THEY brought much joy to your home over the past few days, but the time is drawing closer to take down those Christmas decorations. But before you pile them into a closet or throw them into 'never never land', here are some tips from about.com to help you organise and store those Christmas ornaments for use next year:

Christmas linens
Store Christmas linens in a suitcase to keep away the risk of moisture damage. Or keep your Christmas towels, rugs, blankets, etc on an unused shelf in your linen or personal closet. You can put one or two lavender-scented dryer sheets between the linens to keep away moths and keep them smelling wonderful.

Christmas wreaths
Whatever container you use to store your wreaths must be able to preserve its shape throughout the year.

Christmas trees
Although the box your artificial tree came in may seem like the perfect one to repack it in for storing, this isn't the wisest idea for preservation. The cardboard boxes begin to deteriorate making them more prone to insect infestation.

Christmas ornaments
Special ornaments most often benefit from being stored in the boxes that they came in. You can store smaller ornaments in an egg carton.

Christmas candles
Wrap the candles in old socks or knee-high stockings to prevent scratching. Make sure to store the candles away from the heat of the attic or other areas which can melt the candles.

Storing Christmas decorations for reassembling
Before you take down Christmas decorations for storing, take pictures to remember the way you set up your decorations. Then take everything down in reverse order of the way it was put up.

Storing decorations and planners
Don''t pack away your holiday planning notebook. You will need this notebook during the year to keep track of recipes, address changes, gift ideas and gifts purchased.

Christmas lights
Do away with the tangled mess of years past by organising your Christmas lights before you pack them. Make sure to dispose of any lights that have been damaged or are not working properly. You will save yourself storage space.

Labelling Christmas storage
Save yourself time next year by thoroughly labeling your Christmas decorations. Make a detailed inventory on the outside of each box. Number the boxes so that you'll know how many you have (ie, Box 1 of 12). Labelling the boxes this way also lets you order them according to how they should be unpacked. Consider wrapping your Christmas decoration boxes in wrapping paper for easy identification.

Unpacking the First Christmas Box
Be sure to prominently label the first box to be opened at Christmas. Box 1 could contain your advent calendar, tree stand, Christmas cards, or whatever you need at the beginning of the Christmas season.

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