Helping You Save Time, Space and Money On Your Christmas Decoration Storage.
Christmas is hectic, fun, exhilarating, and sentimental. We love it all– all but the part when we have to clean up and put every little thing away. While it may be tempting to just throw everything into boxes and worry about sorting it out next year, you’ll be sorry when a prized Christmas decoration or ornament gets lost or broken.
Following these 10 tips will help you:
- Save time by getting all your Christmas decorations arranged so it’s quick and easy to find them next year.
- Conserve space by using the right kind of boxes that can be easily stacked and organized.
- Save money by keeping your Christmas lights and decorations in a manner that protects their quality and extends their life span.
10 Quick Tips for Christmas Decoration Storage
Use Clear Plastic Storage Containers
These are excellent because you can see the contents without having to spend time labeling each and every box. Plus the plastic helps protect from moisture better than cardboard. When stacking, be sure to place the largest and heaviest boxes on the bottom and smaller boxes on the top.
Box the Beads
Pack the beads in small boxes such as plastic shoeboxes. If you use many strands of beads, larger boxes could become too heavy. To keep the beads from becoming tangled, place individual strands in baggies. If you choose, you can wrap each strand around empty paper towel rolls and tape the ends.
Don’t Dog Pile the Christmas Lights
Don’t pile a lot of lights in the same box. The box will become too hefty and the lights on the bottom could be harmed. Lights can easily become tangled so individual strands of lights should be bagged separately or wrapped around paper towel rolls or something similar and placed in plastic grocery bags or large freezer bags.
Save Space with Re-Shapeable Decorations
Bows crafted from wired ribbon can be flattened and reshaped next year. Wired ribbon garlands and streamers can be firmly rolled. They don’t need to be squashed unless you need to conserve space.
Don’t Crush Your Wreath
Wreaths can be piled in larger boxes but each wreath should be wrapped with bubble wrap. Wreath boxes can also be bought and are readily available on the Internet and in stores.
Wrap Christmas Ornaments Properly
Ornaments should be separately wrapped in white tissue paper or where greater protection is needed, wrap in bubble wrap. Since most ornaments are lightweight they can be stored in large containers. Store them in these and then place them in the storage compartment if you still have the original boxes the ornaments came in.
Protect Christmas Decorations from Wetness
If you live in a humid climate using plastic compartments may not be enough to protect from moisture.. Place packets of silica gel in each compartment to avoid damage from humidity. Silica gel can be bought at arts and craft stores. You can produce your own by wrapping a number of tablespoons of silica gel in white tissue paper and securing with tape if you can not find individual packets. Several packets should be placed throughout the box.
Guard Against Temperature Extremes
Fragile decorations such as ornaments made with photos or wax can be temperature sensitive. Store them in a climate-controlled area or they could degrade, melt or stick together.
Avoid Box Identity Loss
Attach a red ribbon or tag to each Christmas storage box. If they have been stored with other boxes unrelated to Christmas decorations, this will make them simple to identify next Christmas.
Toss the Trash
Some people have a habit to just “hang onto stuff” in hopes that they’ll find a use for it later on. Don’t waste space by holding onto old ornaments you know you’ll certainly never use again (unless of course it has some sentimental significance). Just toss out the trash.
Bonus!
A final note: You may also want to think about Christmas ornament boxes and wreath boxes for especially exquisite ornaments and wreaths rather than clear storage compartments. These boxes are offered in stores and on the Internet. They are very practical and some are even acid free for even improved protection for your fine collectables. They are more expensive, but for high quality, valuable ornaments this may be a worthwhile investment.
A little organization now will make you feel like a Christmas decorating pro next year. Happy un-decorating!