How to Store Christmas Decorations in the Most Efficient Way
As the holiday season comes to a close, it's time to pack up the twinkling lights, sparkling ornaments, and festive garlands. So, how do you store your Christmas decorations in a way that ensures they'll be safe and easy to access for next year?
Here, I'll provide you with practical and efficient strategies for storing your Christmas decor, from delicate ornaments to full Christmas trees. With these tips, you'll bid farewell to tangled lights and broken baubles, and greet the next holiday season with ease and excitement.
This post was transcribed by a member of the Hometalk editorial team from the original HometalkTV episode. For more festive ideas, see Hometalk's ultimate guide to DIY Christmas decor here.
Tools and materials
- Plastic wrap
- Scissors
- Cardboard box
- Toilet roll tube
- Egg carton
- Clear containers
- Recycle bags
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Storing Christmas decorations
1. How to store a Christmas tree
If you have a Christmas tree that doesn't come apart or that you don't take apart during the off-season, the best way to protect it from getting dirty and getting all kinds of dust and debris on it is a roll of your plastic wrap.
So go to your kitchen, grab your plastic wrap, wrap this right around the tree and it will protect it while it's in storage.
For full step-by-step instructions, see this plastic-wrap Christmas tree tutorial.
Then the next year when you go to pull it out, just grab a pair of scissors and you can just trim it up like this to get it off.
For an alternative, discover how to make your own DIY Christmas tree storage bag.
2. How to store Christmas lights
There's nothing worse than having to deal with a jumble of Christmas lights when you go to pull out your decor at the beginning of the season.
Before I pack it away, I like to put it into my small delivery boxes. I save these smaller boxes because I like to do mine one set at a time. I'm going to cut off this flap right here and leave the rest of the box intact. You want to cut about an inch or so off the end, too.
Then I'm going to take my lights and start wrapping them around this piece of cardboard. Keep going around and around until they're all twisted in here. When I get to the end, I'm just going to loop my cord over.
I'm going to take the whole set and set it right inside the box. This is a great way too if you've got any extra little bulbs that come with your set, you can pop those in this box as well. I can still close up my other flaps and keep this all intact as one light set.
3. How to store Christmas beads
For small beads and garlands like this, I like to keep them wrapped up so that they don't get tangled. I just grab an old toilet paper tube, smush it in half, and then start wrapping my small beads and garlands around the toilet paper tube.
Once I have it all wrapped around, I just take a sandwich bag and pop it inside. Then I can put all of these clear bags into a storage container and I love that I can see exactly what's inside and my beads don't get tangled.
4. How to store breakable Christmas ornaments
My next couple of tricks are for storing your breakable Christmas ornaments, the ones that you really are special to and you want to keep aside.
So my first trick is to save my empty egg cartons because these are perfect for storing those breakable ornaments, especially the round ones. They fit in perfectly into those little compartments. Then you can close the carton up and stack them.
See this Christmas ornament storage hack for more ideas.
My other tip for breakable ornaments is to use your Christmas towels. So once you're done with these and you're ready to put them away, they are great for wrapping up your breakable ornaments.
I take some of my breakables, just lay them in my towel and then I can wrap them up. No need to search out extra tissue paper, you can wrap them up like this.
Once I have them all wrapped up, I just take my leftover Christmas tins or the ones I'm not going to use until next year and slip them right inside.
5. How to store Christmas wreaths
When you go to remove your wreaths at the end of the season, I love to put mine in recycle bags. These bags are a little bit smaller than trash bags and they're less opaque so you can actually see through them.
Just slip your wreath right inside the recycling bag. This will keep the dust and the debris off of it during the off-season and they still allow you to see what's inside.
How to store Christmas garlands
Similarly, Christmas garlands can be a pain to store properly. Here's how to store Christmas garlands using plastic drop cloths and hooks.
6. How to store Christmas pillows
We all love switching up the pillows during different holidays and my next storage hack is to use pillow covers instead of purchasing full pillows.
If you purchase or make your own pillow covers, then at the end of the season, all you have to worry about storing is this small pillow cover that you can pop right into your linen closet or with your holiday decor.
7. How to store Christmas linens
My last holiday storage hack for you is to do with your beautiful linens that we all use at Christmas time. After you have used your linens and washed them and you're ready to put them away, I like to take them and roll them.
By rolling them, you're going to get fewer creases for next year when you pull them out so you don't have as much ironing and that to do to get ready.
Then I like to put them in these nice clear containers so I can see exactly what's in there.
How to Repurpose Your Christmas Tree Collar as Storage
On the other hand, you can also use your Christmas decor as storage! This project from Georgia N @militarywife_farmhouse_life ingeniously repurposes a Christmas tree collar as year-round storage by transforming it into a functional and stylish storage basket.
By layering different items inside the wicker tree collar, it becomes a chic storage spot for Christmas decor, linens, pillows, and more.
The best ways to store Christmas decorations
I hope these tips and tricks will make storing your holiday decor a little easier this year and keep you a little more organized.
Do you have any Christmas decor storage tips? Share them in the comments below.
Comments
Join the conversation
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I use Diaper Genie refills to cover and store my icicle lights. I just tie the bag to one end plug, pull the circular opening over the entire length of the string of lights, then tie off the other end to the plug. Then I have a tangle free package of icicle lights that can easily lay in a storage box and are ready for the next year, tangle-free! I use the large round electrical extension cord wheel-like winders for my C-7 stings of lights for outdoors.
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These are lots of great ideas! If the tree isn't attic bound? I just use a shower curtain liner. Set the tree in the center. Pull the curtain up & around it. Gather @ top. Use large cloth covered band, to tie easily. This is easy peasey . Great for flocked trees. No sew. Get thick liner. 👍😉
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