Moving is considered one of life's major stress inducing events, along with divorce and a death in the family. We just moved and are still in the recovery stages, swearing to ourselves that we will never do this again. Even though we didn't do everything the easy way, we did one thing right.
What really saved us in the first week of moving was a tiered labeling system on our boxes so we had easy access to what we needed right away. These few boxes (labeled "open first") traveled with us in our car so we knew we could count on clean sheets and clean underwear when we arrived. The second tier of boxes were things we would want in first month and the third tier were items that could wait longer.
Think about your basic needs in the first week of your move, then pack 4-6 boxes with items that fill those needs. Also, don't forget to check these tasks off your "to do" list before moving. It seems obvious, but in the mayhem of moving the most trivial things are forgotten :
1. You have to eat, therefore you have to unpack the kitchen right away. However, you don't need serving dishes and china. Just the basics will do for a week or two.
When breaking down your kitchen, pack one box with the items that you use every day like a few glasses, coffee cups, utensils, plates, cereal bowls, a pot and a skillet. Mark this box with an "open first" label and be prepared to wash dishes frequently. You could use paper products but that wouldn't be the most environmentally friendly choice, would it?
2. Clothing is an important consideration, especially if you have to go be dressed for work right after your move. You don't want to be rushing to work with only a ratty pair of sneakers to wear and have to do an emergency shopping trip (which is exactly what my husband did).
Before packing your closet up, plan ahead for the week after your move. Do you have a work meeting? A party to attend? Will you be going to the gym? Pack a separate box or suitcase with a week's worth of necessary clothing. Ideally, the rest of your clothes can be packed in boxes that are labeled by season so you won't have to unpack sweaters in the middle of the summer to find your tank tops.
3. What do you take for granted but must have on a daily basis? Think simple (this isn't a philosophical question).
Pack a box of essentials with items like toilet paper, trash bags, clean sheets, shower curtain, kitchen and bath towel(s), paper towels, kitchen sponge or rag, multi-purpose cleaning products, pet food, medications and basic toiletries. Dr. Bronner's Magic soap is an efficient addition because you can use it as a shampoo, bath soap, dish soap and just about anywhere else. Don't forget to add power cords and chargers to this box and label it "open first".
4. Even though you won't feel like dealing with it, there will be paperwork and bills to attend to in the first weeks of your move. Save yourself the trouble of weeding through boxes of papers you should have filed before, trying to find the most vital, current paperwork. Learn from our mistakes. . . and headaches.
Sort your paperwork into two file boxes. One is for your current bills, calendar, and vital documents. The other box is for anything else that you can file and organize later. Label them accordingly, and just worry about the active items for now.
Of course, the key to an easy moving transition is the big "O"--- organization. This is easier said than done, as it requires time and planning in advance. We started out our move with all the best intentions and with a stellar organizational system. Then we ran out of time, threw things in boxes, and arrived at our new home in chaos. At least we knew where to find the toilet paper and toothpaste.
Which boxes do you open first?
Images: Cavitt on flickr, licensed under Creative Commons, file boxes on Apartment Therapy
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My husband and I moved into our first house just over a month ago and unpacking the kitchen first was a serious lifesaver. We were having our wood floors redone and being able to access things in the kitchen actually made it feel a little like home amidst the chaos.
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Many of my moves were done in surges, not all in one fell swoop. This helps a LOT, if you can arrange it. (Ideally I like a month of overlap between the old place and the new one, with the majority of the move in the last week.)
Even my one cross-country move was done in stages -- I took what I could in my car, the basics of work clothes, minimal kitchen and other necessities, etc. I bought (second hand) furniture at the new end of things, and my parents came to visit me later with a U-Haul containing the rest of my stuff.
I hate the post-move chaos, so I plan ahead, I know what I need to get and where things need to go. I try to unpack everything in a week if not working yet, a month if I am. If you know where every box needs to be and you have the necessary hangers, storage spots, etc. ready to go, things can move out of the boxes right where they will live pretty quickly. Crash the boxes down and move them on out -- curbside if you use Freecycle to pass them along, or to whatever paper recycling center you can use... I work really hard at it until it's done then breathe a sigh of relief!
