Working in events means I spend a lot of time thinking about inventory – Vases, Candles, Florals, Shelving, Storage Systems… Somewhere along the way, I realized the way we manage inventory at work is exactly how I should be managing my seasonal decor at home. I’m sharing some tips to help you go from simply storing to creating repeatable, time and sanity-saving processes when rotating your seasonal decor at home. In the event world, we don’t get to say “Oh, I’ll fix that later.” Because later is event day, and event day is not forgiving. Spring cleaning is basically your home’s off-season. It’s your chance to reset before your next “event day.”
If It’s Broken, It Doesn’t Go Back on the Shelf
In events, if decor is found to be damaged during teardown, it gets dealt with immediately. At home, I used to store broken Christmas figurines thinking I’d fix them later. But later never came. Now my rule is simple: fix it that week or toss it. Never store broken items.
Clean It Before It Goes Back
As a rule, dirty inventory never goes back on the shelves. Wine splashes, damp vases, dirty chargers… We make sure everything is cleaned before storing. This sometimes takes extra time during teardown, but having to open and inspect every bin once it’s delivered back to the showroom is not an option. At home, wiping decor down before storing it means next season feels fresh instead of like a deferred chore.
Bald Florals Are Not a Vibe
When decorating for events, we don’t display bald florals. If stems have lost blooms or greenery looks sparse, we refresh them. Spring is the perfect time to fluff stems, replace blooms, and rebuild arrangements so they look full again. Consider this when you go to store garlands and wreaths. If they didn’t look great when you took them down, decide whether they should be remedied or if they’re not worth the effort.
Test Lights & Store Them Tangle Free
If lights fail during an event, they get flagged for new batteries or recycled. The same rule applies at home. Test strands before storing. Toss unreliable ones. Wrap strands in a way that prevents them from getting tangled. We’ve found with fairy lights that storing each strand in its own baggie keeps them manageable. You can repeat this with any type of lights. There’s no need for expensive, holiday-specific storage devices. Simply wind strings of lights around your hand or arm and then put each one in its own plastic shopping bag. Future-you will thank you in December.
Invest in Storage to Save Time & Keep the Momentum
Good storage is an investment in your time. Clear bins eliminate mystery and reduce friction. They prevent double buying, reduce time spent digging and help avoid the mental clutter of not knowing what you own. Clear Bins = Clear Brain. A clear bin that saves you 20 minutes every season pays for itself quickly. Equally game-changing is keeping extra bins on hand. Momentum is everything when organizing. We always keep a few empty bins in the showroom so we never have to stop mid-project. Extra bins keep the process flowing.
Consistent Labels Save Mental Energy
In an event warehouse, labels are everything. Consistency matters. At home, we often reinvent our labeling systems every season. You don’t need fancy, decorative, color-coded labels or bins. Whatever you decide to use, buy plenty of extras and keep them near your storage bins so you don’t have to seek them out, thereby losing momentum once again. Consider labeling your bins on more than one side in case you put them away with another side facing out. We label ours on 2 sides for that very reason. Keep categories simple and consistent. When you can see what you own, you decorate faster and shop smarter.
Shelf planning and The “One-to-Two” Bin Rule
At our showroom, shelving is planned around the inventory size. Tall vases? Widely spaced shelves, Flatter bins of heavy mirrors? Shallow stacking. At home, we often cram large, heavy boxes or bins on top of one another to maximize vertical storage without considering the real life struggle associated with shuffling them around. The “One-to-Two” Rule is simply that. Never stack more than two bins on a shelf. If you have to unstack four to get to one (or put one back), you’ve created resistance, and resistance leads to avoidance.
Wrap It Like It Matters
Fragile items deserve bubble wrap and breathing room. Crowded bins cause breakage. Store decor intentionally so it lasts season after season. Pro tip: Just as with bins and labels, keep extra packing materials where you store your supplies.
Spring Cleaning Is a Reset
Ask: What did I actually use? What needs repair? What am I storing out of guilt? Organization isn’t about being Type A. It’s about respecting your time and your future self. Order creates freedom. When you know what you have and maintain it with intention, you spend less time managing stuff and more time enjoying the moments it was meant to create.
– Janine Peterson, Event Coordinator/Showroom Manager