Moving is hard and stressful. It consists of many tasks that can eat your time and sanity. Packing is just one of them. Everyday stress is hard enough to handle, no one is looking forward to adding to it – especially the amount of stress moving brings. However, take a deep breath, the only thing you can do is prepare well. Today we’ll try to ease at least one aspect of the packing procedure. Namely, in this post, we’ll explain what the best way to Pack small items for a move is. Continue reading to find out everything you need to know about this seemingly small part of the big picture.

Pack small items into small, sealed boxes, and then pack these smaller boxes into larger containers

Small items are usually very loose while being transported. While larger items usually don’t have a lot of room to move, smaller ones are very “flexible”. This might cause them to get damaged while being transported inside of a movers’ van. That’s why you should first put them inside a small box or a bag, and then seal them so that they don’t fall out of their respective containers.

Once you’re done with that, place all of these smaller bags or Boxes into larger boxes. That way, all of your smaller items will be neatly organized and damage-proofed. Of course, make sure that all of these boxes or bags are strong and of good quality. If the boxes aren’t strong enough, they might break and then all your effort will be in vain.

Designate a “packing station”

Once you’ve acquired the right boxes, we recommend designating a certain area that you’ll use for packing. This “packing station” should be spacious and wide. Drag all the things that you’re planning to pack to this area, as well as everything that you’ll need for the packing process. Boxes, packing materials, sealing tape, labels… Everything should be in this room. That way, you’ll greatly expedite the packing procedure.

Decide which items you don’t need

Before beginning to pack, decide which items you actually need. You may be tempted to simply pack everything, even the things that you’ll almost certainly never have a need for. After all, even if there’s not enough room in your new home for all of the things that you own, there are always reliable storage facilities for your move.

However, while storage facilities are often very useful, it is probably much better to get rid of these unnecessary things. Or, even better, you can donate them to someone who will have a use for them. If you own some old clothes, for example, that have been out of style for ages, it’s probably best to give them away. Someone will have a much better use for them, instead of them sitting in your attic or in your storage unit, gathering dust in the years to come.

Pack essential small items that you’ll need right away in specially designated boxes

Each member of the family should have an individual box filled with their own respective small items. These boxes should only contain the bare necessities, such as bars of soap, a disposable razor, toothbrush, and toothpaste… These “personalized” containers can be very useful because unpacking takes time. You don’t want to rummage through your large boxes in order to find the essential small items.

Or, even worse, you don’t want to wait until such boxes are unpacked. That could mean you would be without soap or unable to brush your teeth for days. Place these small boxes individually, away from the other boxes, so you’ll know exactly where they are. If you decide to move house with some assistance, don’t place them in the movers’ van, but keep them with you while moving to your new home.

More useful tips

• Pack and label all the boxes according to the room where the things inside the boxes will be placed. Doing so will later greatly help you to unpack efficiently.
• Make a document detailing all the important paperwork. This could include the contact information of your real estate agent or the property owner, the number of the moving company if you decide to hire them, and so on.
• If you’ll be transporting very small items such as bolts and screws, it’s a good idea to tape them to your furniture (on the underside of the furniture, to be more precise). However, don’t forget to box such items first.
• Avoid standard garbage bags. While small items aren’t heavy, standard garbage bags still might easily break.
• Give something to do to all members of your family. This could be especially useful for your kids to more easily deal with moving stress, as it will provide them with a sense of having some control over the move.

Decide whether you’ll need professional help

When it comes to packing (no matter if it’s the small or large items that we’re talking about), you should decide whether you want to hire professionals to pack your items. Of course, you can do everything on your own but, like we said, moving is usually very hard. It may sound surprising, but according to some research, moving is the third most stressful thing that you can do in life!

Professional movers like divinemoving.com have a lot of experience with packing. They’re already aware of everything that we’ve discussed in this article. They know just what to do so that the packing (and moving) process goes as smoothly as possible. What’s more, they’ll save you plenty of time. On the other hand, doing everything on your own can be a fulfilling and rewarding experience. Since the answer to the question “Do I need professional help?” is entirely subjective, we must leave the decision to you.

Whatever you decide, if you follow our guidelines you should be able to pack small items efficiently and without too much trouble. Some of these tips are more generalized, and they also apply to packing large items as well. Whatever you do, try not to worry too much, as soon, it will be time for you to unpack and enjoy your new home. Good luck!