Now that the glitter dust of the holidays has settled, it is time to wrap up our holiday decor. As much as I love the house all decorated, theĀ luster of the festive decor pales in comparison to getting precious real estate back. It really is time to move that side table back to its rightful place. I love you, pre-lit tree but you really know how to take up space!
In today’s post, I’d like to share with you 5 Tips on packing away holiday decor:
1) Donate/discard things you no longer L–O–V–E.
I didn’t write donate/discard things “no longer useful” for a reason. We can always use another ornament or holiday plate. But if you have “meh” feelings about something. You don’t love it. In fact, you never really even liked it much. Save yourself the storage space and just part with that item.
2) Store items together if they are displayed together.
I place our stockings in the same storage bin as the garland I use to decorate our fireplace. Rather than separate these items in their own bins, I simply lump them together. This system makes it so much easier to decorate the following season.
3) Stack fragile or decorative signs on top of soft, plush items.Ā
Eliminate the need for packing materials by utilizing stuffed animals, pillows, or other plush items as buffer. Place soft items in the bottom of bin and place fragile itemsĀ or decorative signs on top. If item is breakable, be sure to wrap it with tissue paper first.
4) Separate “accent” from “filler” ornaments in different storage bins.
I have been doing this for years now and I have to say this is one of the most effective ways to not only speed up time involved in decoratingĀ your tree (next season) but ensuring a more beau-tee-ful looking tree! Let me explain:
Accent ornaments are the ornaments you love the most. These are the ones that are most sentimental to you or ones that you wish to highlight on your tree. Accent ornaments are usually the more costly ornaments…the ones not in a box set.
Filler ornaments are ornaments that make up the majority of your ornaments. They are typically the round ornaments that you purchase in sets. Don’t let the name fool you, “filler” ornaments are just as important as “accent” ornaments. If you don’t have simple ornaments, your accent pieces will not stand out as much!
If you separate the 2 types of ornaments, you can decorate your tree by placing all your favorite “accent” ornaments first. After all the accent ornaments are on tree, you now can finish decorating by adding your “filler” ornaments. This ensures that your favorite ornaments are “front and center” in the best spots on tree. Make sense? š
5) Pack away holiday cards in an organized way.
In a recent post (link here), I recommended my 3 favorite ways to store holiday cards. Well, here’s a picture of how I’m storing the lovely photocards I received:
Simply, punch a hole in top corner of cards and thread a ribbon into each card. This keeps all the cards together and makes it so easy to thumb through. š
I’m leaving this stack of cards on my coffee table for a few more weeks until I store them away in a photo box.
Did you find any of these tips useful?Ā PIN/Save post for future reference:
I hope you’ve enjoyed this past holiday season. Stay tuned for a post later this week on our holiday recap. It will be picture heavy. No surprise there. š Thanks for reading! Xoxo, Tee
Packing up Christmas is my least favorite thing in the world!!!
PS I came across your blog at the Blog Hobnob link up and love, love, love the layout of your blog! So great!
-Lacey from DDoL (dailydoseoflacey.blogspot.com)
Hi Lacey! Thanks for the kind words & for stopping by! Look forward to checking out your blog š
Thankfully, we didn’t go all out with the decorations so there’s was minimal stuff to put away. It can get challenging.
I concur!! love the card idea! Going to start doing that…….all ideas were fab…..thanks Tee š
Thanks so much for your feedback, Vanessa š
I love these ideas! It will make it easier to unpack and redecorate this way!
I’d love it if you’d come link up with me and my 4 blogging friends at Talented Tuesday Link Party on my blog!
Thanks, Kristina! I will definitely check out your link party.
I love these ideas! I don’t have much stuff because we just don’t have the room to store anything extra right now, but if we ever get a bigger place I am so going to do this!
Those are really great tips. I’m so happy my decorations have all been put away!
Great ideas! I need to incorporate the idea of packing things together that are displayed together! What a time saver! Thanks for sharing your tips.
I love your idea with the cards! Very clever to make a little book. I never know what to do with mine yet don’t want to throw them away!
We Have our tree in one box and all the decorations in another. It seems to make it easier than before!
I need to share this with my mom. I think she about has a heart attack each year when it’s time to put the decorations away. Such a good idea to store things that go out together together! But… it’s always sad to put the decorations back in their boxes…
What great tips. I like the one about storing items together if you display them the same. Saves lots of time later.
Ooh! Loving these tips! I’ve shared your post on my social media channels, I think a lot of other people would like this post, too! I’m still guilty of having my decorations up! >_<
You mean my current method of throwing it all into a cardboard box willy-nilly isn’t a valid packing technique?!?
I need to start using these tips. I normally ‘donate’ my tired decorations to my older kids. I am so bad about organizing Christmas.
Fabulous tips! My holidays items are always such a mess.
These are fantastic tips! I’m in college so I’m still living at home during the holidays – but I will pass these on to my mom for next Christmas!
These are such great tips, Rarely do we consider the packing away aspect of Christmas!
Great tips! I just packed mine away but I have some ideas to do it a little differently next year.
I like your tips way better than the way I do it, which is just stuffing it all in the box it came out of.
Oh man I wish I would have seen this last week! Great ideas. I pinned so I can find it next year.
Thanks, Miranda! Before we know it, we’ll be putting things back up and “packing everything back” again. Thanks for pinning š
I love your idea for holiday cards. I never know what to do with them and I always feel guilty tossing them.
Thanks for your feedback. Grouping the cards together like that is my favorite way to store them after the holidays.