5 Tips For Packing Away Your Christmas Decorations

5 Tips For Packing Away Your Christmas Decorations

Christmas is over ... phew. Time to relax. Well, almost. First you need to clean up – take all your decorations down and get the house nice and clean and ready for a fresh, new year. If you’re stuck on where to start with your packing away of Christmas decorations, here are our top tips.

1. Start with a clean out

Sort everything you won't use again and toss it all in the trash or put it away in storage. You’ll find there are lights that stopped working the day before Christmas, or perhaps there are pictures, costumes or baubles that were special in times past, that you really just don’t want to have in your décor anymore. If it means something, store it. If it means nothing, bin it. Or you might consider donating or recycling as well, depending on what it is and the condition it’s in.

2. Organise everything

You can sort your decorations in a variety of ways, from arranging them alphabetically to organising them according to theme or colour. Before you start packing away though, make sure everything works. Then untangle your lights and wrap your ornaments in tissue paper to protect them for next year. Don’t just tuck them away in the back of a cupboard if you can help it. Get some storage boxes and organise them by theme (one box for outdoor decorations, one for upstairs, etc), then label them so you can find everything in future.

3. Find simple tree packing solutions

Pulling all the decorations off your tree and packing it away is certainly one of the most tedious jobs you can do after Christmas. Here’s a tip ... get some gladwrap, push the branches all up so they’re facing upwards (you don’t need to remove the decorations to do this), and then gladwrap the tree, as is! Put it back in its box, or store it in some garbage bags, ready for next year. Then, in 12 months’ time, all you have to do is remove the gladwrap, spread out the branches and you’re good to go!

4. Give them a good clean

Make sure you give them a good clean before you start packing them away again. Use a quality antibacterial spray and wipe, or give them a scrub if they’ve been left out in the elements and have a bit of muck on them. The more you take care of them now, the more likely you’ll be able to use them again next year.

5. Get creative

There are some fantastic ideas out there for easy storage of your Christmas decorations, so get creative. Here’s a few to get you started:

• Use clear, resealable bags so you can see what’s in them
• Wrap your Christmas lights around cardboard so they don’t get tangled
• Wrap garland beads or tinsel around toilet or paper towel rolls
• Put your baubles in an egg carton
• Use a label maker to ensure you know what’s where

There are so many things you can do to keep your Christmas decorations organised and securely stored for next year. We hope these tips help limit the stress a little!