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Holiday Organizing Tips and Tricks

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Easy Storage Solutions From A to Z By Liz Welch

Learn how to give everything a proper home, from spare buttons to decorations.

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Ngoc Minh Ngo

Books

As in: The dog-eared Danielle Steel novels you don’t necessarily want to display but wouldn’t dare part with, either.

The fix:
Cardboard boxes are ideal for storing books. Plastic bins “trap moisture, causing paper to wrinkle and glue to weaken,” says Joshua Mann, a co-owner of B&B Rare Books, in New York City. Set books in boxes side by side, alternating them so one spine faces down and the next spine faces up. “Don’t stack books on top of each other. The covers and pages can warp,” says Mann. Wrap valuable books, like leather-bound ones, in Mylar sheets (from 48 cents each, pearlpaint.com). Then store the boxes in a closet free of temperature fluctuations.

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