It seems as though 'tis the season to be learning all sorts of helpful Christmas hacks, which will make getting through the festive period a little bit easier.
Christmas is absolutely wonderful, but it does take a lot of hard work to put together, and while the big tasks like the dinner and getting everyone a present are important, there's also a lot to be said for the little things.
One of those annoying little things is untangling the fairy lights which go on the tree, as no matter now neatly you think you've packed them up they always find some way of getting tangled again in the 11 months they spend in storage.
Advert
Luckily, one woman has come up with a genius way to store fairy lights and stop them tangling themselves up while you're not looking.
TikToker Tanya has all sorts of helpful hacks around the home, and learning the Christmas ones is really useful this time of year.
First things first, you'll need a shoebox and a bit of tape, and once you've done that it's as simple as wrapping the lights around the box (slowly does it) and taping them in place.
Advert
Then you cut a little slit in the top of the box so you can slip the plug, power unit or whatever boxy connection thing your fairy lights come with inside.
With that secure, you now have an almost completely empty box which is already dedicated to Christmas decorations, so it's a good place to store your baubles until next Christmas.
People absolutely love the hack, calling it 'amazing' and saying what a good idea it was.
Some others had already tried something similar, with people saying they used a coat hanger and a Pringles can to wrap their lights around.
Advert
Some of the other helpful hacks that are worth knowing include making your artificial Christmas tree taller with a few bed risers and a wicker basket.
Then there's the idea of putting cling film round the Christmas tree to perfectly preserve the way it looks for next year, which is handy if you've arranged them just the way you like them and fear you'll never get it quite right again.
Meanwhile, those with pets always have to deal with the problems they pose, and that includes finding clever ways to stop them from destroying your perfectly arranged decorations.
Advert
While those might be the Christmas 'dos' there are still plenty of festive 'don'ts' to be aware of.
It's easier than you think to traumatise the kids this December by trying to do the 'Elf on the Shelf' tradition and accidentally melting its face off as one mum managed to do.
Luckily she was able to salvage that situation by hiding the evidence and leaving a note out saying the elf had been called back to Santa's Workshop, giving her time to go out and buy another one.
Joe Harker