Over and over I vowed that this was the year I was going to improve my holiday decoration storage. But I was always in a hurry to get my house back to the pre-holiday state.
This is how it would go… down come the decorations. Decorations get stuffed into one of many, many, plastic totes I own. Usually in whatever tote had room in it. Then they all get stuffed up in the attic crawl space until next year.
My totes were labeled, but once the decorations came back down all bets were off as to what tote the ended up in. So, the next year I was on the hunt again because nothing was where it was supposed to be.
If you know me at all you know that this kills me. Being OCD there is nothing more frustrating to me. But, out of sight out of mind, and I move on to cleaning the empty feeling rooms.
Can you relate?
I have a friend that complains every year that she can’t even find half of her decorations. This is because she has no system for storing her decorations. Not only does she not have a system, but she doesn’t even store them in the same place! You know who you are 🙂
Well, no more! Are you done getting your decorations down from the attic only to have 15 or so plastic bins in your dining room all at once? Are you done having to look through every one to find what you want? What about finding your favorite ornaments broken?
I am going to share some great holiday decoration storage solutions that I have found over the years. Some of these I use myself, and others I am going to implement this year!
Christmas Lights
How many times have you taken out your Christmas lights and they were a tangled mess? How about plugging them in only to find they didn’t work?
So frustrating!
Store your Christmas lights in a way that keeps them safe from breakage, keeps them untangled, and makes them easy to put up next year. Here are a few ideas that will cost practically nothing.
Use a Pringles can or other sturdy tube and cut a slit in one open end of the tube. Insert the beginning of the light strand into the slit and carefully wrap the lights around the tube. Place the other end of the strand into the same slit and put a cover, or a piece of tape, over the end to secure.
Another idea is to use a rectangle piece of cardboard to wrap your lights around. Use the same principle as above by cutting a slit in the cardboard to start your strand. This is a great option if you have a lot of lights. Each set can lay flat, side by side, saving a lot of space in storage. Write the color and length on the cardboard and you’ll know in an instant if this strand will work for you.
If you want to get all fancy and purchase something made for holiday light storage check out these options.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you choose to purchase a recommended product, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. This helps me to bring you this great content every week. Rest assured that I will not recommend any product that I would not use myself.
Don’t forget to take all those loose Christmas replacement bulbs and hooks and store them in a weekly pill organizer or jewelry organizer. Put them in the storage container with your lights.
Don’t forget to mark your containers so you can see at a glance what you’re looking for. Get my free Christmas Decoration Storage Labels below. These are printable on 8 1/2 x 11 sticker paper or you cand print them on plain paper and tape them to your container.
Wrapping paper, boxes, tags, bows etc.
This is my favorite part of holiday storage because, well, I’m a little OCD. I love to organize every nook and cranny of my home and wrapping supplies is one of my favorites. I think this is because wrapping paper is pretty and to organize it just makes it even prettier. 🙂
I purchased an Elfa rolling cart from The Container Store and it has been a life saver for me. Actually, I bought the pieces separately instead of the kit and made a really tall cart.
I have all of my wrapping paper, bows, tags, tissue paper, cards, etc. stored in it. This way I can just roll it out-of-the-way when I don’t need it.
However, I don’t store my Christmas wrapping paper in it for two reasons. First, I have way too much Christmas paper and it won’t fit with all the rest of the wrapping paper I have. And second, I don’t like having extra stuff around that I only use once or twice a year.So instead I store my Christmas paper in a storage container and put it in the attic with the rest of my Christmas decorations. It only comes down for Christmas when I need it and isn’t taking up valuable space in my craft room when I don’t.
I do however keep all the bows, tags, cards, tissue paper and boxes in my Elfa organizer. This doesn’t take up a lot of room and I can use a lot of it for other occasions during the year.
Here are some great options for storing your holiday wrapping paper. Pick a system that works best for your storage space.
If you want an inexpensive DIY option for storing your paper then how about using a clear plastic suit bag? The Chic Site shows how to put all your paper in the bag, along with a hanger, and hang it up in your storage area. Be sure to buy extra because I have another great use for them. Be sure to read on.
If you want some ideas for what to do with the Christmas cards you received this year then check out my post “10 ways to re-purpose Christmas cards after the holidays.”
Artificial trees
Artificial trees are so cumbersome and just a pain to store. I don’t know about you but I can never get my tree back into the original box it came in!
Because of this, one year I decided to not even decorate my main artificial tree. Instead used my 4′ artificial tree that I left decorated from the year before! I know right? lol Which brings me to your options for storage.
Keeping it assembled
If you have the room to keep your tree assembled (and even decorated) then purchase a tree bag. These bags come in different sizes so make sure you get one at least large enough for your tree, if not even larger. This way you won’t be bending and squeezing your tree into the bag.
Now remember, if you decide to keep it assembled, you will have to get the tree from your living room into your storage area. Not an easy task. So make sure this is doable before you decide to store your tree this way. But if you can, then heck, go for it! Save yourself some time for next year.
Disassembled
Your next option is to store it in a box but I wouldn’t recommend storing it in the cardboard box it came in for a few reasons.
First, as I mentioned above, you can never get it back into the box the way it came out. Which means in order to do that you will have to squeeze and bend and jam the tree into the box. This isn’t good for the tree at all. You will also have to deal with possible critter or bug invasion. Yuck!
Instead purchase a large plastic Christmas tree tote or tree bag to store it in. They are made to fit your tree and are much roomier than the original container. If you don’t want to spend the money on a tree container then just buy any plastic container, or containers, large enough to fit your tree.
Artificial trees are expensive especially the really realistic looking ones. So you’ll want to store it properly so it will stay beautiful for years to come. Here are a few options.
Ornaments
There are so many different shapes and sizes of ornaments, as well as different mediums. You’ll have to figure out which storage option would be best for your particular ornaments.
Save your egg cartons because this is a great way to store your delicate Christmas balls. Not only does it neatly organize them but it keeps them safe. Stack them and store them inside a clear plastic bin.
Purchase some ornament boxes like these. I like these because they can hold a lot of ornaments in one container.
Keep in mind that if you need to stack your containers then you may want to use sturdy plastic containers like the ones above (middle). This way you won’t crush any ornaments.
Wreaths and Garlands
Wreaths can be tricky to store because you don’t want to crush them by placing them on top of each other. Berry wreaths are very delicate and would not do well stacked. So hang your wreaths next to your wrapping paper! You can either use another suit bag or just a trash bag to cover your wreath after hanging it from a coat hanger with some wire or string.
Most garlands you can store in a large plastic tote. Again, if you have some expensive garlands with lots of ornaments or berries then you may want to hang them as well.
Take a little extra time now to plan your holiday decoration storage and you’ll be thankful next year when it’s time to decorate all over again.
For more Holiday Organizing ideas check out my post 5 Steps for organizing your Dining Room for the Holidays
Please share some ideas that you use to store your Christmas decorations below.
Leave a Reply