Christmas is over, and with the end of the holidays comes the clean-up and storage of all your holiday home decor and Christmas decorations, including your Christmas village. Properly storing your Christmas village ensures that it will look as good next Christmas as it did the year before.
This can take some time because most Christmas village sets include small, breakable buildings and accessories. A snow village may contain a snowman and ice skating figurines, while others may have a Santa. Whatever design your village collection has, don't just quickly toss your Christmas village in an old storage box. This can lead to broken and lost pieces when you unpack the last year's boxes.
Video of the Day
Video of the Day
Instead, take the time to prepare each piece and store it properly in sturdy totes so you can enjoy it year after year. Make a day of it and pack up your other holiday decorations, including Christmas ornaments, Christmas tree and holiday wreaths.
Christmas village storage solutions
Keep the boxes in which your Christmas village buildings originally came. While this may not be possible with older pieces, you can start a trend for better preservation by keeping the boxes to any new pieces you purchase in the future.
Tip
For older village pieces that are missing their original boxes, look for other boxes that are good sizes for those particular pieces. Ornament boxes may work well if you have extras.
Wrap each piece in bubble wrap. If the bubble wrap doesn't fit inside the small boxes, consider using tissue paper instead. While it might be tempting to put two pieces together, those pieces can bump against one another and cause scratching, discoloration and breakage.
Pack decoration storage bins
Store your boxes containing the bubble-wrapped pieces in a heavy-duty, plastic storage container with a snap-tight lid. Cardboard boxes don't hold up well under weight, wetness or other unsavory conditions. Placing the boxes in a plastic storage container will protect them safe from bumps, liquids and scratches.
Tip
If your Christmas village has a string of Christmas lights, make sure to store them carefully. Wrap them so that the wires aren’t tangled or bent.
Label the plastic container in which you place your Christmas village using a black permanent marker. Write the contents on the top and sides of the box as well as a note that the contents are fragile in the event someone else has to move the box. This will help you avoid setting anything too heavy on top of your Christmas village set while it is in storage.
Store the boxes for the year
Store the plastic containers holding your Christmas village pieces in an area that is temperate. Storing your pieces in an area that becomes too hot may cause paint to melt and stick to its container or other pieces. If you store your container in an area that's too cold, you may risk your pieces suffering cracks or chipped paint.
Find an area that retains an even temperature throughout the year. Consider your basement, a storage closet or an insulated attic. It is a good idea to store the containers with ornament boxes and wrapping paper so your holiday decor is easy to find next year.
At the end of the holiday season, it can be tempting to toss all of your decor and Christmas village components into a box. But consider these storage ideas to keep each fragile figurine and village accessories safe and in good condition for next year.