Packing Away Christmas

Today was the day that I packed away Christmas for another year.  It is always a little bit melancholy to let go of the festive period, after seeing friends and family and having a lot of fun everything can seem a bit grey and depressing.

To combat this I decided to make packing Christmas away part of the declutter mission.  Rather than just shoving everything in bags and boxes and then hiding it it the loft until next December, I decided to - stop press - be organised.

So I took my time.  As I took the decorations off the tree I checked each one to make sure it wasn't broken in anyway, gave it a quick wipe to remove any dirt or dust and packed it away.  Throughout this process I collected decorations I no longer wanted, especially those that I didn't use this year, for the charity shop.

I also took a note of all the decorations that I have so if I want to but anything, I can check to see what I already have.  During this process I found Christmas cards that I had bought in January 2010 and forgotten to use this Christmas.  70 in all! If I had remembered this, I would not have had to buy any this year, a saving of about £15.

The little notebook I have started will prove invaluable.  I have so far recorded any Christmas cards or wrapping material that I have left over as well as the decorations.  Hopefully I can avoid making the same mistake this year and not buy any Christmas cards! And knowing that everything has been packed clean, safely and are items I like will make decorating next year a one step process. Pure pleasure without any messing about.

What could have been just a dispirited process actually turned out OK.  Not just packing away, but preparing for next Christmas.  Makes it a little less down hearted.

The Declutter Diairist