Moving is a stressful experience.
It takes a lot of time, effort and planning. However, sometimes it’s a necessary evil. Organization should be your first priority in order for you to make your move as stress free as possible. In addition, make sure you unpack as soon as you can. If you don’t, things might continually get pushed back and lead to a house that is never fully unpacked! Set a deadline and do something every day to help you unpack and move in.
In terms of new home organization, some people are naturals and others need a little help. If you’re one of those that need guidance, read on. We’ve put a few of our favorite room-specific tips together in order to make your move easier and organize your new home.
Think Ahead
One of the best ways to get ahead in organizing your new home is to pack strategically. When you do this, you take away tons of unnecessary stress of having to dig through box after box and sort things into their respective places. Instead, we recommend labeling all of your moving boxes and making sure that you pack boxes for each room rather than just throwing everything in at once. After you pack each box, make sure that you label them with writing, stickers or tape. When the boxes are labeled, movers can easily put them into their respective rooms and save you the hassle. Additionally, it is a great idea to put the essentials that you’ll need right away into one box and label it “open first.” This way you make sure that you don’t have to dig through every box to find things that you’ll need right away.
Another important thing to do is to make sure that your new home is completely cleaned before you unpack. The previous owners should have done some cleaning, but after time things can still get a bit dusty. Clean all of your rooms, carpets, lighting fixtures, filters and appliances prior to unpacking any boxes. In addition, install any shelves or storage additions you might need prior to unpacking.
If you haven’t already, decide each rooms’ purpose prior to unpacking. Put all of the larger pieces of furniture in place first and then go from there. This way, you at least have places to sit, eat and sleep while you begin organizing your new home. It’s better to unpack things that you’ll need first rather than smaller, less used, items and decorations.
Kitchen
The kitchen is a great place to start. When you unpack the kitchen first, you forgo any temptation to order unhealthy take-out food night after night. However, it can be a bit difficult to determine how to set up your kitchen for the best functionality. Walk into your new kitchen before you unpack and take a few moments to assess the space. Consider the location of the appliances, cabinets and the pantry. You’ll want to use the space efficiently and put cups, plates, cookware, utensils and food in areas that make sense. For instance, putting your pots and pans near your stove makes much more sense than storing them on the other side of the kitchen. Dedicate certain areas for certain uses so that you can visualize everything prior to unpacking. If you come across any boxes that have holiday kitchen items in them, consider putting them into storage until you need to use them. If you don’t have the space to unpack them, there’s no need to keep them around until the holidays.
Once you unpack your kitchen, you’ll feel a bit more at home. Head to the grocery store, stock up your pantry and put your kitchen to use with some home-cooked meals.
Bedroom
Another area you’ll want to focus on is the bedroom. After a long day of unpacking and organizing, it’s nice to be able to head into your bedroom and feel relaxed. When every thing is still in boxes, it’s hard to get that feeling. Begin by putting all of your large items in their respective places. Consider your floor plan and try a few different arrangements to see what you like best. After you have everything in place, start unpacking your clothing and accessories. When you’re unpacking try out some new organization tricks. Here are some of our favorites:
- Hang your jewelry instead of using counter space
- Hang scarves and purses on hooks
- Add a bookshelf to your closet for shoe storage
- Get dividers for dressers and closet shelves
- Put things you don’t use often under your bed or in a storage unit
Another thing we recommend is letting your children unpack their own bedrooms. Get all of their furniture in place and all of the bigger items, and then let them unpack it like they want. This is a great way for them to build up their personal space and helps distribute the workload. It’s the perfect chance for them to have a fresh start. Try and give them a deadline and offer help if they need it.
Living Room
Your living room brings your family together. It gives you a chance to bond, socialize and relax as a whole. When your living room is filled with boxes, it gives off a feeling of stress and unfinished business. We recommend planning out how your furniture will be arranged prior to moving in to make things go more smoothly, but don’t be afraid to change things up and try new arrangements. You’ll know when you find the right one. After you get all of your big furniture in place, you can start to unpack all of the smaller things. Set up your entertainment center and make plans to hide any cords that you want out of sight. It’s always nice to have a family room to spend quality time in after a long day of unpacking while organizing your new home.
Bathroom
Having a well-organized bathroom is one of the greatest feelings. When you’re packing for your move, go through all of your toiletries and throw away anything that is old, expired or that you never use. This will not only make packing easier, but it will help you stay organized when you start to unpack. You can donate anything that you don’t use or give them to friends and family.
When you start to unpack, consider utilizing vertical storage. This helps keep the bathroom spacious while also making sure everything you need is in arms reach. There are tons of options, but our favorites are shelving units that go over the toilet. These units don’t take up any floor space and give you an ample amount of space to store towels, extra toilet paper and toiletries.
Garage
A garage is a man’s best friend. Make sure that you don’t neglect this space, as it often gets taken for granted. You can use your garage for extra storage or even as a warm place to hangout in the winter months. If you have a large garage and only need space for one car, you have a ton of opportunity. If you’re a bit tighter on space, consider hanging bicycles and storing things high off the ground. You can also install pegboards to keep things organized.
Boxes
You are sure to accumulate quite the collection of boxes during your new home move. Some people prefer to save them for later use while others like to get rid of them as soon as possible. We definitely recommend getting rid of them to keep your home clutter free and organized. Put them online for free pickup and let people know where to find them. Just leave them on your driveway and we guarantee they won’t last long.
You may begin to unpack and realize that you don’t have as much space for storage as you used to. While you can add a few shelves here and there, our best solution is renting out a self-storage unit for anything that you don’t use or need on a daily basis. You can also find a ton of great organization tips here. At The Lock Up Self Storage, we offer weatherproof, climate controlled self-storage units that are sure to fit every budget. Head over to www.thelockup.com to check out our selections.
