How To Store & Organize Your Holiday Decorations

Are you team “pack it all up on December 26” or “let’s keep the festive spirit rolling till after New Year’s”? If you’re like us, you might be torn between wanting to keep the festive vibe going and feeling overwhelmed by the thought of packing everything up. We know how challenging it can be to organize those holiday decorations, especially when you have the kids at home for the holiday break and they are constantly keeping you active. But not to worry, because we’re here to help you make it easier to organize and store your holiday decorations whenever you’re ready!

Here are some tips and tricks to simplify the post-holiday chaos and make the process of organizing and storing your holiday decorations a breeze.

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Table of Contents

Recycle Unwanted Paper + Boxes

During the holiday season, we used and received a lot of papers and boxes in the course of exchanging gifts. This includes holiday cards. Go through them, determine the important ones to keep, and gather others together for recycling. Do the same for gift packaging you don’t want to keep. This will also give you a head start on spring cleaning.

Donate Unwanted Items

Holiday Decor

Sort out your holiday decorations and determine which decorations have become too old or are otherwise unwanted. If they are not reusable, toss them. Decorations that are still in good shape but are no longer needed should be packed in boxes and donated for people in need to use next year.

Old Toys

Do you have little ones? They probably received lots of new toys during holiday season from family and friends. This is a good time to donate old toys to accommodate the new toys they received as gifts.

Old Clothes

You may have gotten new clothes and shoes as gifts this holiday. If you didn’t, still go through your closet and donate clothes and shoes you haven’t worn for a while, for example, winter coats that have been sitting on the rack for over a year.

Dispose of Fresh Greens

Find the date for real Christmas tree pickup in your area and ensure all fresh greens are taken down before that day and placed outside for pickup.

Organize Holiday Decorations

Use Clear Containers

For those holiday decorations, you choose to keep, organize them in clear storage containers for easy access next year. Group your holiday decorations based on their colors, materials (such as glass or plastic), and decor type.

Protect Your Wreaths + Garlands

Use a wreath storage bag to keep wreaths together and garlands untangled. You compress the branches back to accommodate more than one wreath in a storage bag.

Store Holiday Lights Properly

Holiday lights should be organized with light organizers to avoid them getting tangled up. Another option is to wrap your lights around a piece of cardboard.

Cover Delicate Ornaments

Padded ornament storage boxes are recommended for glass ornaments to keep them from breaking during transportation. Alternatively, you can wrap glass ornaments with paper and place them in clear storage containers. Personalized ornaments should be grouped.

Artificial Tree Storage

Your artificial Christmas tree might have come with a storage bag, but if not, use a dedicated Christmas tree storage bag to store your artificial tree(s). The storage bag protects the tree from pests and moisture during the year.

Organizing your holiday decorations can be stressful and it’s never a fun activity for anyone, but we hope this guide makes things a little easier for you. Try taking your time to organize your home after the holidays in 30-minute intervals with your family to make it more enjoyable.

Cheers to a fresh start!