How to Pack Away Christmas Decorations Ready for Your New Year Home Move

Are you moving home just after Christmas or in the New Year?

We know you may have only just put your decorations up, but if you are planning on moving home soon, it is a good idea to start thinking about how you will safely pack and transport your fragile Christmas decorations to your new home now.

You have probably given little consideration to packing your Christmas decorations properly before as they are put in the loft until next year. After all, it is not like they were going very far.

But if you are moving home you will definitely want to protect those decorations properly, not only are they fragile, but often they will have some sentimental value to you.

It is worth mentioning that if you know you are moving home just after Christmas that you save any wrapping paper or packaging from your presents, which you can then use as stuffing to prevent movement in any boxes you are packing. A great tip to save on packing material costs.

So let’s find out the best way to pack Christmas decorations when moving home.

How to Sort Out Your Christmas Decorations

Home removal costs can be expensive, and the best way to save money on your home move is to move fewer things.

Although your decorations may not weigh a lot, they are often delicate so will cost more money to pack and protect properly.

So to save time, and packing and transportation costs, dispose of any decorations that you no longer want, need, or are damaged.

Examine all your tree baubles for damage, often the loop for attaching thread to the bauble gets broken, so check these carefully.

Any that are showing signs of damage should be thrown out. It is best to wrap them in an old newspaper before throwing them into a bin to prevent anyone from getting cut.

If the cable on your fairy lights is showing signs of wear and tear, dispose of them.

Check around the plug or the transformer for worn or damaged wiring. If in any doubt throw them away.

Note that most organisations that you can donate unwanted items to will not take electrical items due to health and safety concerns.

Paper or foil-type decorations that have not previously been refolded properly will often be damaged beyond repair so these will need throwing away also.

So at the end of the clearing out process, you should be left with only good condition, safe decorations that you want to keep.

You may also like to read: The Epic Guide to Decluttering for a Home Move. Decluttering before you start packing is the one surefire way to make your home move easier and cheaper. In this guide, we offer some great tips on how to make the process so much easier.

A Super Easy Way to Pack Up Your Christmas Tree and Decorations

Artificial trees are great as they can be used year after year and do not drop needles which can be a hazard to pets and children. But what is the easiest way to pack an artificial Christmas tree when moving home?

Get yourself some super strong industrial shrink wrap, not domestic-type kitchen cling film as it will not work.

Tuck the plug, and transformer if there is one, into the body of the tree so that it is securely held and will not pierce the film or drop out of the bottom of the package.

You should remove the top ornament (your star or angel) and just put it where it can be safe within the bundle that you are going to create.

Then wrap the entire decorated tree in multiple layers of shrink wrap as tightly as you can.

You may need another pair of helping hands to keep the wrap super tight and the branches folded up tight against the body of the tree.

You want to make sure that it is tight enough that the decorations are securely held against the body of the tree but without damaging anything.

Then slide the whole thing into a box or encase it in a few layers of cardboard, securely sealed with tape and marked fragile.

NOTE: If you have some super sentimental baubles on the tree or the decorations are particularly fragile, you may want to remove them and wrap each separately to keep them totally safe.

Be sure to be careful that you do not trap any wiring from the tree lights which could damage them when folding up the branches of your artificial tree.

So, if you want to know how to wrap each item individually, and keep your other Christmas decorations safe, then read on.

You may also like to read: Plastic Wrap for Moving: How and Why it Will Make Your Move Easier. Industrial shrink wrap is used by all professional packers because it makes packing quicker and easier. In this guide, find out all the great uses for plastic wrap when moving home.

How to Pack a Christmas Tree For Moving Home

Ideally, you will have the original tree sleeve and box that they came in. So it is just a case of securing the branches in a tight bundle with a piece of string and putting the tree in the plastic sleeve, before sliding it back into the box and sealing the box.

This should be sufficient protection during your home move.

Note however that over time cardboard degrades and the original box may not be strong enough to withstand the home move.

If you no longer have the sleeve and box you can slide the tree into a thick refuse sack and bind it with packing tape. You may then need to make a carton big enough to fit the tree into.

