The holiday season is upon us and it’s time to get organized! Here are 12-holiday organization tips to help you stay sane this Christmas season.
12-Holiday Organization Tips
Stay calm, organized, and Grinch-free this Christmas with these helpful holiday organization hacks.
1. Make a List and Check it Twice (AKA Have a Plan)
Out of all of the holiday organization tips, this one is the most important of all. Because, without a plan, you are planning to fail. Which is why I created this FREE 16-page Printable Holiday Planner. It will help you keep track of all of your important to-do’s this holiday season.
Things like:
- Holiday Meal Planning
- Grocery Shopping
- Gift Buying
- Budgeting for the Holidays
- Planning Parties and Events
And more!
2. Set Up a Gift Wrap and Supplies Sation
There’s nothing more frustrating than hitting ‘play’ on your favorite holiday playlist, sitting down with a hot cup of tea eager to wrap that pile of Christmas gifts while your little ones are fast asleep…only to realize, you’re out of tape, or your husband used your only pair of scissors to cut open a tube of caulk and left the dried caulk on the blades (true story), or you’ve misplaced all of the bows, or…you get the picture.
Which is why it pays to set up a gift-wrapping station in your home as soon as the holiday season is underway. This area should have a clear surface for wrapping presents and at the minimum contain:
- Wrapping Paper
- Bows
- Tape
- Scissors
- Ribbons
- Gift Tags
- Gift Bags
- Packing Supplies
Note: Your gift wrapping station doesn’t have to take up a lot of space. In fact, you can get one of these and slide it under your bed. Or, one of these and hang it on the back of a closet door.
3. Declutter Your Ornaments and Decor On The Go
As you unpack your holiday decorations, weed out any that are broken, ugly, or that typically go unused. This will make packing up at the end of the season a bit easier. Also, make a list of items you need to purchase/areas that need organization as you go. For example, you may notice that your previous method of ‘organizing’ ornaments was to just toss them in a Rubbermaid container and call it good.
When unpacking them, you discover many of them wound up scratched or broken. Consequently, you make a note to come up with a better way to store those precious ornaments so you won’t repeat your mistake next year.
If you happen to purchase a whole new set of holiday dishes, a new Christmas tree, etc. Don’t wait until after the holidays to donate your old one. Make someone’s Christmas a little brighter this year by donating unwanted holiday items to a local women’s shelter, Salvation Army (where they will pass it on to a needy family), or a children’s home.
When decorating, if you like to keep the same layout year after year, but your decor has gotten so out of hand you can’t remember what goes where; take a photo of the decorated space and store it with your decorations. Similarly, you can store each room’s decor in its own container and label it accordingly.
Clear plastic containers work best for storing holiday ornaments and decor. Group according to type and label the container for quick access next year. They even come with multi-colored lids so you can assign one color per holiday.
It’s also a good idea to attach a label containing the contents of each container to the outside of the box. Doing this will keep you from having to dig through each and every bin just to find the ornament hooks. Which, for some unknown reason, are always in the last bin you look in. Ask me how I know.
Related article: Best Christmas Ornament Storage Hacks, Tips & Tricks
4. Prepare Your Kitchen and Pantry
A well-organized kitchen and pantry is key to keeping your sanity during the holiday season. Between Christmas cookie exchanges, school events, holiday parties, potlucks, and extra guests, our kitchens get quite a workout the last few months of the year!
To start with, you’ll want to purge any outdated, unwanted food items from your fridge, pantry, and freezer, and make an effort to use up any foods which are approaching their expiration date.
It helps to keep a master list of ingredients for your favorite holiday dishes. Additionally, be sure to keep your pantry well-equipped with frequently used items. You may also want to stock up on cookies, crackers, tea, coffee, etc. for guests who pop in to say ‘hello’.
BTW: Planning Simplified for 2023 contains pantry/fridge inventory printables!
Next, you’ll need to gather up all of your holiday baking supplies, Christmas china, punch bowls, crockpots…basically anything you tend to use a lot during the holiday months. Be sure to group like items together and store everything keeping ease of access in mind {You may need to move some other less-important items in order to make space}.
Finally, scrub your kitchen from top to bottom, making sure the countertops and other flat surfaces are clear.
Trust me on this, if you only have time/energy to organize one room in your home before the holidays…do the kitchen first.
Want to clean, declutter, and organize your entire kitchen in one weekend or less? Check out this post (with free printable checklists) and get going!
Related article: 7 Ways To Organize Your Kitchen For Christmas
5. Organize Your Receipts and Papers
Thankfully, emerging technology has made it so we don’t have to be buried in paper clutter during the holiday season. Most retailers will email you a receipt of your purchases (including gift receipts), and some will even store your purchases electronically via apps. Similarly, many products no longer come with a paper manual anymore, and will instead direct you to the online version.
If, however, you’re old school and prefer to hold on to receipts and product manuals, that’s okay too. Just make sure you have a designated spot to keep them in like an envelope in your purse or a file box.
When it comes to invitations, flyers, and reminders of important events, you can keep paper clutter to a minimum by doing three simple things:
- Set up an inbox (i.e. file tray). Put any and all papers you receive into the inbox as soon as you walk through the door.
