Practical packing tips

Some Practical Packing Tips

1. First of all, pack well in advance but leave a few necessities til last. Have a special box for things you’ll need the night before the long distance movers arrive and make sure everything else is neatly packed and sealed away before the big day. Every item in the overnight box should be essential- don’t use it for last minute things that didn’t fit in anywhere else.
2. Use socks to pack glasses and stemware. Socks that are midrise and taller works perfectly. You have to pack them anyway, so they might as well be put to good use.
3. Place a cotton ball or pad in with powder cosmetics to help keep them from breaking. Don’t ask how it works; it just does!
4. Use Glad Press’n Seal on drawers to secure contents. Why box all this stuff up? A dresser or nightstand is its own moving box; it simply needs a lid.
5. Place Styrofoam or paper plates in between plates and bowls to keep them from breaking.
6. Use suitcases, hampers, decorative baskets, picnic baskets, etc., to pack heavier items. A rolling suitcase is perfect for heavy electronics, shoes, or books.
7. If you have a fridge or freezer that needs defrosting manually, make sure you do this at least 24 hours prior to the movers’ arrival. Otherwise, you will be dealing with a mess all over the floor of your new home.
8. Mark at least two sides of every box with either words or colored stickers, so you know what room they go in, and which to open first. If you only label one side of the box it will likely end up facing the wall.
9. If you have some boxes with odds and ends, put a number on the box and create a master inventory list. Otherwise you probably will never remember that at the last minute you threw the coffee in with the dog’s treats and the toaster and shower curtain are in with toys from the playroom. Check cupboards and underneath beds for any item that might have been forgotten.
10. Canned goods are very easy to pack. The one thing to remember is not to put all your cans in a single box. For their weight cans are pretty heavy so it’s a good idea to spread the weight between a few different boxes.