The gifts have been unwrapped. The cookies have been eaten. And now it’s time to take down your Christmas decorations. If the thought of taking down your decorations and storing them again sounds stressful, I have good news. Here’s the easy way to store Christmas decorations (and declutter and organize them too.)
I’m not going to lie. Most years I threw (sometimes literally) my ornaments and other decorations in a box with no care whether I liked them, they matched, or how to easily find them next year. But in my pursuit of simple living, this year I am doing something about it. Follow my steps below to take the stress out of un-decorating and make decorating a lot easier next year too.
Here’s How to Store Christmas Decorations
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1.) Declutter Decor You Don’t Like, Broken, or Doesn’t Match
If I have time, I like to declutter my Christmas decor before the holiday so I can pass along unused items for someone else to use that year. But I know that doesn’t always happen. So, the next best time is when you are taking them all down.
It’s helpful to figure out your “style.” It’s OK to have multiple styles, but if an item doesn’t fit any of them it might be a good idea to pass it along to someone else. For instance, I have “pastel Christmas decor” and “tacky tropical” decor. I also keep a box of traditional Christmas decor that I don’t use, but still like, for the future.
Start with your ornaments. As you take them off the tree, group like ones together. Then simply put all the ones that don’t match, you don’t like, or are broken in another pile to throw away or donate.
Next move on to your other decor. Pillows. Christmas plates. Trees. Nativities. If you are unsure about an item create a “maybe” pile. If that’s still too stressful, go ahead and create a “maybe” box. If you still don’t like them next year you can feel good about donating them.
2.) Organize Similar Items.
Sort what’s left into similar piles. How you sort them is up to you. Maybe you want to put all “farmhouse” Christmas decor together, or perhaps you’d rather organize by item, say all bottlebrush trees together. Either is fine, but I’d suggest also organizing by items that are similar in weight, height, and durability.
Again, you might find items that don’t fit any category and this may be a great time to edit your decor.
Depending on how much Christmas decor you have, this could be a small or large task. I’d recommend setting aside a good chunk of a day to do it if you have a lot. Enlist the help of family or friends if need be! But trust me, by doing the hard work this year, you’ll make decorating and storing so much easier next year.
3.) Store Similar Items.
Ornaments
I’ve tried ornament boxes before and they didn’t work for me. Mainly because all my ornaments are different sizes! My suggestion is to stock up on some clear plastic bins and store your ornaments in there. But here’s what else you’ll need:
- Ziplock bags
- Tissue paper/newspaper
Now that all your ornaments are sorted, simply wrap the breakable ones in tissue paper or newspaper and place them in a ziplock bag. Mark each with a permanent marker as to what’s in it to make putting away easier next year. Trust me you will thank me!
Place the unbreakable ones on the bottle and then, depending on how big your tote is, place the breakable ones on top. If you have a more shallow plastic tote, you could stack them verticle, side-by-side.
Soft decorations
Now, gather all your soft decorations, think felt Christmas trees, pillows, aprons, stuffed animals, etc., and store them together in one of these storage bags.
Miscellaneous decor.
All other decorations you’ll want to group by similar themes or durability to store together. Store all your bottlebrush trees wrapped in newspaper in one tote, store your nativities together in another.
Lastly, put away for next year! Yes, this probably took you a while but next year when you go to pull out your decorations everything will be sorted, labeled, and ready to go. And hopefully, you donated enough that it minimized how many decorations you had in the first place.
What’s your best tip to store Christmas decor? I’d love to know!
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