You can split two boxes along the longest sidewall edge so that the box lays open flat.

Do this with however many boxes you need to encase the full height of the tree. Then just wrap the tree in the cardboard and seal the cardboard around the tree to protect it.

For smaller trees see if your local florist has some spare boxes that stems of long flowers come in, as they are the correct shape.

You may also like to read: How to Pack Fragile Items for Moving Home. From choosing the right packing materials to packing techniques, this guide is invaluable if you are planning on packing for your home move yourself.

How to Pack Strings of Lights to Prevent Tangles

To prevent your lights from becoming a tangled mess create a cradle for your lights out of a sheet of cardboard.

Cut notches in the top and bottom of the sheet of card then wrap the fairy lights around the cardboard, threading the cable into the notches which will keep the cable secure so that they do not tangle.

Alternatively, wrap the lights around your wreath.

Having secured the lights so that they are knot-free, wrap them in a few layers of bubble wrap ready to go into a box with the rest of your decorations.

If you are worried about the bulbs getting broken, remove each bulb.

Layer a coffee tin with bubble wrap and lay the bulbs in the tin, repeating a layer of bulbs, a layer of bubble wrap.

Fill any remaining space in the tin with bubble wrap so that there is no movement within the tin.

Then wrap the cable around the outside of the tin, and encase it in bubble wrap to protect the bulb holders.

At least double wrap the plug in bubble wrap or layers of paper so that it does to cause damage to other items in your decoration box.

Garlands of small baubles can be stored in used plastic bottles. Just thread them into the bottle then fill any space with crushed paper before screwing back on the cap.

You may also like to read: How to Make Moving Home Fun. The period after Christmas can leave you a bit downhearted, the feeling that all the excitement is over. But your upcoming home move can be fun too, just take a look at all the ways you can make each aspect of your home move enjoyable in this guide.

How to Pack Christmas Tree Baubles

Small baubles or ornaments can be placed inside egg cartons.

A layer of bubble wrap or paper will prevent any movement within the carton. This is then ready to place inside the cardboard box with your other decorations.

For larger baubles and ornaments get some paper coffee cups.

Line with paper or bubble wrap before placing the item into the cup. Fill the cup with another protective layer to stop any movement.

These can then be layered inside a padded box with a layer of cardboard between each layer.

Plastic tubs such as sandwich boxes can also be used if they are well padded.

You may also like to read: Alternative Packing Materials for Moving Home. In this guide, we look at the advantages of using plastic tote boxes for packing when moving home. We also look at how you can utilise things found around the home for packing to save on packing costs.

How to Pack Fragile Table Decorations

Take a box and pad it to provide protection from impacts.

For floral-type table decorations or any other irregular-shaped items, you can then create a nest out of crumpled paper that the decoration will sit within.

Pad around the outside of the item so that it cannot move about within the box, then add a final layer of top protection before taping the lid shut.

Once you have safely packaged all of these individual items, they can then be grouped into larger boxes.

Pad the larger box well, place the smaller boxes inside ensuring there is no movement, and add a final protective layer on top before sealing the box.

Then mark the box fragile and with the content description.

Although Christmas decorations are lightweight, remember not to use too large a box as it will be awkward to handle.

You may also like to read: How to Pack Awkard and Unusual Shaped Objects When Moving Home. Packing odd-shaped things requires a whole new skill set so in this guide we share the best ways to pack those awkward and odd-shaped things that won’t fit in a regular moving box.

As you will see from this guide, packing decorations for a home move is quite a time-consuming, and potentially expensive endeavor.

To save yourself time and effort you could consider using a professional packing service when moving home.

Many reputable removal companies will be able to offer you a full packing service and the cost you may well find is excellent value for money when you consider all the other home moving tasks you have to complete at what is a very busy time of year for most families anyway.

You may also like to read: Are Packing Services Worth the Cost? In this guide, we discover what professional packers do, how much they cost, and whether it is worth hiring packers for your particular home move.

Just remember that you only have until the 5^th of January to get those decorations down, keep them up after the 6th of January and they have to stay up all year, which may not impress those moving into your home too much!