Tis the night before Christmas, while almost, and this designer is already thinking ahead to next year. Christmas is a crazy, festive, busy time of year; In fact I don’t know any of my friends who aren’t, although we all still have smiles on our faces, completely exhausted. So, let’s plan ahead to make next year run even smoother than this year, after all, a lack of sleep can cause wrinkles.
When you are out buying those last minute items, buy some clear plastic bins- lots of them and some wrapping paper storage containers. Personally I have three of these handy dandy containers-Christmas, birthdays, and miscellaneous (baby showers, wedding, get well). I have already seen a few advertisements for these containers on sale for fifty percent off this week – organized and saving money, a girls gotta love it when that happens. If you have the bins at home you can organize all of your Christmas decorations as you put them away. As you take down the tree, sort decorations and put away the lights, you can put them directly into the bins. Your out side decorations will also need their own bins. I love the clear plastic bins, once each bin as been labeled and stacked, they are then safely stored in the basement until next season. This makes getting ready for Christmas next year, a breeze.
Many stores offer coloured bins or at least bins with coloured lids, so consider buying bins with red or green lids to differentiate them from the other bins in the storage room. My Christmas decorations are stored by colour as I often change decorating themes year to year or have different colours and items in different sections of the home. The more organized you are, the more efficiently things happen at home.
I also stock up on new decorations, small stocking stuffers and hostess gifts as the retailers put them on sale at the end of the year. So ensure that you have enough bins for any new decorations, gifting accessories, cards and stocking gifts such as Christmas candles, special ornaments, etc that you may need to store. Inside my bins, I use various sized Ziploc bags to keep light strands from becoming tangled, cards sorted, scented oils and miscellaneous berries together.
The same can be said for New Years décor. If you have clearly labeled bins for each special season or day decorating and hosting a party is easy and you can take advantage of sale items. There is no savings in buying stuff on sale when you are unable to locate it when you need it.
I also have smaller bins that are filled with my ribbons, miscellaneous cards and gift wrapping supplies such as scissors, tape and tissue paper. The more organized you become the better life flows- so……even before we make a New Years resolution to get organized in 2007, get organized in 2006. Start your organizational makeover this year and kick off the New Year on the right foot.
Cheryll Gillespie is a nationally syndicated Design and Décor columnist
When you are out buying those last minute items, buy some clear plastic bins- lots of them and some wrapping paper storage containers. Personally I have three of these handy dandy containers-Christmas, birthdays, and miscellaneous (baby showers, wedding, get well). I have already seen a few advertisements for these containers on sale for fifty percent off this week – organized and saving money, a girls gotta love it when that happens. If you have the bins at home you can organize all of your Christmas decorations as you put them away. As you take down the tree, sort decorations and put away the lights, you can put them directly into the bins. Your out side decorations will also need their own bins. I love the clear plastic bins, once each bin as been labeled and stacked, they are then safely stored in the basement until next season. This makes getting ready for Christmas next year, a breeze.
Many stores offer coloured bins or at least bins with coloured lids, so consider buying bins with red or green lids to differentiate them from the other bins in the storage room. My Christmas decorations are stored by colour as I often change decorating themes year to year or have different colours and items in different sections of the home. The more organized you are, the more efficiently things happen at home.
I also stock up on new decorations, small stocking stuffers and hostess gifts as the retailers put them on sale at the end of the year. So ensure that you have enough bins for any new decorations, gifting accessories, cards and stocking gifts such as Christmas candles, special ornaments, etc that you may need to store. Inside my bins, I use various sized Ziploc bags to keep light strands from becoming tangled, cards sorted, scented oils and miscellaneous berries together.
The same can be said for New Years décor. If you have clearly labeled bins for each special season or day decorating and hosting a party is easy and you can take advantage of sale items. There is no savings in buying stuff on sale when you are unable to locate it when you need it.
I also have smaller bins that are filled with my ribbons, miscellaneous cards and gift wrapping supplies such as scissors, tape and tissue paper. The more organized you become the better life flows- so……even before we make a New Years resolution to get organized in 2007, get organized in 2006. Start your organizational makeover this year and kick off the New Year on the right foot.
Cheryll Gillespie is a nationally syndicated Design and Décor columnist
