Key points
- Give each kind of decoration its own box: wreaths in a wreath container, lights on cord wraps, ornaments and linens in totes.
- Look over every light set before it goes in the box, and throw out any strand with broken sockets or frayed, pinched or bare wires.
- Label the end of each box that faces out, with the room, the contents and the order you unpack them.
- Keep the box with the lights closest to the door, because the lights go on the tree before anything else.
Sort the season before you pack it
Packing goes faster when the decorations are sorted on the floor first. Make one pile per kind: wreaths and garland, light strings, ornaments, linens and stockings, then gift wrap and ribbon. Each pile has a different shape, and that shape decides the box. Round things need a frame that holds them, cords need something to wind around, and breakables need a small box where nothing heavy sits on top.
Our holiday storage shelf is built around those piles. Red lids and red trim mark every box as seasonal, so a December tote never gets mixed up with the camping gear on the same garage rack. Measure the shelf or the closet floor where the boxes will live, and compare it with the outside sizes before you order.
| Box | Holds | Outside size |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Inch Wreath Storage Container | Wreaths up to 24 inches across | 27 x 24.5 x 7 in |
| Holiday Light Organizer | Light strings on 8 cord wraps, set of 2 boxes | 17.8 x 15 x 11 in with the lid on |
| Holiday 31 Qt Storage Tote | 31 qt (7.75 gal), pack of 4 | Not listed |
| Holiday 41 Qt Storage Tote | 41 qt (10.25 gal), flat for under a bed | 34.38 x 15.5 x 6 in |
| Holiday 60 Qt Underbed Bin | 60 qt (15 gal), on wheels, set of 2 | 40 x 20 x 6.12 in |
| Gift Wrap Organizer | Up to 20 rolls of 30-inch paper, set of 2 | 17.13 x 9.63 x 32 in each |
Wreaths: a box that keeps them round
A faux wreath pressed into a cardboard box comes out flat on one side, and fluffing never brings the shape all the way back. Our 24-inch wreath container gives it a shaped home instead. It takes wreaths up to 24 inches across and measures about 27 by 24.5 by 7 inches outside.
Measure the wreath before you buy, from branch tip to branch tip at the widest point, not just the ring inside. Then lay it in the base face up, set the clear lid on and close the latches on all four sides. Through the lid you see which wreath is inside, so the front door one and the mantel one stay apart.
A handle on the container lets you carry it with one hand down the stairs. In the garage it can hang on a wall hook, stand on its edge or stack flat on a shelf, and garland fits in it as well as wreaths. Once the decorations are up in December, the empty containers nest and take little room.
Light strings: look before they go in the box
Lights are the one decoration that can start a fire if a damaged set goes back on the tree. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advises checking each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires and loose connections, and throwing out damaged sets. The U.S. Fire Administration says to inspect holiday lights each year before you put them up and to throw away strands with frayed or pinched wires.
Those warnings are about the day the lights go up. We suggest a second look on the day they come down, while the strand is already stretched out in your hands. Run each one through your fingers from plug to plug, and set aside anything that fails one of these points.
- Sockets: none broken or cracked along the strand.
- Wires: nothing frayed, pinched or bare, including the stretch near each plug.
- Connections: plugs and joins that hold firm instead of wobbling loose.
- Outdoor sets: a label showing the lights are certified for outdoor use, which the CPSC tells you to look for.
- New sets: the CPSC advises using only lights tested for safety by a nationally recognized testing laboratory.
Wind every strand on its own wrap
A strand that fails goes in the trash, not into the box with a note to fix it later. Citing the National Fire Protection Association, the U.S. Fire Administration says almost one third of home Christmas tree fires are caused by electrical problems.
Good strands then go on cord wraps. Our holiday light organizer comes as a set of two red boxes with 8 green wraps in all, four per box, and room left over for extra strands. Wind one strand per wrap, set it in the box and close the clear hinged lid with its front latch. Next year each strand lifts out by its grab handle and unwinds straight onto the tree instead of arriving as a knot.
Ornaments, stockings and the tree topper
Ornaments break when they share a box with something heavy. Pack them in smaller loads, one job per box: the tree topper and its spare bulbs in one tote, the stocking holders and stockings in another, glass balls wrapped in tissue in a third. A 31-quart holiday tote is sized for that kind of job, and it comes four to a pack.
The latching handles hold the lid on, and you carry the tote by those same handles, so a box of ornaments comes down the attic ladder in one piece. Closed totes stack. Put the heavier sets on the bottom and the glass on top, where nothing presses on it.
Hooks, ornament caps and loose bulbs deserve a lidded box of their own. The CPSC advises keeping trimmings with small removable parts out of the reach of small children, so a tote of hooks belongs on a high shelf, not on the playroom floor. Our guide to toy storage has more on small parts and children under three.
Gift wrap, ribbons and table linens
Rolls of wrapping paper lying in a pile crush at the ends and tear along the edges. The gift wrap organizer stands them up in two tall containers, each about 17.13 by 9.63 by 32 inches, sized together for up to 20 rolls of 30-inch paper. Clear walls let you pick the snowflake paper before you lift a lid.
Ribbons, bows, tags and tissue are flat and light, and they suit the 41-quart holiday tote. At about 34.38 by 15.5 by 6 inches, it lies low enough to slide under a bed, and its red snap lid keeps dust off the tissue between seasons. Table runners, the holiday tablecloth and the sweaters you wear only in December go in the same flat shape.
Labels you can read from the doorway
Clear walls and red lids tell you a box is seasonal. What they leave out is the room it belongs to and whether the lights inside passed their look. A label covers both, as long as it sits where you will see it.
Write labels on the short end that faces out when the box is on a shelf, and on the lid when it lives under a bed. Keep each one short enough to read from the doorway:
- The room the decorations go to, such as front porch or dining room.
- What is inside, in three or four words.
- For lights, how many strands, indoor or outdoor, and the date you inspected them.
- A number for the unpacking order, starting with 1.
Where the boxes live until next season
Numbering pays off on the first weekend of December. Box 1 holds the lights, because they go on the tree before the ornaments, and the rest come out in order. Keep box 1 nearest the closet door or at the front of the garage rack. The gift wrap can sit at the back, since you reach for it later in the month.
Start with the space under the beds. Our underbed storage shelf includes the holiday 60-quart underbed bin, which rolls on wheels and measures about 40 by 20 by 6.12 inches. It comes out on the first pull even when it holds garland and table linens, and at 6.12 inches tall it clears most bed frames. Its red lid closes with green latches, and the clear base shows the decorations without opening it.
A hall closet shelf, a garage rack or the attic takes the rest. Stand the wreath container on its edge or hang it on a hook so it never ends up at the bottom of a stack. To turn the quarts and gallons on a label into a shelf plan, read our guide to storage bin sizes.
Every bin named here is part of the HOMZ storage line.
