Do you really need to keep dragging around your aunt's antique blender? Moving is the perfect time to downsize; not only does it give you fewer objects to move, but it also gives you the fresh start you need to begin re-decorating and re-organizing from scratch. Nevertheless, it can be a little difficult to separate the indispensable from the disposable.
Here are a few tips for going through your items before you begin packing your moving boxes.
If you haven't touched an item in a year, it's likely that you don't really need it. Consider holding a large garage sale of all the items that you either haven't used frequently or haven't even unboxed from your last move.
Though it may be something you can see yourself needing in the future, it probably isn't something that you've actually needed if you haven't been using it. The things that are deepest in storage in your home are likely the items that you've been using the least.
Which items in your home would you end up replacing if they were lost? How much would it cost to replace them? Asking yourself these questions is an excellent strategy for separating the things that you need from the things that you want.
If an item's replacement value isn't very high, you may consider getting rid of it and simply seeing if you need it again. If it's an item that you would definitely seek to replace within the next year, you're probably better off moving it.
Glassware, dishes, and other fundamental items have a tendency to multiply. If you don't want to be carting box after box of glass into your new kitchen, you may want to consider paring down to just the best of your items. Most people aren't going to need to have two dozen shot glasses or a dozen tumblers.
Similarly, you may want to cull things like cleaning products and toiletries down to only the things that you actively use.
Of the things that you do want to keep, you can focus on reducing volume if not quantity. Organizing things in trays, boxes, and other storage containers will make them far easier to move. Things like cutlery, for instance, can be organized and put away before they are packed, so they take up less space and are therefore easier to transport.
At the same time, you may want to disassemble any items that you're going to be storing (or that are simply cumbersome to move), such as shelving and certain items of furniture.
There may be some things that you can't bear to part with but that you just don't have space for in your new home (or you simply don't use very often). This could include old furniture that you hope to someday give to your children, boxes of documents that you may someday need, or simply seasonal items that are only important once a year.
For these items, you might want to consider getting a self-storage unit. When you move, you can direct your movers to take certain boxes to your new home and certain boxes to your self-storage unit. Voila! All taken care of.
As you pack, you can continue to go through and organize things with the above tips in mind. Hopefully you'll be able to move only your essentials. But before you get started, you may want to schedule your move.
Contact Los Flores Movers today to take care of all the items that you do want to save.
