I have a little trick for making Christmas feel a lot less frantic, and it is so simple: have a Christmas closet. It does not actually have to be a closet. It can be a drawer, a cabinet, a basket, or a bin under the bed. The point is just to have one place where you put gifts you find throughout the year.

Because sometimes you see something in March and immediately think, “Oh my God, this is so my sister.” Or you are shopping in July and find the perfect little thing for a friend. Or you see something that would make a great hostess gift and know you are going to need one eventually.

Buy it. Put it away.

That is the Christmas closet.

I think the best gifts are often the ones you find when you are not trying so hard.

There is something much more personal about seeing an object and immediately thinking of someone than there is about sitting down on December 15th with a list that says “BUY GIFTS.” That is when Christmas starts to feel like a job.

I want to decorate the house. I want to wrap presents with a cup of coffee. I want to go out to dinner. I want to see friends. I want to wander around a Christmas market. I want to actually enjoy the tree once it is up. I do not want to spend every free minute in December trying to figure out what to buy everyone!

I also like keeping a few gifts in there that are not for anyone specific.

A beautiful candle. A great tea towel. A small serving piece. Good chocolates. An ornament. Something that I would be happy to give someone.   Because every December there is that moment when you suddenly need a gift. Someone invites you to dinner. A neighbor drops something off. You remember a teacher or a friend or someone you really did not mean to forget. Instead of panicking, you open the closet..

The only thing I would strongly recommend is keeping a list somewhere. I have absolutely bought something early, hidden it in a very good hiding place, and then forgotten both that I bought it and where I put it. So now I like a simple note on my phone: the person, the gift, and where I stashed it.

The Christmas closet should make your life easier. It should not become another organizational system you have to manage.

There is another nice thing about buying gifts this way: you spread out the expense.

Christmas can get very expensive very quickly when everything happens in one month. But if you buy one gift in April, another in June, and a few in the fall, December feels much easier. And you also tend to buy better things. You are buying because you found the right thing, not because you ran out of time.

We hear this at Perch Home all year long. Someone will pick something up and say, “I’m putting this away for Christmas,” and I love that. always think: yes. Exactly. Because then when December comes, you have already done some of the work. You have more time for the parts of the holidays that actually matter.

The decorating. The food. The people. The traditions. The little things you look forward to all year.

And, hopefully, a trip to Perch.

So clear out a drawer. Take over one shelf. Find a basket. Start small. And the next time you see something and instantly think of someone, buy it and put it away.

Future you will be very happy you did.

— Michele
Owner, Perch Home