How to Have a Stress-Free Move
In my old Manhattan apartment, I had accumulated WAY. too. much. stuff - hundreds of bottles of nail polish, dozens of beauty products, travel tchotchkes from 20 countries, 80lbs of unread magazines, and 7+ years of papers and bills. I didn’t want to look at it all anymore. It was time to purge, donate, and organize.
1. The Purge!
- Read Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Better yet, listen to it on audible. I can assure you - it is named appropriately!
- Purge a little each day and donate to local businesses. In NYC, I donated a TON of my things to Bottomless Closet (women's clothes for women entering the workforce), Materials for the Arts (art and nail art supplies, paint, notions, English wool from a past Thom Browne show), the Bowery Mission (linens, blankets, food, toiletries), and Housing Works (books, housewares, and everything else).
- Pre-organize your dressers by putting clothes, makeup (and in my case, nail products) in cute cardboard organizers like these from Ikea (I use them with the lid off). I like these because they fold flat to save space, yet are sturdy and cheap too. Not only does it keep things tidy in your drawers pre-move, it allows your clothes to stay folded and in order during the actual move. It took mere seconds to move these into my moving boxes and I didn’t have to worry about my perfect Marie Kondo-ed things getting out of order.
My Gel drawer, perfectly Marie Kondo'ed
2. Moving Day, Keep these things with you
Put them in a suitcase so it doesn't get mixed up with all your cardboard boxes - plus its simple to transport. I marked mine "Only Julie Moves" so it didn't get lost.
The obvi: Keys, passport, prescriptions, change of clothes.
The Irreplaceable: Yes, your favorite Chanel can be considered irreplaceable, but what I am referring to is jewelry (small and easy to lose), family heirlooms, photos you don’t have the originals for.
The Tech: Computer, camera, chargers, memory cards.
The things you may not realize you need immediately but you will be grateful to have on-hand: Pet food, scissors, a set or two of cutlery, hand soap and towel, a roll of toilet paper. Shower curtain and rings. Dish soap and sponge. Trash bags and string to tie boxes. Box cutter for opening boxes and breaking down.
Lastly: Buy a few ice packs for moving the contents of your fridge easier and stress-free. No wasted ice cream!
3. Choosing your Moving Company
I knew that when I moved I wanted to do a FULL decor re-do from my current apartment. But before the fun comes the stress: the move.
There's an old saying that goes "I hope you move a million times". Ouch! But it's true because moving can truly be the most stressful period in a person's life. That's why I chose Roadway Moving to move me from Manhattan to Brooklyn (they do long distance moves as well!). The day of my move, my Roadway moving team showed up right on time and jumped right in. I had decided to add on partial packing for things like my folded clothes and kitchen things. In less than 2 hours, my messy apartment was already almost all packed up - a task that would have taken me 3 weeks to do. They carefully wrapped my furniture, huge mirror, taped up spices and cleaning products.
My top tips when seeking a moving company:
- Ask a LOT of questions because moving companies are not all the same. Just because someone charges more doesn’t make them that much more superior! Don’t be afraid to ask why a company charges much more or less (and be sure the movers aren’t being paid unfairly).
- Ask real people who they used and if they would use them again. If they hesitate, ask for more info on why. Asking around led me to Roadway. I loved having someone come over for an in-home estimate as it’s impossible to say how many boxes you will have (10 medium boxes? Medium compared to what?). Plus I had a few friends move with Roadway - not to mention their excellent reviews. (PS if you use my code JULIEK you'll get 10% off your move!).
- Get at least three quotes. I got four! That way you know what to compare the first ones to and you can decide more fairly.
- Be sure your moving team marks the boxes specifically and on the top AND side, and face that out. It'll save you so much time and give you a stress-free move!
What was the best part of your last move? Was it more closet space? Moving in with your boyfriend? The delicious Greek restaurant next door? Tell me in the comments! Mine was finally having my beauty closet :)