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Today is the day…
…the day when I pack up my Christmas decorations.
I still leave some greenery and snowmen up for the rest of the winter, but the Christmas trees and any other “Christmasy” decorations must come down!
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE decorating my home for Christmas {even though I didn’t do much of it this year} but when Christmas is over, I’m ready to reclaim my house and get things back to “normal”.
And every year, I follow 2 simple steps to assure my decorations will be ready, waiting, and organized when it’s time to decorate next year.
1. I Group my Holiday Items:
Personally, I group my decor by “type” — all my greenery in one bin, my Christmas tree decor in another, Christmas dishes in another, etc. etc. But you could also group it by room, by material {all breakables together}, by family member, by color, or any other method that works for you.
By grouping your decorations together, it will be easier to know what you have next year!
{No, these aren’t ALL Christmas decorations. Just the 4 bins on the left!}
2. I Use LOTS of Tubs and Other Appropriate Storage Containers:
I LOVE clear plastic storage containers…which I then label with masking tape or other non-fancy labels. This allows me to know what I have where with a quick glance.
Pssst — if you’re looking for great ornament storage , check out these great products!!
A few more tips…
- Keep all your Christmas wrapping supplies together — but separate them from your every-day wrapping supplies.
- Take pictures of your rooms before you pack everything up. Then store the pictures with your decorations so you’ll remember what to do next year.
- Purchase holiday candles, ornaments, cards, etc. NOW {when they are 75% off} and store them with your Christmas decorations for next year. You’ll save a bunch of money and be way ahead of the game next year!
- Remember, you don’t have to do it all in one day!
And please, PLEASE, don’t pack up any decorations that are broken, that you don’t love, or that you won’t use anymore. You’re just wasting valuable storage space…and believe me, it IS valuable!
As you pack up your holiday decorations, keep these tips in mind to assure a clutter-free holiday sesaon next year!
When do you pack up Christmas??
Kathy says
My problem is mice. This year several things were ruined & had been pulled apart by the mice. I even found half chewed pecans in the bottom of my large plastic bin. Any hints on this problem? Love your organization! I don’t have a space that large. But I have every single Xmas decoration in the living room and I am going to go through it, discard, organize!
Linda says
Too early to pack up yet. The wise men haven’t even come yet! Enjoy the season for as long as possible. And who really cares if the Christmas “stuff” is still up after January 1st.
Like the clear tubs. Makes finding things easy.
Sarah says
Another thing to keep in mind is snowglobes. We keep our Christmas items in a shed in the back yard and either the heat or cold got to a snowglobe that busted and ruined many of our ornaments and got mold on all our stockings. It would probably help if I was as organized as you are!
Rain says
Hi Andrea! 🙂
That looks SO neat and clean! I’m like you, it has to be done before the New Year. I didn’t do too much decorating this season, because I just moved and I’m renting a furnished cottage, which means limited space, but I love your idea and will keep it in mind for when I’m planning out my future garage!!! And by the way, super congrats on finding your home! The porch is a dream. Finding the right property is a dream for me as well, and I will hopefully fulfill it within the next few years!
Happy New Year!
Rain
Andrea says
Thanks Rain,
Yes, we are SO excited to be all moved into our farmhouse!! I’m also glad that all my holiday decorations are neatly stored, ready for me to decorate again next year!
Good luck as you search for YOUR dream house…it’s out there somewhere!