Setting up the Christmas decorations is always fun. (OK, so maybe affixing lights to the house doesn't fill you with holiday cheer.) But taking everything down, packing it away, and finding a place to put it is enough to put the bah-humbug in anyone. To save your sanity when it comes to storage, try a few of these ideas:
First, plan your packing. Are you hurting for storage space? If so, eyeball all the decorations you have (tree ornaments and otherwise) to get a sense of how much you need to contend with -- and to make mental notes of sizes and shapes. Creative packing (rolling up knit stockings to stick into a box's nooks and crannies) will help you save space.
Pack to avoid breakage. You can use the boxes your ornaments came in, then pack those boxes away in a larger box. You can use divided boxes, such as those from wine stores, and use some padding between each ornament. Or, you can look for boxes specially designed to hold rows of ornaments. (Those may take up more space than necessary if you don't have much on your tree, or if you have tons of ornaments, many of which aren't breakable. Make sure you know how many you have and how many the box will hold.)
If you don't have original boxes or specially designed ornament boxes, wrap breakables in newspaper or tissue paper (using the stuff that lined all those gift boxes you received helps you recycle) and tuck them inside shoe boxes. Then pack the shoe boxes into a larger box. This method also lets you group your ornaments -- cherished ornaments, goofy ones, homemade ones, etc. -- making it easier to decorate next year.
(Try office supply, computer, liquor and grocery stores for free, used boxes; or call moving companies or truck-rental places to buy really sturdy ones.)
Use the tools. The plastic spools or holders you can wrap your lights around really help keep them from getting tangled. If you don't want to buy them, use strips of cardboard (about 12 inches wide by 18 inches long -- whatever will fit in your boxes), make little cuts on each side about one inch apart, and wrap your lights around these, hooking the strand in those notches. Use zipper-locking plastic bags to hold the extra bulbs that go with each strand, and twist-tie or tape them to the strand of lights near the plug. Or, if your lights are interchangeable, dig amongst your presents for a small box that can hold all your extra bulbs and even your Christmas light tester if you have one. Do you use a multi-outlet extension post only at Christmas? Go ahead and pack it away with the outdoor lights.
For gift wrap, I like the tall, rectangular organizers -- the ones big enough to hold the supersize rolls. Often, the lid has a compartment for scissors, tape and gift tags. (An under-bed box works, too, but I prefer the organizers that stand up.) I use a separate plastic box for ribbon and bows. I fold up all the gift bags and tuck them inside the largest gift bag. I follow suit with tissue paper, tucking it inside the tissue paper bag, or using a gallon-size plastic bag, or even one of the gift bags. Since I often buy generic gift wrap (silver paper with no decorations, for instance) and can use it for birthday and other gifts, I don't pack my gift wrap away with the decorations. Instead, it's in the corner of a closet for easy access throughout the year.
Pack what you wouldn't expect. Remember those holiday-themed tablecloths, bathroom towels and platters? You won't be using them again until next December, so why not free some space in your kitchen and closets and pack them away with your decorations. If you only use the cookie decorator or the red serving dish at Christmas, pack that away, too.
Pack in reverse order. Segregate your decorations by use: tree ornaments, outdoor lights, indoor lights, indoor decorations, outdoor decorations. Put those extension outlets on the top of the box so you can test lights before you hang them up. Put your tree skirt on the top of a box of ornaments or indoor decorations since you'll put that down first. (We also have a pad under our tree to avoid water damage, and that goes with the tree skirt on top, since it must go under the tree stand.) If you put tinsel garlands on before ornaments, make sure you haven't buried the garlands at the bottom of the box.
Label the boxes. Knowing what's inside a box makes life so much easier and makes decorating that much faster. "Christmas Decorations" is not enough. Be specific (indoor decorations) and, if you're so inclined, follow that description with a list of the things in that box (stocking holders, manger scene, centerpiece, etc.).
Find a home for the boxes. If you're keeping them in a garage or basement, consider the possibility of water damage -- either use plastic bins for storage or keep the boxes off the floor. We slip our boxes into the nook underneath the stairs in our basement. It's an awkward space to access, but we only deal with it once a year. If you've labeled your boxes well, you'll know not to toss the heavy tree stand on top of a box of fragile ornaments. Still, you'll want to keep the "first" boxes in front or on top -- the tree stand and skirt, the outdoor lights -- whatever you always set up first. No need to get out all the boxes at once if you don't decorate all at once.
Shelving units make storage easier -- assuming your boxes fit on the shelves. Measure your boxes before you buy the shelves (or vice versa). You can purchase hanging shelves for the rafters in your garage, creating instant overhead space for decorations. (Be sure to heed weight limitations.)
It takes time to pack things properly, but you'll be so glad you did it when you pull out your decorations next year, and it'll make packing things up next year a million times easier. Happy holidays, everyone!
Here are only a few of the places you can see the types of storage mentioned in this article:
