Christmas is coming to a close, which means it’s time roll up your sleeves and start packing up all the twinkling decorations. However, don’t forget your frustration and petty arguments you got into a few weeks ago when the Christmas lights would not untangle. Pack the right way now, and avoid the holiday battle next year.

Hang Your Gift Wrap

Chances are, you don’t just use wrapping paper for Christmas. You know you’re going to need it for upcoming birthday, wedding, baby, and Mother’s and Father’s Day gifts. Keep things organized by setting up a horizontal bar in a room with extra space. Slide on some hanging clips to the bar and clip on all your rolls of wrap for easy access.

Dry Cleaning Bag to the Rescue

Wreaths are notorious for getting mangled and dusty during the 11 months of the year they sit in storage. Place your wreath inside a dry cleaning bag to keep it protected, and hang it up in a spare closet or in storage.

Keep Ornaments in Plastic Cups

Save those extra plastic cups from your holiday party. Glue the cups to a few boards and start adding your ornaments to each individual cup. The boards make it easy to stack into clear storage bins. If you have any particularly fragile ornaments, place them in egg cartons for safety.

Oh, the Lights

If you got into an argument while you were decorating this year, it was probably over the knots of Christmas lights. In order to prevent these annoyances next year, you’ll need to spool them in an organized manner. If you have a ton of lights for inside and out, a garden hose reel is an awesome way to keep them tangle free. For short strings, wrap them around a piece of cardboard to keep the strings of lights from getting tangled.

Keep things clean, keep items organized, and next year will be a lot more peaceful.