- Go through your inbox every couple of days and take action. Record important events (in your planner, calendar, or phone), respond to cards and letters, mail payments, etc.
- Throw away or shred paper waste as soon as humanly possible.
Related article: Organizing Paperwork: Best Ways To Organize Paper Clutter
6. Declutter & Organize Your Clothing
Now is the perfect time to declutter and reassess your (and your kid’s) wardrobe. If you aren’t feeling motivated to start, remember that somewhere, another person is in need of a warm winter coat.
Toss any clothing with stains or holes. Donate clothes in good/wearable condition. Make a list of needed items such as socks and underwear. Heck, put them on your Christmas list! Instead of asking relatives for toys for your kids, ask for something useful like winter hats and gloves.
Don’t know where to begin? I’ve written a complete (free) guide that will show you how to declutter and organize your closets and drawers. Get it here!
7. Update Your Address Book
As the Christmas cards and letters start rolling in, be sure to update your contacts and address book.
Check out this post for some useful ideas for storing and repurposing old greeting cards.
8. Prepare For Guests
Santa Claus has the right idea: Visit people once a year. ~Victor Borge
Make your guests feel welcome (but not too welcome that they overstay their welcome) by planning ahead for their arrival. Clean and stock the guest bedroom, bathroom, and linen closet with the comforts of home. Think fluffy towels, crisp, clean sheets, toothpaste, mouthwash, candles, and bath bombs.
Additionally, consider any dietary restrictions your guests may have and stock your pantry accordingly.
Related article: Free Quick Clean Checklist: Get Your Home Clean In 20 Minutes Or Less
9. Start Early To Prepare Gifts and Packages
Giving budget-friendly, homemade gifts is a great way to add a personal touch while saving your hard-earned money. The trick is to plan ahead and keep the gifts as simple as possible. For example, yummy homemade treats, photo books, and DIY gift baskets are good places to start.
As a minimalist, I prefer to give consumable gifts and experience-related gifts because neither adds clutter to the recipient. Also, it makes Christmas shopping a breeze! Check out this list of gift ideas for kids that aren’t toys for some inspiration.
Getting holiday packages delivered on time can be a nightmare, and standing in line for hours at the post office because you waited until the last minute is no fun either. This is why it’s important to know the postal service cutoff dates for expecting packages to arrive on time. Once you know the deadlines (print them up if necessary), schedule time in advance so you can be sure to get them to the shipping center with time to spare.
Tip: Make sure you include shipping supplies (boxes, packing tape, brown wrapping paper) in your gift-wrapping station!
10. Set Limits
Out of all of the holiday organization tips, if you want to stay sane this Christmas, this one is mandatory.
If you want to avoid post-Christmas burnout, you need to set limits…on yourself AND your wallet. After all, you can only do so much, go to so many places, and spend so much money before you run out of patience, energy, and funds.
Try not to push yourself and take time to de-stress when possible. Take a walk, listen to your favorite Christmas music while sipping hot cocoa, grab your favorite person (or pet) and snuggle up for a Christmas movie marathon.
I promise, if you set limits and take time to take care of yourself, you’ll have a lot more ‘you’ left over for everyone else.
Related article: How To Say No – 21 Examples That Will Inspire you
11. Simplify, Simplify, Simplify
One of my favorite Christmas movies is, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. I make a point to watch it each and every year. Why? Because in the end, the Grinch discovers the fact that the true meaning of Christmas doesn’t come from a store. He took all of the Who’s decorations, fancy holiday food, and gifts…yet they celebrated anyway.
Another one of my favorite holiday movies is, “It’s A Wonderful Life”. A classic movie about a man who discovers what it’s like to lose everything just before Christmas…only to realize that family and friends are all he ever really needed to be happy.
Throughout the last 5 years or so, our family has been intentionally replacing consumption-fueled holiday craziness with people-centered activities and each year we continue to reap the benefits of a simple, meaningful holiday season.
Read more: How To Have A Simple Christmas This Year
12. Ask for Help
Growing up, my Grandmother assumed all of the holiday tasks. From cookie baking to present wrapping to organizing family get-togethers. The result? One very stressed-out, exhausted Grandma come Christmas day!
Even though I was merely a child, there are plenty of tasks I could have helped her out with if she would have allowed me to.
No woman is an island. It’s okay to ask for help. I’m willing to bet you have at least a couple of family members and friends who would jump at the chance to pitch in with wrapping presents, decorating the tree, and whipping up holiday treats…as long as you let them lick the spoons!
So, my challenge to you is to let them! Even if they don’t do things exactly as you like them, or the kitchen gets a little messier because of the extra hands, or the tree ends up looking more like a Charlie Brown tree than a Martha Stewart one.
There you have it. 12 super-helpful (I hope) holiday organization tips to help keep you from losing your mind this Christmas season!
READ MORE:
- The Ultimate Gift Guide To Help Conquer Clutter
- 10 Best Stocking Stuffer Ideas For Teens
- 101 Gift Ideas For Kids That Aren’t Toys
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