Wow, such an exciting time, you have either just purchased your first home and are getting ready to move out of your apartment. Or you just sold your longtime home to move into a better one. The excitement is there and then you turn around and look at all of your stuff and you start to panic with how much you have to do. But I’m here to help you take a deep breath and let you know it’s going to be okay, you are going to do great and here are a few tips and tricks to help you get it all done in an organized and efficient way. 

Declutter Before Packing - This should always be your first step before you start to pack. Getting rid of the stuff that doesn’t matter or you haven’t used in years. Do it room by room. Start a donate and trash pile. And start going to town on your closet, your bathroom drawers, your linen closet, the spice cabinet, pantry, etc. You will be surprised about what you have been holding onto for no reason. Now once that is all done and you have thrown away what needed to be thrown away and you took the donate pile to goodwill. I recommend doing it again. Sometimes I find that when I go through the first time I hold onto something even though deep down I know I should have gotten rid of it. Trust me get rid of it you don’t need it, this is coming from someone who has moved many times.  

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Create a Checklist - Who doesn’t love a good list. Create a checklist per room and set deadlines for each room. If you want to get really crazy you can create a sublist under the rooms. For instance you can put Kitchen, but that may seem daunting. So under Kitchen you can have the sublist of Pantry, serving plates, spice cabinet, dishes, utensils. Because by doing this you can start with the stuff you don’t need or only use for special occasions. You can use this for the bedroom as well, maybe a sublist will start in the closet and you pack the season of clothes that you aren’t using. But a checklist helps you be able to breathe a little, remember that phrase, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time,” use this same analogy for packing. Do one room at a time. 

Use the Good Boxes - Do yourself a favor and go and get the good boxes that are sturdy. There is nothing worse than when you load up a box that has been used prior and when you go to pick it up after you packed it perfectly and it falls through the bottom. Also, don’t over pack the boxes you won’t be able to move them or pick them up safely. 

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Colorcode - Another checklist for you. Write down all of the rooms on a list and assign a color or symbol to that room. Then use that same color or symbol  on the box with the name of the room. So when you move into the new house you know exactly which room to put that box in. Or if you hire movers they are able to immediately have direction and know where to put the boxes. Want to take it one step further and be super organized, as you are packing that box, make a list of what is going in it, and then tape that list to the box as well. Then you won’t be rummaging through all the boxes to look for that one thing you needed. You will know where it is.