The 20 Best Hacks, Tips, and Products for Storing Christmas Decorations

Decorating for the holidays is one of the best — and worst — things about winter. While it’s nostalgic and exciting to break out all your favorite Christmas ornaments, ribbons, and wreaths, putting all your decor back in storage is the last thing you want to do on New Year’s Day. Not only is it sad to see the twinkly lights and sentimental ornaments go back into storage, but it’s also a hassle to store everything properly without it taking up space, becoming a big mess, or breaking something. 

The good news is, there are tons of products and DIY projects you can employ to make storing and organizing your holiday decorations a little bit easier. From ornaments and wreaths to gift wrap and candles, here are some storage ideas that can help you out this holiday season this year and beyond.

 Small, curved ornaments are a perfect fit for cardboard or styrofoam egg cartons. And while you’re on your third coffee run of the day, remember to stockpile the cup holders the barista sends you off with—sandwiched together, they’re perfect for storing bigger baubles.

 If you don’t want to DIY, There’s a wide range of stackable store-bought solutions, like this ornament storage box that’s only $11 on Amazon.

One Good Thing by Jillee has a super easy tutorial for ornament storage that uses just four things you likely already have on hand: a large plastic storage bin, plastic cups, cardboard, and a hot glue gun. Simply glue the cups to the cardboard (these layers can easily be stacked inside the bin) and fill the cups with your ornaments. If they need a little extra protection, add tissue paper or bubble wrap.

Delicate ornaments can be arranged in a single plastic bag and slowly vacuum-sealed with a product like FoodSaver. Then, you’ll want to layer each sealed bag between sheets of bubble wrap in a plastic tub or cardboard box for extra-safe storage.

Looking for an easy way to store your holiday wreaths that won’t result in them becoming misshapen over the next 11 months? Don’t toss the hanger and bag from your pre-holiday dry cleaning run just yet. You can bend the bottom of the wire hanger around your Christmas wreaths, then hang them up in a closet or garment rack to keep their shape. And you can even use the plastic dry cleaning garment bag to protect it from dust.

If you’d rather rely on store-bought options, you can buy a dedicated wreath storage bag for less than $15 on Amazon that comes with handles for easy carrying.

 For a sturdier option that will keep your wreaths safe and sound no matter what, you can get a plastic storage box that snaps together, like this one from Amazon.

Pro tip: You can use all three of the above methods for storing garland, too. Just wrap it up in a circle and tie it together to hang, or coil it inside the other storage solutions.

Sure, you could completely take apart your artificial tree and put it back in the box, but that can be a big challenge to take on. Instead, you can take a cue from this tutorial from Epbot and shrink wrap your tree. The benefits? It won’t take up much vertical space, you don’t have to take it apart, and you can leave the lights on it—that means next year, you can just cut open the shrink wrap and fluff the branches back into places, no more assembly and light stringing required.

If you’re looking for a storage solution that’s more heavy-duty (and has wheels!) Amazon has tree storage bags that can fit trees up to 9′ tall—you’ll have to disassemble it, but your tree will definitely be safe in there. 

String lights always seem to be the most challenging thing to store each year, because it’s not just about finding space for them—you need to make sure cords don’t get tangled and bulbs don’t get broken, too. But with a few household items, light storage can be easy and painless. Just cut a slit in the plastic lid of a washed coffee can and push the plug end of one of your strings of lights through. Wrap the rest of the lights around the outside of the can and—voila!—no more tangles.

If you have cardboard scraps lying around (and you probably will after opening gift boxes) you can use them to keep your lights tangle-free. A Real-Life Housewife shows you how in this tutorial, and you can see the beautifully organized result above. The best part is, you can then neatly stacked or layer them in a box or a storage bin for safe keeping. As an alternative, you can also wrap your lights around a coat hanger or a cardboard paper towel tube.

If you prefer something store-bought, try these Christmas light reels. You get this set of three separate reels, a hanger hook, and a storage bag for $30.

Gift-giving is a pleasure and wrapping them can be too when your supplies are stored in an accessible and aesthetic manner. For a DIY solution, you can use the dead space in a closet to hang a vertical IKEA VARIERA bag dispenser (just $3 each) and then fill it with your gift wrap rolls.

For quick and easy hanging storage you can keep in your closet, Rachel Hollis suggests lining up all your wrapping paper tubes inside a zip-up garment bag, as seen above.

If you’re looking for a hanging solution that covers all your gift wrapping needs, this Amazon pick has pockets for everything from bows and ribbons to gift bags, tape, and scissors.

 If you need something to fit under the bed or be stashed away elsewhere instead, this totable organizer from The Container Store has tons of compartments, too, and is available for $20.

For a clever way to store ribbons that doubles as a dispensing system, check out this tutorial by Monica Wants It. All you need to complete the project is some Sterlite containers, wooden dowels, clothespins and the ribbons you want to organize.

To protect fabric decorations, like stockings, table cloths, throw pillows and tree skirts, your best bet is probably to use plastic vacuum-sealable bags. They’ll stay safe from bugs, dust, and dirt while fluffing right back up to original condition when you need them next. If you don’t already have vacuum-seal storage bags around your home (they’re also great for storing seasonal clothes and for moving) you can get them on Amazon.

If you put strings of beads on your tree or use them for other decor, Tip Junkie suggests using an empty water bottle to keep them in check until next year. Each bottle will hold up to two strands, and you can easily pour them back out when you need them again.

Make candle storage easy by simply wrapping up pairs of long taper candles in tissue paper, and slip them into cardboard paper towel tubes to keep them safe and organized. Make sure you store all your candles in a place where they won’t be exposed to too much heat to prevent melting.