Organize your holiday decorations

Keeping everything organized after the holiday season will ensure that next year’s holidays are merry as ever. Here are some simple ideas for storing holiday decorations.

First, invest in some large storage containers color-coded by holiday. Use red and green for Christmas, etc. Label the containers with the items that they have inside.

Lights

• Buy plastic-light holders or use a cupboard to keep the strings neatly organized.
• Put special-purpose lights in Ziploc storage bags and mark their use on the bags.
• Tape a bag of extra light bulbs to the end of strings of lights.
• Put all the lights in a box with the extension cords.

Wreaths

• Remove wired or metal decoration and store in a plastic bag.
• Place wreaths in a large plastic box or a trash bag together with the hangers.
• Hang the wreaths and decoration on the wall if they are in a bag.

Garlands

• Store bulky garlands in a large plastic storage box. You can push a lot since there is nothing to break.
• Put a tag on each garland to tell where it will go next year.

Ornaments

• Store ornaments in plastic boxes so you can see what’s inside.
• Label special ones with a permanent marker.
• Use a divided storage box for glass ornaments.
• Use plenty of tissue or bubble wrap to cushion layers. This is good for long, tall or unusual-shaped decorations. Don’t forget to mark or label the box.

Tree

• Keep the floor-protecting plastic with the tree stand and tree skirt.

Tablecloth and fabric decorations

• Don’t wrap them in plastic. This can trap moisture and cause mold and mildew that will ruin them.
• Put them in a canvas box or a canvas bag.

It may seem that there a lot of things to keep in mind, but if you’ll follow these suggestions for storing your holiday decorations, the job of packing and unpacking will be easier from year to year.