I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. Now that it’s over, time to organize all those lights, ornaments, and lawn inflatables. I don’t know about you but once Christmas is over, I am itching to get the decor tucked away until next year. So let’s make your holiday takedown a breeze and get you organized!
Step one: Purge.
With your holiday decor up, it makes it easy to see everything. Take down the items you want to get rid of first and start your donation and trash piles.
Getting tired of some of your holiday decor and want something new? Now is the time to buy, but be sure to purge first!
Step two: bring in all your storage bins.
Are you guilty of still having decor in your storage bins? Think about donating these items. There is a reason you didn’t use them. Okay, we are still doing some purging. But you will thank me once you made tons of room!
Step three: The take down.
I like to start and organize my storage bins room by room. Especially if you usually decorate the same every year.
Keep all the decor for your tree together in one bin or multiple labeled bins.
For non delicate ornaments, use large Ziploc bags to separate like with like.
For delicate ornaments you can:
- wrap them in a covering of tissue paper before placing them in Ziploc bags
- purchase a protective ornament separator
- put them back into their original boxes
- create your own ornament separator:
- align the bottom of a storage bin with disposable cups
- place each ornament in a cup (use paper shreds if need extra padding)
- cut a flat piece of cardboard to lay over the top of the cups
- continue to repeat the process until the container is filled
- If your cups don’t fit snug in each layer of the storage container, use balled up paper to fill any extra space, OR you can even hot glue each cup to the cardboard
For lights, the best way to store and not have them be a tangled mess for next year, is to wrap them around a piece of cardboard. Cut slits into the sides to secure the ends. I like to use painters tape to give the ends a little extra reinforcement. Make sure to label the cardboard so you know where they go next year.
If you use an artificial tree, think about purchasing a tree storage bag. It is a little less bulky than the original box, is still protective, and will keep the bugs and dust off. Otherwise, the original box is a great storage solution, plus it’s free!
Wreaths are those awkward things that everyone loves until they have to store them. A wreath storage container is a good option or you can even wrap them up in a trash bag if they are not delicate.
Holiday gift wrap. Use a long, low profile, clear storage container to keep all your gift wrapping together. Or, you can use a clear garment bag and hang up all your gift wrapping in a storage closet (great option if you want to create a gift wrapping closet and label each garment bag by occasion). Cut a slit along the length of an old toilet paper roll and place around gift wrap to prevent unraveling.
Step Four: Label everything!
Label each storage container, include the location of where the decor goes and any other important details to make next year a breeze!
Step Five: Store.
Place everything back into your storage area. If it is a large storage room of different holiday containers, put the Christmas stuff towards the back. Use the cycle method and as the different holidays come and go, move your containers so the corresponding holiday is towards the front.
I hope this post has given you some helpful ways to store your holiday decor or at least inspired you to get a head start with your holiday take down.