Now that the fall season is just around the corner, it’s time to prep and make your home feel cozy and ready for autumn. Fall decorations like pumpkins, leaves, wreaths, table centerpieces, and other fall-themed knick-knacks can pile up quickly, making it difficult to keep everything organized year after year.
Whether you’re a seasoned decorator or just starting to build your fall collection, the key to smooth and organized decorating is decluttering your fall decorations both before and after the season has passed. Doing so will make it easier to get ready for the next season and ensure that your home always looks its best.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through a few simple tips for organizing your fall décor and help you unpack last year’s decorations to make room for new ones this year. We’ll explore how to organize your fall décor by room, size, type, and usage, as well as offer practical advice on storage and decluttering. Read on to learn how to get your home ready for fall in a stress-free, organized way.
Declutter Before You Organize
Before diving into organizing your fall decor, it’s essential to start with a decluttering session. Over time, seasonal decorations can accumulate, leaving you with items that may no longer match your style or have seen better days. Decluttering not only clears out unnecessary clutter but also helps make room for any new pieces you plan to add to your collection this year.
Start with a Thorough Evaluation: As you pull out your fall decorations from storage, take a moment to evaluate each item. Are there pieces you didn’t use last year? Is there décor that’s damaged or outdated? If you haven’t used something in a couple of seasons, it might be time to part ways with it.
Sort Into Three Categories: Create three piles—Keep, Donate, and Discard. The “Keep” pile should include only the items that you love and plan to use this year. The “Donate” pile is for items that are still in good condition but no longer fit your style or needs. Finally, the “Discard” pile is for any decorations that are broken or too worn to be reused.
Be Practical: Fall decor trends can change, and you might find yourself holding onto items that no longer align with your current preferences. While it’s natural to feel attached to certain pieces, try to be practical when deciding what to keep. Focus on items that you truly enjoy and that fit your home’s current aesthetic.
Donate Unwanted Decor: Once you’ve sorted through your items, consider donating the decorations you no longer need. Local thrift stores, community centers, or charitable organizations are often happy to receive seasonal items, and this not only clears out your space but also helps others get into the fall spirit. Plus, knowing your unused décor is being appreciated elsewhere can make the process of decluttering more rewarding.
Make Room for New Pieces: One of the best parts of decluttering is making space for new fall decorations. Whether you’re looking forward to adding fresh wreaths, cozy pillows, or autumnal centerpieces, clearing out the old will give you plenty of room to work with. Who doesn’t love an excuse to shop for new seasonal items?
By taking the time to declutter before you start organizing, you’ll have a clear idea of what you’re working with and can focus on creating a streamlined, easy-to-access storage system for the items you truly love. Once the clutter is gone, you’re ready to move on to the organization phase.
Organize Your Fall Decor by Room
One of the easiest ways to manage your seasonal decorations is to organize them by room. Decorating room by room allows you to maintain consistency throughout your home while avoiding the frustration of not knowing where everything belongs. Additionally, organizing by room makes the process of packing and unpacking fall decor much simpler.
Start by grouping your fall decorations by the rooms they will be used in—living room, dining room, kitchen, entryway, etc. As you decorate each room, you’ll have all the necessary pieces ready to go in one place, making the process much more streamlined. Once fall has ended, packing things back up is equally simple because everything has its place.
Pro Tip: Invest in large, sturdy storage bins that are labeled by room. For example, have one bin labeled “Living Room” and another labeled “Kitchen.” This system will make it easy to retrieve the appropriate decorations next year without having to search through piles of unsorted items.
Labeling bins by room not only makes it easy to find what you’re looking for but also allows for flexibility if you decide to switch up your decorating scheme. If you want to change things around, simply transfer decorations from one bin to another. Once the season is over, return everything to its respective bin for quick and easy storage.
Organize Your Fall Decor by Size
Another effective strategy for keeping your fall decorations organized is sorting them by size. Fall decorations come in a wide range of shapes and sizes, from tiny leaf garlands to large, inflatable pumpkins for the front yard. By organizing them based on size, you can prevent smaller items from getting lost or damaged and keep everything in good condition for future use.
