Undecorating

I definitely don't like that word.

I had a nifty idea though on storing my ornament trees. I definitely did not want to have to reassemble them next year.

Take off the top glass ball and put a cork on the knitting needle. I bought corks today at the store when I was buying more plastic containers.

Decorating our tree is often a little more difficult than it should be, and we always have ornaments that we can't seem to locate that are in a box with un-like items, like maybe with stockings or the sit-around decorations. Then we have ornaments strewn all over the place because there are so many in one box, and tissue paper and bubble wrap, and chaos in general.

I knew there had to be a better way for us, and it was smaller containers. I also separated out most of the kids' ornaments into their own boxes. They will either still go on the big tree next year or on a tree in their own room. Either way, that's their box to put on that no one else touches.

I have one box that is just glass balls (special ones). It's the fabric-looking red box on the left. I purchased lots of glass balls on clearance this year that are still in boxes. I wanted them for crafting next year. They are in a couple of large plastic bins on the floor.

Our Hallmark ornaments were another issue for me. Every year we take them out and put them back in the boxes they came in. It's cumbersome. But some of them need to be there for protection. I decided that all of our Hallmark train ornaments could be kept out of the boxes and put in one small box together, simply bubble-wrapped. It will be so much faster. (I kept the boxes and put them in a larger container 'just in case.')

I labeled almost every box. I can see in them now, but next year when we get ready to put things away it will make it much simpler.

Every year when I get out the Buffalo Snow, Caboose gets out some animals and adds them in for decorating. I've taken down the ornament tree, but I'm not sure what the cat's going to do if I take away the rest. He's become rather accustomed to the comfy spot with extra heat from the fireplace. He doesn't have to wait on the vents to blow anymore.

I still have to take the lights off the tree and take it apart. And figure out what to do about the cat.