Putting up Christmas decorations is so much fun, but taking down Christmas decor is practically my worst nightmare. After all of the house guests and family celebrations, my desire to do anything (especially taking down decorations) is very limited. I think a lot of people are in the same boat as me, which is why I’ve devised 5 simple steps to make removing Christmas decorations a lot easier.
Step 1: Photograph Your Decorations
Before you touch anything, STOP. Take a moment to walk around your home and photograph every piece of Christmas decor. This way you not only have beautiful content for next year, but you will also have a great idea of where to put your Christmas decorations next year. If you miss this step, you will instantly regret it next year when you begin to decorate.
Of course, you don’t have to decorate the same year after year, but this does help make it easier. Even if you choose to mix things up, your photos will provide you a good base to start your decorating with.
Step 2: Gather All Of Your Decor
Instead of taking a tub or box and going section by section, try to gather all of your decorations in one central location. I love this because it eliminates the “I don’t know how you want it put away” excuses from your husband and kids and allows everyone to get involved in the takedown. It also gives you a good idea of how much you have and how to store it.
Make sure you find a good location to collect your decorations. It takes a very large flat surface to hold all of the Christmas spirit. That’s why we use our breakfast room table and kitchen island. The close proximity and large surface area give us a good birds-eye view of our Christmas goodies.
Step 3: Start Grouping
Now that you can see all of your decorations, start organizing them into various categories. We tend to go by like items, such as:
- Greenery (garlands, picks, wreaths)
- Signs
- Linens (napkins, table runners, stockings)
- Ornaments & Christmas tree decorations
- Miscellaneous decor (sculptures, snowmen, reindeer)
- Dishes & Bowls
We probably have a few more category designations, but these are at the top of my mind. We then try to store them in the same tubs to help when taking things back out. That way each tub is neatly labeled and there is no Christmas panic over where mom’s favorite reindeer is.
Step 4: Bag Your Wreaths & Trees
Box your garlands, greenery picks, and holiday stems, but do not waste space boxing your wreaths and tree. Seriously, they take up entirely too much precious space and there is a far superior way to store these Christmas greens. As far as your tree goes, we all know about Christmas tree bags. It’s an investment I highly recommend as it saves space and makes transporting it from storage to your desired location much easier.
Now, there are also similar bags made specifically for wreaths. While I think it’s great to splurge here if you’d like, I also have another cheap and practical storage solution. Grab a trash bag and cover your wreath. Then tie the bag together and hang it from a nail or a command strip in your storage room or closet.
The trash bag protects your wreath from dirt and bugs while getting it off the floor and out of the way. We especially love this in our attic because there is so much vertical space and not enough room on the ground.
Step 5: Get To Labeling
Labeling is probably the most important part of storing your decorations. It can take time and feel extremely over the top, but I promise it will make your life a breeze, especially if you keep all of your various seasonal decorations and other goodies stored in the same place. Proper labeling during takedown will save you hours of time throughout the year and will make it all so worth the extra time it takes.
You probably aren’t alone if you’re wondering what proper labeling is. As rookie storage people, we have previously made the mistake of writing directly on the box and briefly labeling it “Christmas” or “Ornaments.” Unfortunately, that limits your ability to rotate through boxes and crates which often leaves you searching and struggling to find the proper container.
Instead, we like to use either a labeler or handwritten stickers to label the top and at least one side of the box. This way we can swap out the label depending on what we first grab the box for. Of course, we sometimes refill the same boxes, but it definitely makes putting up and taking down Christmas much easier!