Organisation and Storage Tips for Holiday Decorations

Before the big day arrives, putting away holiday decorations may appear premature, but with some planning and preparation in advance, you’ll have no problem getting your house ready for next year. So if you’d like to accomplish holiday tasks more quickly and easily, keep reading for ten good tips!

1. Photograph the area where your decorations are displayed

Take pictures of your decorations before you take them down so that next year, you can use them as a reference. By following this plan, you’ll spend less time trying to remember where things go, and you’ll be more efficient when decorating.

2. Store the products in the correct containers

A container should not be so big you can’t lift it when full, or too small that you need 60 of them to store everything. It’s essential to use waterproof containers to prevent water damage, mould, and mildew from destroying your decorations, and stacking containers with lids is the best way to protect your ornaments. The big box stores like Canadian Tire and Rona have a great selection of the correct bins.

3. Store like items together

Store decorations according to the room they will be displayed in. The right bins, with the right decorations, can be easily and quickly placed in the right rooms in your home.

When storing a garland, wrap the garland over your arm (or the arm of someone else, depending on the garland’s length). This ensures it won’t get tangled when you take it down from the bannister, doorway, or mantel.

Wrap the garland neatly and place it inside a clear plastic container. You can store all the extra decorations you have with your garland in the center of the container, wrapped in tissue paper. Mark the top of the container with a piece of paper to indicate where you will place the garland next year, or add a label so you’ll remember it next year.

4. Label items

Labels let you know, in one glance, what decorations are in what bins. You might find it helpful to label the rooms where the bins go with one or two descriptive words (like family room tree on lower level or main floor living room decorations). Whatever works for you is the way to go. You should simply make sure the label is facing out when you put away the bins.

5. Make sure your lights are neatly stored

Taking down lights isn’t fun, but you have to get it done. You’ll be glad you spent a few extra minutes next holiday season to store your lights neatly, especially if you don’t have to take 45 minutes untangling them when you get them out again. Keeping the spool your lights came in is a great idea, and you can use it every year or buy a Holiday Light storage box from a big box store.

To ensure that your lights are not tangled, dump your large garbage bags full of tangled bulbs on the floor before storing them. Separate your lights according to size and length. Plug each strand in and test it. Let’s be honest with ourselves: If no one ever fixes the broken strands, we need to let them go.

The strands could also be stored in one-gallon plastic bags, with a note explaining the strand and possibly stating how many times it has already been used. In addition, you can store additional bulbs in the bags. Although there may be some tangling, it will be minimal since there is only one strand in the bag.

6. Keep your tree upright and decorated if you have the space

Most people do not have this luxury but if you do, make sure you first remove the ornaments from the tree before moving it up and down the stairs (as they could fall off) and cover it with an inexpensive mattress cover before storing it. It’s worth checking out if you have space as it will save you a lot of time.

7. Decide if you want to trash any decorations

Make sure decorations are in good condition and consider whether they have served you well before you pack them away. If they haven’t, don’t put them away to be dealt with again next year. Instead, dispose of or donate them.

8. Protect fragile ornaments

If you have delicate ornaments, use stacks of plastic cups in bins separated by layers of cardboard to keep them protected. If you have small children, try purchasing ornaments that are “unbreakable” and store them in plastic cases for easy recognition.
With this method, the ornaments remain together and are contained in larger containers. Shoe boxes, Tupperware, even plastic bags work well.

9. You don’t need to put everything away at once

Don’t let yourself be constrained by the expectation that it all needs to be done in one day. You decorated it every evening for a week, so you should take it down the same way. It’s such a simple fix. The difference will be huge. With less stress and a guarantee of less exhaustion, there’s no need to find a whole day to complete the task.

10. Use different colored bins for different occasions

Green or red containers can be used for Christmas decorations (usually on sale after the holiday), black for Halloween, blue for birthday decorations, and pink for Easter.
Even though they are all labelled, the colour coding allows you to go directly to the bins you are searching for.

Summary

By following these ten packing and organising tips this year, you will make it much easier to get all your holiday decorations out next year. You’ll thank yourself in 2022 when you’re decorating for the holidays!

When getting more organised, you may find it necessary to get rid of unwanted and unneeded junk. It can be difficult to make decisions about what to discard. With junk removal bins, you can dispose of trash all in one place. This will make next year’s decorating a lot easier and more fun when the holidays come.

For more tips on organising your holiday decorations, call Gorilla Bins at 877-700-2467 or contact us here.