Moving soon

Get physical help on the day, I've done moves stubbornly and suffered, hated to ask but now I would

Pay the removers to pack. It’s around £200 extra for a 4 bed house, but so worth it.
Our packers took 2days. After a while I went out and left them to it. (Also left DH at home to twiddle his thumbs!)
They pack everything, like locusts. Just provide lots of cups of tea and biscuits!

Ive only obvious suggestions but definitely, pack the kettle, milk, tea/coffee and mugs in a box that goes in last, marked very clearly so you can find it easily. Think about food for the moving day - either cook something that can be heated, or preferably, identify a local take away to deliver to you .
Pack items that go together and mark the boxes very clearly so you don't have to rummage about.
Yes de-clutter, then de-clutter again.

Get a good removal company in and let them do it all. Ours were brilliant and it was stress free. Worth the money.

I wanted to pay removers to pack but DH said we should do it so we know where everything is. [hmmm]

The removers will mark the packing cases with room and what’s in there! For example; kitchen, serving dishes.

Label boxes, and not down what is in them.

Agree with Iam64 're the kettle etc, but would add that the first thing to on arrival at the new house is to make up the bed!

I'll have a word with our removers and see what they can do for us.

Ask them if they supply wardrobe boxes. Your clothes are just taken out of your wardrobes, go straight onto hangers in the boxes and are then put straight into your wardrobes at the other end. Saves a lot of buggering about.

We moved today with 2 lorry loads . We had 6 strapping great lads who packed and labelled everything.

They dismantled and reassembled furniture for transport and we're fabulous.

They packed yesterday leaving just essentials. Finished this morning and completed the job by 5pm.

It was stress free and although we have a gazillion boxes all the right boxes are in the right room and clearly labelled with contents.

Money well spent in my opinion I wouldn't do it any other way !

In your new home, sort out your bed/s early on moving day, so when you are worn out, you can fall into a bit of comfort.

Pack a box with a kettle, cups and tea/coffee, milk etc. and take it with you in your car so it is to hand as soon as you need it.

Decide your evening meal plan well in advance.

Good luck! xx

Run the contents of your freezer right down so there's not so much to move and you're not worrying about the contents defrosting.

If it's anything as bad as our last one, get a prescription for Valium. But I'm sure it won't be, most go smoothly.

As soon as possible make up your bed. You will need it and probably won't have any energy left by bedtime.

Oops - Sorry Phoenix - just saw that you said that. Also label boxes on all sides and the top so that you can read them if stacked.

Agree with definitely paying the removers to pack. Worth every penny.

Work out before hand where each piece of furniture has to go and then stand in the new hall and direct the men as to where exactly to place things. They're brilliant at it.

Some items of furniture can be left as they are, moved with drawers taped shut, resist the urge to unpack everything and put it into boxes......I have done 18 moves and made un -necessary work for myself, now I tape chest of drawers shut (tape over card so not to spoil furniture).......easier by far.

Leave drawares full if that is the best you can manage due to weight of furniture and just slot them back in when you arrive.

Get the number of the local take a way and have hot meal delivered....you will need it.

Spend the first night with family, friends or in a B&B. At the end of what is usually a busy, if not frenetic day, and often emotional, you are left in your new home surrounded by boxes furniture and belongings and all is chaos.

Shut the door, go away and have a good night's sleep in a quiet and calm location. You will arrive back at your new home the following morning revitalised and ready to start sorting your new home out with renewed vigour.

Definitely agree about paying removal company to pack. We did this on our last move (24 years ago) and will do it on our next - due soon! When you are young it may seem easier to do it yourself - but it's not in later life!

Get plenty of strong boxes, and old news papers. Near me there is a place that sells packing stuff cheaply. What I did was several weeks before I moved have a box in every room, and label it ie...lounge, front bedroom etc. I then started going through cupboards and drawers and filling with things that I rarely used. When 1 box is full start another, and stack them in the spare room. Use as much food as possible as saves moving it.

Our removal men said they preferred to do the packing as then the boxes weren't overloaded and were all similar shapes so the van is easier to pack. It did mean a few more boxes, but unpacking was a lot more rewarding as space became free so much quicker! And we had happier removal men.

(They collected the paper and boxes after we'd unpacked too)

I agree with what others have said about getting the removers to pack. And we planned ahead where all of our furniture should go so that we didn't need to move anything afterwards - we put labels on each piece stating the room it was going in. For one of our moves which was across country, we asked for a floor plan from the agent so that we could do this.

I started months in advance, decluttering and packing “ stuff” I wouldn’t need for a while, ornaments, seasonal clothes, excess crockery etc. So when the move came it was just last minute bits so was not too stressful.