Holiday decorations are some of the hardest things in a house to pack. They're fragile, oddly shaped, and often impossible to replace: the glass ornament from a grandparent, the ceramic village built up one piece a year. They also tend to live in the attic or basement in boxes that were never meant to ride in a truck. Pack them the way you'd pack stemware, and they'll arrive in one piece.
November is the easiest time to do it. The decorations are coming out anyway, so you can sort them, use what you want this year and repack the rest properly for a winter or spring move.
How to Pack Each Kind of Decoration
| Item | How to wrap it | What to put it in |
|---|---|---|
| Glass and ceramic ornaments | Each one in its own sheet of packing paper, hook removed | Small boxes with cardboard dividers, or egg cartons inside a box |
| Plastic and fabric ornaments | Loosely in paper, or bagged by type | A medium box, packed on top of heavier items |
| Light strands | Wrapped around a piece of cardboard or a spool so they don't tangle | A box of their own, labeled by length or location |
| Ceramic villages and figurines | Paper first, then a layer of bubble wrap for the delicate parts | Original boxes if you kept them, or small boxes with plenty of filler |
| Wreaths | Loose plastic cover so nothing crushes the shape | A wreath box, or hung in a wardrobe box |
| Artificial tree | Sections bagged or tied, branches folded in | The original box, or a long box labeled top and bottom |
| Candles | Paper, separated so they don't stick together | A box that travels in your car, away from heat |
Packing Glass Ornaments Step by Step
Glass ornaments break in three ways: crushing from weight above, knocking against each other, and snapping at the metal cap. Each step below deals with one of those.
- Take off the hooks. They scratch neighboring ornaments and catch on paper.
- Wrap each ornament in its own sheet of clean packing paper. Newspaper ink can rub off on light-colored glass.
- Put the wrapped ornaments in a small box with cardboard cell dividers, one per cell. Egg cartons work for small ones.
- Fill any gaps with crumpled paper so nothing slides when the box tips.
- Close the small box and set it inside a larger one, with crumpled paper on every side.
- Mark the outer box fragile on more than one side, with the room it goes to and an arrow for which way is up.
Lights, Trees and the Bulky Pieces
Light strands
Test each strand before you pack it. There's no reason to move a set that doesn't work. Then wrap the working ones around a flat piece of cardboard with a notch at each end to hold the plug. Label the cardboard with where the strand goes: front porch, tree, mantel. That label saves real time next December.
The artificial tree
The original box is best, but it rarely survives years of use. A long sturdy box works. Fold the branches toward the trunk, bag or tie each section, and mark the box with which section is inside so the tree goes back together in order.
Inflatables and yard decorations
Make sure they're completely dry before packing. A damp inflatable sealed in a box can grow mildew before you open it again.
Where Decorations Should Wait
If the move is weeks or months away, or your belongings are going into storage between homes, think about where the decoration boxes sit in the meantime.
Deciding What Comes Along
Every box you don't pack is one less to wrap, carry and unpack. The holidays are a good time to decide.
If this, then that
- If an ornament or decoration has family history, then wrap it carefully and keep it, and consider carrying it in your car.
- If a light strand or decoration is broken or hasn't been used in years, then let it go before the move.
- If you have far more than the new home can display, then offer extras to family or donate them while it's still the season.
- If a piece is truly irreplaceable, then photograph it and carry it yourself instead of putting it in the truck.
If you'd rather not handle the fragile pieces yourself, our packing services for fragile items can cover the ornaments, villages and glassware while you pack the rest.
The bottom line
Pack glass decorations one per cell in small boxes, nested inside larger ones. Wrap lights on cardboard and label where they go. Keep candles and irreplaceable pieces in your car. And decide what you won't keep before you start, since the lightest box to move is the one you didn't pack.
Request a moving quote and tell us about any fragile collections you'd like packed for you.