For example, place larger items like oversized pumpkins, cornstalks, or decorative hay bales in one storage bin, and smaller items like mini pumpkins, candleholders, and garlands in another. This way, you’ll avoid crushing delicate items or misplacing small decorations.
When packing your fall décor for storage, use smaller storage containers for tiny items and group them together by size. You can then store these smaller containers within the larger bins for easy access and extra protection. Make sure to label these containers clearly so that when you’re ready to decorate, you can quickly grab the correct size of decoration for each area of your home.
Organize Your Fall Decor by Type
If you prefer to keep things more categorized, organizing your fall decorations by type is another practical option. Fall decorations can often be grouped into specific categories, such as pumpkins, wreaths, pillows, or foliage. Grouping similar items together will make it easier to find what you need and help you visualize the overall theme of your fall décor.
Here are a few common categories to consider when organizing your fall decorations:
- Wreaths: Keep all your fall wreaths together in one bin to avoid them getting crushed or bent out of shape.
- Pumpkins: Whether large or small, organizing all your pumpkins in one place will make decorating with them simple and quick.
- Outdoor Decorations: Group outdoor decorations like scarecrows, garden stakes, and porch signs separately from indoor decorations to avoid dirt and damage.
- Fall Pillows and Blankets: Store your seasonal textiles—like cozy throw pillows and blankets—in a bin of their own to keep them fresh for next season.
- Halloween Decorations: Consider separating your Halloween-specific decorations from your more general fall décor for ease of access.
- Thanksgiving Décor: Keep Thanksgiving-related items, like turkey figurines and table settings, organized together to make decorating for this holiday stress-free.
- General Fall Décor: Finally, create a bin for general fall decorations that don’t fit into any other category, such as leaf garlands, candleholders, and centerpieces.
This system of organizing by type will ensure that all your decorations stay in good shape and are easy to find when it’s time to decorate or pack up.
Separate Indoor and Outdoor Decorations
Fall is a season that lends itself to decorating both inside and outside the home. Whether you’re putting up scarecrows, pumpkin displays, or garlands of leaves, outdoor fall décor is just as important as the indoor decorations. However, it’s essential to keep indoor and outdoor decorations separate when organizing and storing them.
Outdoor decorations, such as lawn stakes, inflatable pumpkins, and porch signs, are often made from sturdier materials designed to withstand the elements. Indoor decorations, on the other hand, tend to be more delicate. If you store them together, the indoor items can get dirty or damaged by the bulkier outdoor pieces. Separate your outdoor décor into its own storage bins, and label them clearly so you know what goes outside and what stays inside.
Pro Tip: Consider investing in heavy-duty, weather-resistant storage bins for your outdoor fall decorations. Since these items can accumulate dirt and moisture, these bins will help protect them from further damage and ensure that they’re ready to go next season.
The Perfect Spot to Store Fall Decor
Once fall has passed and it’s time to pack everything away, choosing the right storage location is crucial to keeping your decorations safe and in good condition. Avoid storing seasonal décor in places where it can be exposed to moisture, extreme temperatures, or pests.
Here are a few ideal spots to store your fall decorations:
- Basement: If your basement is dry and temperature-controlled, it’s an excellent place to store fall décor. Use sturdy, stackable bins to keep everything organized.
- Attic: Like the basement, an attic is another good option for storage, but make sure it’s not too humid or hot, as that can damage more delicate decorations.
- Hall Closet: For those with limited space, a hall closet is a convenient spot to store a few bins of fall décor. The key is to keep the space tidy and accessible.
- Garage: If you don’t have space inside your home, the garage can be a good storage option. Just be sure to use durable, weather-resistant bins to protect your décor from dust, dirt, and temperature changes.
- Storage Unit: If you have an extensive collection of seasonal decorations and lack space at home, consider renting a small storage unit such as My Stack Box to keep your items safe year-round.
Organizing your fall décor may take a bit of time and effort, but the payoff is worth it. By sorting your decorations by room, size, type, and usage, and taking the time to declutter and donate, you can ensure that your home is always ready for the cozy warmth of the fall season. Plus, with everything organized and stored properly, unpacking your décor next year will be a breeze! Whether you’re preparing for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or simply embracing the beauty of autumn, your fall décor will be perfectly organized and ready to shine.