Great Tips to Organize and Store Christmas Decor

Can you believe it’s time to take down our Christmas trees, lights, and tinsel? Are you ready? Today we’re sharing great tips to organize and store your Christmas decor!

Do you dread taking down your Christmas decor, or are you ready to put it away after the last Christmas present is opened?

I fall into the first category!

It makes me so sad to take everything down!

The house looks so naked and dull without the greenery and twinkling lights.

The only thing worse than taking down decorations is doing it without an organization plan!

It’s taken several years of trial and error, but we finally have a good strategy for organizing and storing Christmas decor!

We’re so excited to share them with you today!

Ready or not, let’s get all things Christmas organized!

Great tips to organize Christmas decor

There’s a lot more to organizing Christmas decor than throwing it in a box.

Here are some steps to take before you store your Christmas decorations!

Document this year’s Christmas decorations

Take pictures of your holiday decor, and then ask yourself the following questions:

What did you like?

Is there anything you want to change?

Do you need to purchase new items for the next year?

Hit the sales now for deeply discounted Christmas decor.

If you can’t find everything you want, write it down, so you don’t forget!

When they start putting Christmas decorations out next year, you’ll know exactly what you need to buy!

Purge decor you no longer use

Do you have decorations in boxes that you did not use this year?

Do not keep items that you no longer enjoy.

Consider repurposing ornaments.

Can you use them to embellish gifts after you wrap them?

If you have no use for them, but they are still in good condition, donate them!

Clean and repair Christmas decor

If your Christmas decorations have been up for over one month, they will get dirty, especially if you have pets.

Clean pet hair off of tree skirts and dust glass ornaments.

Check your ornaments for any damage as you put them away.

I had a few ornaments that the ribbon was coming undone. I had to hot glue it back in place.

Make repairs now, so you will be ready to decorate next year.

Hold out items to decorate for winter

Consider using evergreen garlands, floral picks, and natural items, like pinecones, to decorate for winter.

Last year I used evergreen garlands in several different places.

To see how I transitioned Christmas items to winter decor click here!

Can you use any of your Christmas decorations for Valentine’s day?

I need to think of a way to use these roses and hearts in my Valentine’s decor this year!

You know how to organize your Christmas decor, so now we’re going to share tips on how to store it!

Great tips to store Christmas decor

There are so many great ways you can store Christmas decor!

No matter what your budget is, we’ve got some great tips for you!

Decide what type of storage containers to use

The only place we have to store Christmas decor is under our stairs.

To get the maximum use out of this space, we use moving boxes!

They stack perfectly on top of each other!

We use medium and small heavy-duty boxes!

If you like to see what’s inside your boxes use clear plastic storage tubs that stack.

Label everything

Be sure to label everything, especially if you can’t see what’s inside!

If you use boxes, write on them with a Sharpie marker.

You can use my method by typing your labels in Word, printing them on cardstock, and then taping them to your box.

For plastic storage tubs, put a piece of masking tape on the outside and write on it with a permanent marker.

If you have a label maker use it.

Tips for storing ornaments

I suggest storing your ornaments either by color, theme, or the room you use them in.

Also, consider whether you decorate your tree(s) the same way each year, or do you like to change things up.

If you change your tree each year, store ornaments by color. One year you can use red and green ornaments. The next year you can pull out the silver and gold ornaments instead.

If you decorate your trees the same way each year, put all of the ornaments for that tree in the same box. Label the box “ornaments for family room tree” and “ornaments for dining room tree.”

If you have themed trees, store all of those ornaments together. Label the box “forest animal tree” or “fruit and flower tree.”

Store breakable ornaments in the original container they came in.

If the package wears out, use an egg carton, or the plastic containers muffins come in.

Save space and store non-breakable ornaments lose in a storage box. I put gold ornaments in one bag and silver in another bag. Then, I put both bags in one box.

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Tips for storing trees

Do you have difficulty getting your tree back into the original box?

First, de-fluff your tree and flatten each branch.

Wrap each section with bubble wrap and tape it tightly.

Put the tree back in its original box.

Make sure you put the tree stand in the box!

If you have a pre-lit tree, don’t forget to remove the battery from the remote control and put it into the tree box!

Special tip- if your tree is not pre-lit and you put the same lights on it each year, store the lights in the box with the tree!

When your original tree box breaks down, purchase a specialty plastic bag made just for storing Christmas trees!

If you have room in a basement or the attic, keep your tree up and wrap it in a plastic tarp!

Tips to store wreaths

When we moved to Florida, I started storing my wreaths in boxes, but they took up too much room.

So, I decided to hang them up in an extra closet!

I hang them on a clothes hanger and cover them with a clear trash bag!

If you have an unfinished basement, put a nail in the wood beam and hang them from the rafters.

Use a rolling rack in the attic or basement to hang wreaths.

Tips to store lights

Rich is in charge of outdoor lights!

He wraps a strand of lights around his hand and then secures it with a zip tie.

But he has a great tip, he color codes the zip ties.

For example, the lights near the garage have blue zip ties. But he puts red zip ties on the lights on the bushes by the sidewalk!

To keep your lights from getting tangled, you can cut a piece of cardboard and wrap the lights around it.

Tips to store Christmas pillows

I ran out of room to store pillows, so now I have a rule that I only purchase pillow covers.

Covers are so much easier to store than pillows. Do yourself a favor and make that a rule in your home too!

However, you can use vacuum-sealed bags to store seasonal pillows if needed!

That’s all I have for now! I hope you can use some of our tips to organize and store Christmas decor!

If you have great tips of your own, tell us about them in the comments below!

Blessings, Donna and Rich

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