Moving house can be a truly stressful time – it’s said to be up there with divorce and bereavement when it comes to how it makes us feel. Luckily, there is always that sense of excitement and adventure with moving house; it does tend to have a happy ending. That said, the process never gets easier.
So finding great ways to ensure that moving house is as stress-free as possible – great ways such as packing hacks – is essential if you want to feel calm and collected on the big day itself. Property may be one of the best investments you can make, so you will want to feel good about buying – and selling – your property. Packing is often the major cause of panic; having some excellent packings hacks to see you through will certainly ease your blood pressure.
Photo by cottonbro from Pexels
Packing Jewellery
Packing hacks can help in all kinds of ways. For many people, there is a definite need to pack jewellery safely and carefully. It might be worth a lot of money, or it could be a much-loved and cherished family heirloom. Whatever it is, you don’t want it to go missing during the move. One way to keep it all safe is to use egg cartons. Place the jewellery into the cartons and tape them up. Nothing will fall out and everything will stay together (important for earrings and jewellery sets). To stop necklaces and chains from tangling, pack them flat between two sheets of plastic or bubble wrap. You can stack them in a small box, and they will stay perfectly safe. Remember not to pack jewellery with your clothing as they can easily get lost – keep your most important items with you in a purse or small holdall.
Packing The Kitchen
Your kitchen is probably the room in the house that has the most items in it, so although it may seem like it’s going to be an easy room to pack, it can quickly end up taking you much longer than you had planned for. That’s especially true if you start to wrap each plate and piece of cutlery separately. Yes, that will prevent breakages and losses, but it will also lose you a lot of time that could be better spent elsewhere. One of the many packing hacks to get around this problem is to buy some foam. Cut it into circles and stack the foam in between your plates as you place the whole lot into a box. Got a lot of socks? Use them in the kitchen! You can put your mugs and glasses – even your cutlery – inside the socks and pack them that way; they’ll be nicely padded. Equally, cutlery can stay in the drawer tray, and all you need to do is wrap it in plastic and secure it with duct tape. It makes unpacking a lot quicker and easier too.
When it comes to food, try to eat as much of it as you can before you move, and arrange to have a grocery delivery come to your new house as soon as you can when you’re settled (or take some time out to purchase some food the day after you’ve moved in). The less you have to take, the better. Food can spoil so easily, especially on a long journey, and you don’t want to waste it. Keep grocery shopping to a minimum in the weeks before you move.
Packing Clothes
You may not realise quite how many clothes you have until you start packing. It’s a good idea to have different bags or boxes; some for taking with you, some for taking to Goodwill or similar. You don’t have to take everything, and it’s better if you can clear some clutter as you go. For the clothes you are taking, don’t fold them; roll them instead. It saves a lot of space. Those rolled clothes can even be used as packing material for fragile items around the rest of the house (the mugs mentioned above are just one idea – there are plenty more). The same is true for pillows and bedding – they make excellent padding. Anything that needs to remain on a hanger can simply be slid into a rubbish bag, and the whole lot moved as one.
Shoes should be cleaned as much as possible before moving so that whatever they are packed with doesn’t get dirty. If you haven’t got the time or the inclination, make sure they are sealed in their own nylon or plastic bags. For precious and fragile items, you can even pack them inside your shoes to keep them safe, saving even more time and money on packing materials.
Photo by Ksenia Chernaya from Pexels
Packing Furniture
Any items of furniture that have handles sticking out can be a problem when moving – the handles can get caught and cause damage to walls or other items, or they can be knocked off during transit. Packing hacks to deal with that potential problem is to unscrew the handles and tape them to the inside of the drawers, along with the screws. That way, you can easily put them all back together when you reach your new place. Legs are another problem. Again, if you can remove them, that’s the easiest solution, but if not, make sure you wrap them in newspaper or bubble wrap. It will protect your floors and your furniture.
Mattresses can get very dirty between houses, and the last thing you want is to finally be ready for bed after a hard day or moving, only to discover that your mattress is filthy. Take two fitted sheets and put one on each side of the mattress. The only things you’ll need to wash are the sheets, and the mattress will stay clean.
Anything that you have to take apart to move will have plenty of small pieces and screws to go with it. Keep all of these items in a sandwich bag, and label it so you know exactly which piece of furniture it goes with. Don’t mix these items up; keep a separate bag for each piece of furniture. However, all the bags (adequately sealed) can go into one box, so you know exactly where everything is.
Packing Essentials
Finally, when it comes to packing hacks, it’s crucial to have a box of ‘essentials’ for when you arrive at your new property. This will contain things like toilet paper, shower gel, shampoo, nappies, milk, coffee, pet food, bin bags, chargers, a plate and a mug for everyone… You might also want to keep a change of clothes and some nightwear in there. With this box handy, you won’t have to do any unpacking until the next day when you’re rested. It will make that task a lot easier.