Moving Tip 4 - KEEP IT TOGETHER

Keep things together.  Insist on keeping things together when you are packing boxes.  Keep bookends with books, light bulbs with lamps, extension cords with appliances.  Attach small parts to the item using tape or small envelopes— to keep picture hooks with pictures, shelf brackets with a bookcase, a special wrench and bolts with the wall unit.  Keep larger items (such as a cable TV cord) in Ziplock bags, and tape these to the underside or back of the item.  As a backup, have a “Parts Box” open on the kitchen counter and fill it with cables, cords, parts, pieces, brackets, or nails that are removed form any items of furniture.  Keep this box with you, or mark it well with a rainbow of colored stickers so it can be easily located on move-in day

Moving Tip 5 - COLOR COORDINATE

Designate a color for each room of the house (yellow = kitchen, orange = dining room, etc.)  Add colored stickers next to the box number on the box and the movers will know where to put everything. 

In your new home put a matching sticker on the door to each room.  In addition, put a notice on the walls where you want boxes stacked (“Boxes here please”), to keep them out of furniture and traffic areas.

Moving Tip 6 - PACK AHEAD

Anything you can pack ahead will save you time on moving day.  Box up your shampoo and extra toothpaste and live out of a travel cosmetic case for the last week or two. 

Pare down cooking utensils and food supplies to bare essentials.  Wastebaskets can also be packed while you switch to using plastic grocer bags (hang them on a cabinet door or door handle to collect trash.)