Handy Tips for Storing Christmas Decorations

If you’re anything like the rest of us, Christmas decorations can be both pain and pleasure.

Not only is there the magical mystery tour of the house to track down where you stowed everything last year, but there’s also the task of packing it all away again when New Year rolls around.

We’ve got some cracking tips to help you get Christmas decorations sorted once and for all.

Baubles

Christmas tree baubles are delicate things, and if you’re the proud owner of a few vintage items you’ll definitely want to protect them.

It’s a great idea to make your own bespoke storage containers, and all it takes is a large plastic tub and some cardboard strips that you can cut to the desired length and height to hold your baubles separate from each other.

If you don’t want the chore of cutting cardboard strips, an even easier solution is to stand disposable plastic drinks cups in your storage tub to hold individual baubles.

You can create additional layers with sheets of cardboard, filling the tub up to the lid so everything is held in place when the lid is on.

Another idea is to use egg boxes for small baubles or moulded fruit trays for larger ones.

Lights

Tangled lights can test the patience of any saint. You can make the job of dressing the tree much quicker and easier if you wrap them around a rectangle of corrugated cardboard before putting them into storage.

Start wrapping from the plug end so you can hold the heavy plug in place with the rest of the light string, but make sure the plug is accessible so you can quickly test them before going to the trouble of unwrapping them.

Wreaths

Storing wreaths can present some problems because they need protection from crushing and also because they are so good at gathering dust.

Hanging them on wall brackets is an excellent storage solution, and brackets are quite easy to fix in any location.

Protect them from dust using plastic dry cleaner bags, or pop them individually in bin bags with handles then loop the handles over the brackets.

Garlands or Bunting

Tangled garlands or bunting are nearly as bad as tangled lights, but happily, they are a little easier to keep straight than lights.

Zip up food bags are ideal containers. Put each garland or bunting string into its own bag to keep it clean and separate from the others.

Soft garlands such as those made from fabric or tinsel stack easily into plastic storage tubs, and they could even be used inbetween baubles to offer a little extra protection.

Beaded garlands may take up a little extra space and not have cushioning properties. One way of storing these is to feed them into plastic drinks bottles. They stand neatly side-by-side and you can quickly see which ones you need for each decorating phase.

Christmas Trees

If you have an artificial tree each year, keeping it in good condition can be a challenge.

Repackaging the tree into its original box is difficult so investing in a Christmas tree bag will help it to keep its shape, and also make sure all of the stands or feet don’t get lost.

An alternative to a bag is a large plastic tub. Depending on the size of your tree you may even have space for a few decorations as well as the tree itself.

Finding Storage Space

Correctly packaging decorations to keep them clean and safe is one thing, but finding space to store everything is something else.

Home solutions include commandeering space in the loft, clearing out a section of the cupboard or putting up shelves in the garage. An alternative solution that many people are finding is to rent a self storage unit.

You don’t need to rent more space than you need, and with this bespoke storage room you have the advantage of being able to install freestanding units or shelving to hold everything.

Decorating the house then taking everything down afterwards is very much easier when you know where everything is and it’s all packaged neatly, clean and tidy ready to go.

Do you have a decoration storage tip, I would love to hear it! 

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