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Christmas is a magical time, filled with wonder. We love Christmas and all its festivities. But as a homeowner, you can often be the one in charge of creating that magical atmosphere. Such a task is not easy and it certainly isn’t stress-free. So how do you calm the chaos and feel in control over the festive season? By taking any shortcuts you can!
Yes, there are some life hacks for making Christmas run more smoothly. From decorations to entertaining, cooking and wrapping we’ve rounded up the best into this quick and useful guide. These holiday hacks will make your life easier, save time and maybe even save money. You’ll only need a few common household items too, so let’s get started!
Christmas Hacks for Decorations:
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Festive decorations certainly help to make your home feel special, but putting up, taking down and storage can be a hassle. Luckily, there are some clever solutions to some of the biggest headaches when it comes to Christmas decorations.
1. Pick up stray pine needles with duct tape.
This is one of the simplest Christmas hacks you’ll find! Christmas trees can be messy and cause you lots of festive stress. Use duct tape to collect the needles quickly and easily. With this great idea you’ll get the needles cleared in no time.
2. Use tights for delicate dusting.
Clean dust off tinsel or artificial trees by placing a pair of tights over the nozzle of your vacuum cleaner. It’s effective, quick and careful.
3. Or a paintbrush.
Dust fragile christmas decorations and delicate ornaments with a soft paintbrush, it’s the gentlest way to get them looking clean and shiny again.
4. Hack that sap.
Christmas trees again! Beautiful but messy. This Christmas hack will help to avoid any tree-related damage. Harden tree sap with hand sanitiser, hairspray or ice before scraping off the carpet. It will come off much more easily.
5. Sort Christmas light storage.
Wrap christmas lights around cardboard toilet paper rolls to store tidily for next year. Save yourself the nightmare of having to untangle them when it’s time to decorate.
6. Protect those decorations.
Use plastic cups to safely store glass ornaments, or reuse festive paper to protect them. Both fantastic ways to reuse, and to reduce breakages. Keep all your delicate decorations safe for next year.
7. Hang your cards.
Christmas cards taking up lots of room? Create a card hanging feature with string or ribbon. We love hanging them over our internal doors – there’s plenty of room for lots of cards.
Presents and Wrapping Hacks:
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Gift-giving can be very rewarding, but all that wrapping and unwrapping can create mess and stress. Here are some tips to make things easier.
8.The tidy game.
Make cleaning away torn and shredded wrapping paper a game for the kids. They’ll have fun with all the shiny wrap and you’ll end up with a tidy house!
9. Quick clearing up
Put down a sheet or blanket to catch wrapping, glitter and other bits of rubbish as kids open presents. Unwrapping can be a messy business, just pick up the sheet and it’s cleared in one go.
10. Hack the wrapping paper
Wrapping paper rolls unravelling? Slip an empty toilet roll over the top to keep in place. It keeps things tidy & saves paper getting damaged.
11. Paperclip the ribbon.
Ribbon everywhere? Loop the ribbon and then secure in the middle with a paperclip to keep it tidy and organised.
12. Don’t get caught out!
Emergency cards! Have a pile of signed cards ready to quickly add a name for someone you forgot! It’s a great way to save face and spread Christmas cheer rather than making a festive faux pas.
Christmas Dinner Hacks:
Photo by Libby Penner on Unsplash
A fabulous Christmas dinner is top of many of our wish lists but the pressure to cook and get something amazing on the dinner table can get too much. Get prepared beforehand with these handy hacks.
13. Preparation…
Defrost and clean the freezer ready to store party food and leftovers. It’s a simple idea, but you don’t want all that festive food going to waste.
14. Shine that silverware.
Get silverware shiny with a baking soda & salt bath.
15. Roasting tin hack.
Clean the roasting dish for your turkey in advance with a cream cleaner or mix baking soda & hydrogen peroxide.
Quick Cleaning Hacks to Prepare for Guests:
Photo by Libby Penner on Unsplash
Chances are you’ll have guests round to visit at some point over the festive period and you’ll want your home to look its best. Whether you’re preparing for a Christmas party or an influx of relatives there’s always plenty to do. You might have the odd unexpected visitor too. Here’s how to keep your home looking spot on in a matter of minutes!
16. Fast upholstry update.
Use a lint roller to clean upholstery quickly. You’ll pick up dust and stray hairs, making your home look much cleaner.
17. Spot clean swiftly!
Keep multi-purpose wipes handy for quick spot cleaning. There’s nothing worse than having to get all your cleaning supplies out again for a little spill!
18. Fabulous fragrance.
Light candles with a festive fragrance. This will set a lovely festive atmosphere in your home and help mask any cooking smells.
19. The hassle free bathroom hack.
Pour a can of coke into the toilet bowl, let it sit for an hour, then flush – spotless!
Hacks for After the Big Day:
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The fun and frivolities are over, and getting everything back to a good place might feel like a massive chore. Here are some hacks for an easier post-Christmas clean-up so you can find some time to relax.
20. DIY Christmas snow remover
Clean off fake snow with a ceramic scraper, followed by a solution of two parts water & one part vinegar. This will make it much easier to remove.
21. Avoid glitter picking…
Use a lint roller or duct tape to pick up stray glitter. It gets everywhere!
22. Wax away.
Place a paper towel over any spilt candle wax and heat with a hairdryer to remove it. The melted wax will be absorbed helping it to lift away from fabrics, leaving less damage.
23. That tree again…
Use a turkey baster to remove any water from the Christmas Tree base to avoid spillage. You don’t want to ruin your carpets as you’re taking down the tree.
24. Deep clean.
Get hard to reach crumbs and dust from tight crevices with a butter knife wrapped in tape (sticky side out of course!).
25. Eliminate odour.
Remove unpleasant odours by leaving a bowl of hot water and vinegar out overnight. It sounds like it might be smelly but it actually helps absorb odour, leaving your home feeling fresh.
Now you can cheat your way to a stress-free holiday season and find more time to enjoy the festivities! Go on, have that extra glass of wine 😉
