Like the wise adage goes, the best offense is a good defense, and this holds true when it comes to storing holiday gear. Give yourself one last gift by properly packing up wrapping papers and decorations. You'll thank yourself next year.

It's a Wrap: Each year it's the same story: we meticulously open gifts, promising to reuse on other gifts. Then many of us shove crumpled paper in garbage bags and stick it in the back of a closet to find a mangled mess of torn paper, shorn ribbons, and crushed bows. Consider an organizer from problemsolvers.com. They're compact, hang or lie flat, and start at $12.95.

Bright Lights: It's the cliche in every movie: Happy Family tries to decorate for the holidays. Happy Family has a huge, frustrated fight over tangled lights. Don't replay this movie scene with your Happy Family. Instead, consider putting away holiday lights in an orderly fashion. Acehardware.com, for example, has a holiday light storage reel and bag solution that lets you wind lights around a spool, keeping them tangle free. It costs $9.99 and seems likely to bring peace in years to come.

Tree, Wreath, and Breakables: If you forgo the forestry version and go the route of the reusable tree, that also means repacking that tree each year. Protect your purchase and keep it looking shapely for years to come with a tree storage bag from organize.com, starting at $7.99. You can also find all manner of wreath, ornament, and other decoration storage at organize.com for reasonable prices.

Material from Shopzilla.com has been used in this report.