If you’ve ever opened up a box of Christmas decorations to find a hopeless tangle of lights and garlands, you know how important it is to store your decorations correctly this year so they’ll be in good condition for next year. But, if you aren’t in the habit of wrapping everything up neatly, it can be hard to develop a system that works. Here are a few tips to keep your decorations safe and organized in your storage unit.

How to Store Your Christmas Decorations

1. Wind Your Christmas Lights

The most frustrating Christmas decorations by far are the lights, which can easily tangle while in storage. You can counter this tendency by winding them around plastic spools; or, for the budget approach, wrap each strand around a large square of cardboard with a notch for each end of the cord.

2. Replace Broken Items

As you take down your decorations, make a note of everything that is damaged, broken, or missing. Right after Christmas is the best time to buy these items since they’ll be on sale. Buy the replacement items and put them straight into your storage unit with the rest of your decorations so they’ll be ready for next Christmas.

3. Pack Up Carefully

Fragile items like glass ornaments and figurines should be wrapped up before being stowed in a box. The original packaging is often the best choice, but if you don’t have it, you can recycle wrapping paper scraps into packing material. Pack your most delicate ornaments in small boxes to reduce weight, and don’t set anything on top of them.

4. Label Clearly

The last thing you want is to make multiple trips to your storage unit to hunt for boxes of decorations you missed the first time around. Label each box clearly and on multiple sides, and stack the boxes with the labels facing out. Make a note of how many boxes of Christmas decorations you have.

5. Keep It Together

Once you have your decorations boxed up, place them in the same area of your personal storage unit if possible. They should be placed in an out-of-the-way corner or on top of high shelves since you won’t need them again until December.

If you need an affordable self-storage unit to keep your decorations in, choose Arctic Storage at Midtown in Anchorage, AK. This family-owned and -operated storage facility has 30 years of experience and provides heated and air-conditioned units to keep your items safe. To start your convenient month-to-month contract, call (907) 563-3342 or get in touch online.