I just moved this weekend and it's probably been the least painful move to date. I did a huge sort-and-throw/donate/sell before we moved and I'm doing another one as we unpack.
While I didn't have boxes of "unpack me first" stuff, I had an open bin and a large canvas bag where I threw in the last minute items that we'd need first upon arriving ie. toothbrush, toothpaste, shower curtain rings (I didn't take off our old shower curtain until the night before so I couldn't really pack those things in advance) etc. and the bin had a new shower liner, toothpaste, clean sheets etc. basically things that I had spares of which I could pack in advance.
Our kitchen is almost set up though I still have to clean the fridge and stove. I've wiped out and set up all the cabinets and put away the extra dishes/utensils we don't need. Last night I started working on our closet which needed major re-vamping since we're now sharing a closet!! I got the Joy Mangano huggable hangers from the Container Store to maximize space and I have to say: THEY WORK! I've been able to fit a ton of stuff and there's still room on my side of the closet and I keep wondering how all this stuff keeps fitting!
My goal is to be unpacked completely by the end of this week (ikea trip planned for saturday to get extra shelves and storage boxes) and to be organized by next week. It's a bit ambitious but I don't think I can let it linger, it'll drive me nuts!
p.s. I love apartment therapy!! my first time commenting here! :)
There's a benefit to being rather spartan with your belongings if you happen to move a lot. Usually unpacking only will take a day or so, depending on how dedicated you are to the task. I just try to make sure I have some kind of sleeping space set up along with any household necessities like TP and shower stuff.
The labels are a huge help, though I print my own (#5163, Arial Narrow bold), so I can add things like "Books" to some. Always stick labels on BOTH ends/sides of a box -- that way there's no wrong way to stack it against a wall. Print far more than you think you'll need, and have two Sharpies in your pocket because you'll lose one. Get a packing tape gun, and a cheap retractable box knife. Good luck!
I am moving in three weeks. This whole series could not have come at a better time. I liked Trish's moving box idea. I always forget where I put the toilet paper, though I got lucky last time and my landlord had left a roll for me, just in case :-)
Whenever I move, after unearthing the essentials (towels, toiletries, obviously) I always start first with things that are easy and have an obvious place to go. Books go in the bookshelves. Plates and cups go in the cupboard. Clothes out of the wardrobe boxes and into the closet. Even if I rearrange them later, at least it lets me get some of the boxes (especially those giant wardrobes) out of the space so that I can move around and spread out with the stuff that needs a little more thought. While I like the idea of getting the entire kitchen done first, in theory, the reality is that I'd much rather not be stumbling around hundreds of boxes between the bedroom and the bathroom the next morning just so I can be sure I got that jar of cardamom exactly where I wanted it in the spice cabinet, or put my ice cream maker attachment just so over the fridge.
Of course the last thing I end up unpacking is exactly the same as the last thing I packed in the first place - the box full of all those random paper clips, rubber bands, earring backs and loose change I found in every drawer and cabinet and couldn't decide what to do with.
We just completed a move and for weeks I've been going on about doing the "open me first" box. That somehow did NOT happen. We wound up without a shower curtain, so we just put towels down on the bathroom floor and let them get wet. We had no toilet paper, so we used kleenex. We did pack our bedding last minute into couple of trash bags, so at least those were easy to find and we slept like two logs that night! The next day we unpacked almost EVERYTHING. I was so tired by the end of the weekend, but now we can fully relax in our new place. The unpacking frenzy was well worth it!
In my last move, rather than packing up all of my clothes, I took the drawers out of my dresser and moved them separately.
I knew that I could fit my drawers in the back of my car, but not my dresser. It took 2 trips, but I didn't need to pack and unpack a stitch - everything was in its place!
We moved recently and thought we had all the "must unpack" stuff covered. Got ready to take a shower the next morning, had a few towels, soap, lotion, etc. ready to go. That's when we realized we had no idea where the shower curtain was.
The very first thing? Sheets and blankets and make a soft place to crash!
The first thing I always do is put my bed together and put the bedding on. The last thing you want is to be putting together a bed later that day when it's time to sleep.