It’s two weeks into the new year, and if you’ve already packed up your holiday decorations, give yourself a big ol’ pat on the back! Personally, I’ve started wondering if my neighbors will be singing “Redneck Woman” because I’m seriously considering just keeping those Christmas lights out on my front porch all year long! Kidding. Kind of.
For those of us who still need to pack everything away, have faith. Here are a few little organizing shortcuts that will make things a lot easier for next year. (I promise I won’t try to convince you to hot glue your own DIY ornament organizers. No Pinterest guilt today, my friends!)
1. Color Code
When it comes to holiday storage, I color code everything. All of our Christmas stuff is stored in red & green containers, but you could just use colored duct tape or colored paper to label boxes, too.
I also color code the branches on my artificial Christmas tree. It might sound a little overboard, but it seriously saves SO much time when I’m putting it together. My tree has a specific set of branches for each layer, so the branches & tree trunk have matching colored dots, and then I use matching velcro zip ties to group each set together. (Red branches get a red zip tie, etc.) No more fighting tangled branches or digging for the right size – I love it!
2. Save Space
We are not blessed with unlimited storage space, and honestly, it would be a chore to pull out ten different boxes for every holiday, anyway. I try to use as many space-saving techniques as possible when it comes to holiday decorations. We focus on the main living areas (a few decorations on the porch & in our front entryway are PLENTY in our little house), and most of our decorations take up very little extra space. Fabric & printable art are cheap, easy ways to transform a space without requiring a lot of storage or taking up valuable real estate when on display. A bright tablecloth or decorative pillow cover add a festive punch of color, but fold away into almost nothing when it’s time to put them away. Extra ornaments make festive vase fillers on the table or pretty chandeliers when you hang them from the ceiling, and they can go right back into storage with the rest of your ornaments when necessary. You could even make your wrapped presents pull decorating double-duty by displaying them on the mantel (as long as you don’t have any little elves around who might try to sneak a peek!)
3. Simplify
It can be so easy to get caught up in holiday traditions that we forget the importance of enjoying those traditions, too! If you have a certain holiday decorating task that you hate, think about how you could simplify it for next year. For example, we hate climbing on ladders to hang lights, but we love the look. We decided to just light our porch this year, and we used larger globe lights instead of the tiny twinkle lights. It still looks bright and cheery, but it’s a million times easier! My Mom-mom hates decorating her tree but loves the way it looks, so she just uses a small tree that she keeps decorated year-round & pops it in a storage bag in her closet, fully decorated & ready to go for next year. BOOM. Finished.
I also simplified my gift wrapping station. I organized my gift bags by color, and then decided to only use thick kraft paper & light green ribbon for my wrapping. It works year-round for almost any occasion, and ALL of my gift wrap fits into one small dresser drawer!
4. Store it Smarter
Pack similar items together (outdoor stuff with outdoor stuff, tree decorations with tree decorations, etc.). You can also save a lot of time if you put items away in the order that you’ll take them out. If you have a specific order for placing ornaments on your tree, pack them in that order. If you have certain items that you put on display earlier in the season, make sure they’re on top and/or in the easiest to reach storage box.
Good luck! Hopefully you’ll thank yourself next year when you’re not crawling to the back of your basement, sorting through piles of junk in unmarked boxes, and digging through tangles of tree branches!
What are your favorite tips & time-savers for storing holiday decorations? Share your brilliance in the comments below!
Visit Casey at her blog Pretty Organized, for great ideas and solutions for everything organized including small spaces and DIY projects sprinkled with just the right dose of funny.
Casey Osmundson
My name is Casey, and I live in a sweet, tiny little house in Delaware with my hubby & our two adorable rescue dogs. As a longtime fan of Toni's phenomenal organizing skills, I am absolutely THRILLED to be a contributor for A Bowl Full of Lemons! I used to be a total mess, but after I let go of the idea of “perfect,” I found freedom. I stopped trying to fit the mold, learned how to make organization work with my natural habits, and have been obsessed with creative organizing solutions ever since! When I'm not drooling over the latest amazing project features over here, you can find me happily tinkering away on my own blog, Pretty Organized, where I share my addiction to aesthetics, small space storage ideas, DIY projects, and all things aqua! Learn more about Casey at www.prettyorganized.com.
Tags: holidays, home organization
Blog, christmas holiday, contributors, Decorate, gift wrap station, Holidays, January 2014, Pretty Organized Posted in
6 comments
6 comments on “Holiday Decor Organization”
I love this! I really love your idea to group everything by kind. We love the hard ornament storage boxes that I showed on my blog. I am putting the link below. They hold TONS of ornaments and amazing for simple storage. We got ours at Bed Bath and Beyond. Thanks! Love this!
Christmas Ornament Boxes: http://www.moderncommonplacebook.com/easy-christmas-organization/
I LOVE the wrapping paper storage… we have an empty dresser in the guest room… guess what’s going in there! And kraft paper with ribbon- SO doing that. Not only is it a space saver, it will be a huge money saver! Thank you for your ideas!
Hi Casey~ Greetings from blustery Chaska, Minnesota! Thanks for all the great tips on storing Christmas decor. I think you covered everything well, but just wanted to elaborate on one of your tips. I have a red spiral notebook labeled “Christmas” and year after year I use it to keep track of that years’ details like card lists, gift giving idea lists that that covers sizes and colors; plus meals, cookies, and parties. Also, I have a big cardboard box with a fitted lid labeled “Christmas First.” It’s my year-round go-to box where I tuck things concerning Xmas that I come across during the year. For example, I get Xmas address labels, gift tags and sample Xmas cards in the mail so they go into the box to be used next year. Sometimes I’ll find dishes, tablecloths or decor items at thrift stores or garage sales, so I clean them up and store them until next season. My red Christmas notebook is in the box, right on top so it’s easily accessible all year. I open my box in early to mid November and pull a couple items out like our special Christmas hot chocolate mugs, the bathroom guest towels and the pins I wear on my winter coats. I start filling out our Christmas cards before Thanksgiving and usually have them done before Dec. 1. I’ve found this is a great and handy way to corrall all the Christmas stuff that accumulates all year long, so nothing gets misplaced or forgotten.
Vicki – I can really use the idea of the year round accessible Christmas box and notebook – brilliant and easy! We’re just setting up new decor and traditions for the holidays in our new home and I think the advice here at Bowl Full of Lemons and from you is the most sensible I have found anywhere. Off to get a box and notebook set up for both Halloween and Christmas 🙂
This is how I think too! I hate bulky Christmas decorations that make the house feel cluttered and are a pain to repack/unpack every year! This year we’ve already taken them all down, and for now they’re still in their random boxes but I’ve actually finally convinced my husband to invest in some new Christmas decor storage. Love these tips!
No tips, but I want to start a national movement to keep outdoor lights up until March 1, LOL. January and February are so cold and gray, that’s when we really need a little brightness!