themselves to be “autograph balls” at times, but that is simply because they are white. 

Now that we understand that light is the primary cause of autographs fading, what can you do? Is there anything you can do? Yes, there absolutely are ways you can make sure your autographed item stands the test of time. The most surefire way to help keep your item(s) from fading is to keep them in a dark, climate controlled room. Now I know that sounds terrible. You have to store your items in a dark room where no one can see them, including yourself? Unfortunately, that is the best method, yes. BUT, obviously no one wants to do that. So here are some other great options: 

1. Get your items signed in a paint pen. Sharpies (especially black and blue) will fade over time when exposed to any kind of UV lights. Paint pens however, will really be able to withstand UV lighting better than anything (not to mention they look better.) Now obviously you can’t leave your item sitting in the sun all day when it is signed in a paint pen, but for your everyday lighting, paint pen signatures are the way to go. 
2. UV protected glass and cases will help fight the UV rays. It is more often than not worth spending the extra money to get your displays with UV protection glass. This will not keep it from fading, but it will help prolong the life of the signature without a doubt. 
3. Try and keep your memorabilia in a room that not only doesn’t get much sunlight, but also that has LED light sources. If you have the option to have LED lighting in your office, man cave, etc. you should consider going with it if you are trying to protect your signatures. If you come in to our retail store, you will see that all of the lighting in the store are LED lights. Not only are the brighter, higher quality, but they are not nearly as harmful to autographs as regular fluorescent lighting options. 

Some kind of combination of all of the above tips will help protect your signatures. It is understandably unrealistic to abide by all of these tips, but just do what you can and be knowledgeable about what you are doing! We offer top tier UV glass cases and museum quality UV protection glass options for framing. Feel free to reach out via email, social media, or the chat function on our website with any questions. We are all collectors as well as professionals in the hobby.