Ferny Hills 
Moving house is one of the most stressful things you can do in your lifetime. In fact, it’s right up there with the death of a family member. So, even for this reason alone, it’s important to try to ensure the move is executed seamlessly.
We came up with our top six tips to help you move house as smoothly as possible.
#1 Label and List
So you start packing boxes and believe that you can remember everything that’s in the boxes and where they need to go in your new home? If this is the case, chances are you will find yourself opening and rummaging through boxes in your new home, looking for that special something that you were sure was in “that” box.
Labelling each box eg with ‘Kitchen’, ‘Bed 1’, ‘Bathroom’ etc will ensure the removalist or friends helping with the move can place the boxes in the designated rooms, making it so much easier when you get to your new home.
Plus, if you write a brief list of contents, it can help you to recall what’s in the box. This is particularly helpful if you’re on a tight time limit and you need to prioritise which boxes you unpack first. Note: It’s important to keep any valuables with you – don’t pack these in boxes.
#2 Care of Fragile items
Take special care with items that could break easily. You can use paper to wrap each item but often it’s easier to use socks, tea towels, doonas and other soft materials to wrap glasses, mugs, dinner plates and Grandma’s Royal Doulton tea set.
#3 Hang onto the Hangers
Instead of removing each clothing item from its hanger, keep them on and simply layer, wrap and slip them into a bin liner or similar. If any hangers come loose and fall off, they will just fall into the liner. At least this way, you won’t lose any hangers in the move.
#4 Take a Quick Pic
If you have a particular display and you’re worried you might forget how to set it up again, ie an heirloom display or China cabinet etc, take some photos, before, during and after packing. This will take the stress out of re-dressing the cabinet and making it look shmick when you get to your new home.
#5 Purge while you Pack
As you pack, be scrupulous about what things you don’t need in your new home, or what clothes you haven’t worn or need. Make piles of ‘to be donated’ and ‘to sell’ items, and action these piles before you move. Your move will be a whole lot ‘lighter’ for your effort.
#6 Essential Eskies
On moving day, you’ll need to empty your fridge and freezer. Make sure you’ve got a few Eskies with plenty of ice packs, or you might even have a camping fridge/freezer – this would be ideal. Pack all your refrigerated and frozen food items into the Eskies for travel to your new home. You may need to have the Eskies sitting for a while to wait for your fridge to arrive and reset so don’t be tempted to open them. If you need drinks or snacks in the meantime, make sure you pack these in a separate Esky to avoid opening the main ones.
Do you have any packing tips? Share them below!
