Getting The Most Out Of Your Home’s Attic Space This Holiday Season

Searching for holiday decor in and around the home or attic can bring out the Grinch in anyone. Ornaments may be in the hall closet, the Christmas tree in the garage, and the lights in an outdoor shed. Knowing where the items are located is only part of the search. You still need to remember what was put in which box at the end of last season. 

Despite good intentions, your holiday decor may lack organization. It would be much easier if everything were in one central place — like your attic. Unfortunately, for a lot of homeowners, they do not utilize this space as effectively as they could. It may be years since you last sorted through what is stored there or you may have never checked. Who knows? There may be lost items you’ve been searching for or just enough space to hold all your holiday decor that is just waiting to be discovered.

Check Your Attic

Many homes have easily accessible attics while some do not. The first step in optimizing your attic space is to actually locate the indoor attic entrance and to figure a way to safely enter it while avoiding injury or damage to your ceiling. We recommend getting some sturdy work gloves and a medium to large step ladder and then go search the ceiling of every room in your home. Sometimes, the entrance to an attic will be in a closet, hallway, or even technically not in the house but rather in the garage. If you have never found or opened your attic before, those are good places to look.

After locating it and safely gaining entry via ladder, check to see if things have piled up at the attic entrance. Look past the crowded entry to see if there is available space in the far reaches of the space. By reorganizing the attic, you can free up an area for holiday decor. Better yet, use the opportunity to dispose of things you haven’t used in years.

Unfinished attics usually lack flooring. They may be insulated, but walking requires moving across rafters. Consider using plywood as flooring. It levels the storage space for stacking at minimal cost. Have you tried finding containers that bridge the gap between rafters? It’s faster and less frustrating than putting in a sheet of plywood.

Another option is to use “faux walls” for hanging decorations. Wired walls provide flexible storage using hanging baskets or bins. You can also buy wood panels to create walls for storing odd-shaped items.

Understand the Environment

Unfinished attics may lack insulation and are not temperature-controlled. Attics grow hot in the summer and cold in the winter. They can collect moisture in humid environments. Leaky roofs can damage an attic’s contents. Let’s also not forget about pests that could sneak in and wreak havoc.

If yours is unfinished, consider adding insulation to your attic to protect your holiday decor and improve your home’s energy efficiency. Repair or replace drafty windows and attic fans. Today’s solar-powered attic fans help circulate air for minimal cost while reducing your reliance on your A/C system.

Pick Your Containers

A quick online search for holiday storage containers returns so many results that browsers let you filter your search criteria. Deciding which of the thousands of options to select can be overwhelming. The best place to start is with your attic access and dimensions.

Attic Access

How are the full containers going to make it into the attic? Is there a permanent staircase, or is it a drop-down ladder? Some attics can only be accessed using a stepladder. Trying to push a 12-foot tree into an attic using a stepladder may not be the safest option. It may be better to store the tree in the garage.

Storage Capacity

Measure the available space. You’ll need to know how many containers can fit horizontally and vertically. How high can you stack containers? What is the best container size to maximize storage space? Do you need multiple sizes?

Containers

The best containers are weather-proof plastic bins and moisture-resistant bags. Because attics lack temperature controls, storing items in protective bins extends their life. For fragile items that are sensitive to temperature changes, consider storing them elsewhere like in a closet or under a bed.

You can choose from color or clear containers. There are even storage options specifically for ornaments, trees, and lights. If you plan on using the attic to store year-round decor, consider color-coding the bins by holiday. Be sure to place labels on the outside of the bins to know what exactly is inside. While clear bins make it easier to see what is stored, it never hurts to identify the contents on an attached label.

Purchasing reels for Christmas lights can make storing them a lot less stressful. There’s no need to spend hours untangling strands of lights to find the one with the missing bulb. If you’re tired of trying to fit the tree back into its box, consider a storage bag. Many storage bags come with wheels, making them easier to move. Some solutions come with tags to hang the bag from the attic rafters.

Prep for Success

If holiday decorating has become a chore, look to your attic for storage solutions. With a well-organized storage space, holiday decorations can be placed in a central location. No more asking, “Where did I put that?” Everything you need is in one convenient place.

If you’ve promised to organize your holiday decor for years, now is the time to keep that promise. Taking a moment to put in a little extra time perfecting your attic this season means a future with less holiday stress and more holiday cheer, and that we can definitely get behind! We hope this guide has been useful to you and we look forward to hearing about your own attic organization tips that you have used. We hope that your holiday season is stress free and fun. Do you have any attic organizing tips or stories of your own? We’d love to hear them! Share them with the community in the comments below. We can’t wait to hear from you.