Packing Like a Pro

Problem: Delicate ornaments emerge from their boxes chipped, dusty, or broken.
Solution: “If possible, try to keep the packaging that your fine ornaments arrive in,” says Victor Luis, CEO of the crystal producer Baccarat, headquartered in Paris. “If you don’t have an ornament’s original packaging, wrap the piece in a resealable sandwich bag, then store it in a sturdy, well-padded box.” Donna Smallin, author of The One-Minute Organizer Plain & Simple (Storey, $10, www.amazon.com), suggests using partitioned cardboard liquor or wine boxes for storing standard ornaments and small decorations. “Egg cartons,” she says, “make excellent packaging for tiny ones.” Stuff all the nooks and crannies with tissue paper saved from opened gifts. Also, Smallin adds, “keep your fragile items together at the top of a box. The more you have to dig for an ornament, the greater your chances of damaging it.”

Problem: Dough ornaments and macaroni crafts fall apart or attract pests.
Solution: Pack food-based decorations in resealable sandwich bags to protect them from humidity, then place the bags in a cookie tin to keep rodents out, says Jackie Harvey, proprietor of Adoughables, a dough-ornament company in Westampton, New Jersey.

Problem: Your stored candles lose their shape.
Solution: “Candles should be put away flat, out of light, and in a fairly cool area to prevent warping and preserve color,” says Susan Stockman, a spokesperson for the Yankee Candle Company, in South Deerfield, Massachusetts. An alternative solution, says Taylor, is to use neutral-colored candles that you can leave out all year.

Problem: The holiday linens end up as wrinkled as a turkey’s wattle.
Solution: Ironing a big linen tablecloth is probably the last thing you want to do after you’ve spent the entire morning cooking. “Use skirt hangers for all your tablecloths, place mats, and napkins so they don’t become creased at the bottom of a box,” says Hill. You’ll be ready to set your table without a trip to the laundry room.