The hassle-free guide to packing

So you’ve sold your house and bought a new one – now the work of moving really begins! Packing up and moving your family and all your worldly possessions can be a little daunting. So we’ve canvassed our Harcourts team and our Facebook audience to put together a few packing tips and tricks to help the whole process go as smoothly as possible.

• Pack paper plates between your dinner plates to reduce the chance of breakages. We’ve had loads of suggestions from Facebook for variations on this one such as using your tea towels, pillowcases, hand towels, face cloths or clothing instead of the paper plates to kill two packing birds with one stone! Layers of paper towels or folded serviettes is another great option – plus you can re-use them for cleaning when you’re unpacking.
• Pack fragile, awkward shaped items in inflated plastic bags if they’re too delicate to wrap in bubble wrap.
• Leave your clothes in their drawers and cover with newspaper to avoid having to pack into boxes.
• Use wine boxes to pack glasses and fragile ornaments. Then stack them inside other boxes for extra protection.
• Pack an “unpacking day” box so you have easy access to essentials such as the kettle, mugs as well as tea and/or coffee, as well as a few quick, portable snacks.
• It’s a good idea to also pack one box that will get the whole family through the first night, so you don’t need to rummage through everything to find bedding, plates, pyjamas and toothbrushes.
• When you’re moving with children it’s a good idea to have them pack a box of their favourite things as way to get them engaged and excited about the move – as well as reassured that their things are moving with them. Have them write their name on it or decorate the box so they can recognise it, and if possible, load it into the car or truck themselves.
• If you have a portable clothes rack keep your clothes on hangers on the rack collected into wardrobe lots covered in plastic rubbish bags. Then you can hang them straight back up in groups when you arrive.
• When you’re packing your boxes make sure you label them with the relevant room, for ease of unpacking.
• Take photos of all the cords plugged into televisions and other electronic set-ups, so you can reconnect them easily after unpacking. And label each cord as you pack.
• If you are downsizing, it can make the moving process less stressful if you pack and move some of your belongings into storage, rather than having to get rid of a lot of your belongings in the midst of moving.