Moving day comes with a lot of moving parts, and the small details can make a big difference. Here are four practical packing tips to help everything arrive safely and make your move a little smoother.
Tip 1: Pack Plates Standing Up
After wrapping your plates individually in packing paper, stand them up on their rims in a small or medium box. Never lay them flat. Plates are significantly more likely to break when laid horizontally because the pressure distributes unevenly during transit. Standing them upright on their rims is the same principle used by professional movers every day.
Tip 2: Use a Wardrobe Box for Clothes
Instead of folding and boxing all your shirts, pants, and jackets, use a wardrobe box. You transfer everything directly from your closet rod to the box with the hangers still attached, which means no folding, no wrinkling, and no repacking when you arrive. If you don’t have a wardrobe box, a simple alternative is to gather a bundle of hanging clothes, slip a garbage bag up from the bottom over the whole bundle, and tie it at the top around the hangers. It keeps everything together and protected without needing a box at all.
Tip 3: Pack Shoes in Wine Boxes
Old wine boxes are perfectly sized for shoes and already have built-in dividers that keep pairs separated and protected. If you’re worried about your shoes losing their shape during the move, stuff the toes with socks or tissue paper before packing them.
Tip 4: Pack Your Cooler Smart
If you’re moving perishables, a little planning goes a long way.
- Pack the cooler as close to departure time as possible so contents stay cold longer.
- Freeze water bottles or juice boxes beforehand and pack them last. Cool air travels downward, so frozen items should go on top of everything else in the cooler.
- If you’re worried about drips from melting ice, place frozen items in resealable bags first.
- Load the cooler last onto the truck so it can be the first thing you unload and access at your new home.
And a helpful reminder: not everything in your fridge actually needs to stay cold during a short move. Salted butter in an airtight container, ketchup, tomatoes, apples, berries, jam, bread, and shelf-stable grated parmesan can all travel outside the cooler without any issues.
Need Help With the Heavy Lifting?
These tips help with the details, but You Move Me handles everything else. Our team shows up prepared, treats your belongings with care, and makes sure moving day goes as smoothly as possible.