After the holiday festivities wrap up, it’s time to start decluttering! While decluttering before the holidays is critical, doing so again afterward is just as important and can help you cultivate happiness in the new year. Whether you’re boxing up and storing decorations, preserving keepsakes, or making donations, here are some ways to declutter after the holidays!
Put Away Holiday Decor
Whether it’s string lights, figurines, or Christmas table centerpieces, there are plenty of great ways to store holiday decorations that will keep your home free of clutter. Before you start stashing items away, however, think about decluttering Christmas decorations you no longer need or want—and set those aside to donate or sell. Once you’ve figured out what items you want to keep, organize them into seasonal storage bins—and label them for a hassle-free setup next year. Consider reusing everyday items like cups or cartons for small ornaments, cardboard tubes for wires, or coffee canisters for holiday string lights for an easy and cost-effective way to organize holiday decorations. Use bubble wrap to pack delicate Christmas decorations, and vacuum-seal linens in plastic bags. Recycle used wrapping paper after removing non-paper additives.
Stash Your Christmas Tree
One of the first steps to decluttering after Christmas is taking down your tree. After you’ve removed all ornaments and lights, clean your artificial Christmas tree with a dry cloth or duster. If you have the tree’s original packaging, you can simply disassemble the pieces and pack them back up for next year. Worried about preserving its shape? If you have the space in your home, consider investing in an upright tree storage bag to save time on future assembly. To prevent moisture damage, the best environment for storing plastic trees is a cool, dry, temperature-controlled location with low humidity. Live holiday trees must be disposed of properly, so be sure to look up Christmas tree drop-off or recycling programs near you, check your local waste management system for guidelines on curbside pickup, or break it down for composting or firewood.
Preserve Leftover Food
Fridges, freezers, and pantries are common problem areas for clutter throughout the year, but especially after stocking up for a holiday party—which often leaves you with leftover food or unused ingredients. Take time to go through these areas and decide what should be kept and what should be thrown out. Soft baked goods often have a short shelf life, so they should be plastic-wrapped and frozen to seal out air and preserve quality. Shelf-stable baked goods, such as hard bread, biscotti, or fruitcake, can last longer at room temperature but are still best kept frozen after a few weeks. Perishable meats like roast beef, chicken, or turkey can be vacuum-sealed and frozen for later use in soups and other dishes. According to food storage guidelines, refrigerated foods should be stored in airtight containers or sealed storage bags and checked regularly for freshness. If you have limited Christmas food storage space, consider donating unopened non-perishables to a local food bank, food pantry, or soup kitchen—or give extra food away to friends, family, or neighbors!
Organize Kitchen Supplies
Kitchens are a frequent spot for holiday get-togethers, so decluttering your kitchen can go a long way in making your home feel refreshed. Think about which holiday baking supplies you actually used this season, and be sure to only keep items you’ll use again in the future. For baking sheets, pie plates, and other flat supplies, storage dividers are a simple, space-saving solution. Use sliding drawer organizers to keep serving utensils and baking tools—like whisks, rolling pins, and cookie cutters—secure and orderly. To maximize kitchen space, try implementing hidden kitchen storage solutions like tiered shelves or double drawers to keep themed holiday tableware out of sight. Boxing, labeling, and storing away holiday baking supplies can also save valuable kitchen space, allowing you to cycle items out seasonally.
Reset Your Guest Room
If your guest room was used by holiday guests, make sure to clean it up for future visitors to keep your living space orderly. Start by clearing out unnecessary clutter and boxing up any off-season decor you may have missed initially. While many homeowners may end up using guest room closets and dressers as additional storage space, make sure to keep them tidy and leave enough space for future guests to store their items. Give tables and nightstands a thorough cleaning. Wash used sheets, replace old linens, and store seasonal bedding for next year. You can also add a few small, thoughtful touches to make the room more inviting with furniture or other gifts you’ve received from the holidays.
Donate Extra Gifts
Though it’s the thought that counts, it’s common to receive gifts you just can’t find a use for. In fact, around 17% of holiday sales can be expected to be returned after Christmas. When it comes to what to do with unwanted gifts that cause clutter, consider returning them to the appropriate retailer if possible, or see if any relatives or friends can make better use of them. Alternatively, unused gifts like socks, sweaters, backpacks, and more are perfect for supporting charities over the holidays! To help keep clutter in your home at bay, try to implement a one-in, one-out rule if you’ve received gifts you want to keep—donating or discarding an older, similar item can help you make room for the new gift.
Tuck Away Toys & Books
Extended families with lots of kids often end up with kids rooms that are overflowing with new toys and books after holiday gift-giving. To organize kids rooms and free up play space during your Christmas clean-up, try replacing older books and toys with newer ones they received to keep things fresh and exciting. Some of your children’s favorite old toys and holiday-themed books can be placed in airtight storage bins and kept on closet shelving or in an attic or basement to reduce clutter. When it comes to actually decluttering toys, make a game out of it to keep your kids involved and teach them healthy habits. Unwanted reading material can be donated to local nonprofits or libraries, while gently-used toys that your children have outgrown can be given to local secondhand stores, family friends, and more.
Separate Seasonal Clothing
Whether you dressed up for parties or were gifted clothing, you’re likely to have a lot of garments lying around after the holidays. Fortunately, the time after Christmas and before the New Year is a great time to organize your closet! Holiday-specific and seasonal clothing, including dresses, sweaters, jewelry, or pajamas, can be placed into storage until next year to maximize closet space for your everyday clothing. Gifted clothes that don’t fit but are in good condition can be given to friends and family or taken to nearby thrift stores and donation centers.
Box Up Outdoor Decor
If you love showing off your festive spirit with outdoor holiday decorations, part of after-holiday decluttering means finding a safe place to store them. Though some outdoor decor can withstand tough conditions, taking extra precautions will help preserve their longevity. Some seasonal decor storage best practices include placing wreaths in heavy-duty plastic, canvas, or polyester bags, and gently packing garland in bubble wrap to protect the needles. Pre-lit inflatables should be carefully folded up with their electrical cords wrapped and placed in an airtight, weatherproof box. Taking time to reorganize your storage room is another great holiday storage idea as it can help you create more space, refresh your home for the new year, and more easily find what you need next season. Still running out of space for all your items? Seasonal self storage is perfect for decluttering after the holidays—especially for large items that won’t fit in your attic or basement!
Sort Holiday Mail & Packaging
After a season of exchanging packages and Christmas cards, holiday mail and wrapping materials can start to pile up. One of the best Christmas storage ideas is to flatten out cardboard boxes and festive gift bags, then tuck them away in a dry attic or garage for next year’s gifting. Take any unwanted boxes and holiday cards to a local recycling facility, and utilize greeting card storage solutions—like storage bins, desktop file organizers, or photo albums—for sentimental mail you’d like to keep. If you’re up for creating a DIY holiday decoration, you can even opt to put cards on public display by stringing them together as a garland for next year!
Don’t Forget About Digital Decluttering
Cleaning up your digital space is an important but often ignored part of a post-holiday reset. To wrap up organizing after Christmas or other winter holidays, go through your camera roll and delete any duplicate or blurry pictures from your holiday celebrations. Transfer any photos you’d like to save to your desktop or an external hard drive, and consider printing out your favorites to organize them in an album or scrapbook. Email storage might also be reaching its limit after the holidays due to promotional mail, so take time to clear holiday messages out of your inbox—and unsubscribe from any retailers you don’t want mail from moving forward.
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