Preparing to Move

I am in the middle of getting ready for my first, real, not-coming-back, move out of my parents house. It's been a long time coming, but I still don't seem to be very prepared for it, practically speaking. Thankfully it is within the same city, so I have the ability to move slowly, which needs to happen because of the time frames I have for myself. I should be getting the keys on Wednesday and can start moving my things in then, but I head out of town for a long weekend on Friday until Monday and hope to be fully living in my new place on July 1 - the original date that my landlord and I had agreed upon (he's being nice and letting me move in a little early, because it's empty anyway).

Some things that I have been doing slowly over the last week or so to get ready for the move:

1. Collecting boxes and bins - I am moving within the same city that I already live in, so I am not using a mover and am also hoping to not have to purchase any moving boxes. I have some storage bins that I have purchased for the move, but they will be useful for after the move as well. Aside from that, I have been trying to get boxes wherever I can; the majority have come from work, actually - printer paper boxes with their lids are fantastic and we would just be recycling them at work anyway! (Make sure you have permission to take boxes from work, you never know if there is already a designated use for them).

2. Packing the majority of my clothing into suitcases - Since I am moving within the same city and will just be making multiple trips with the help of some family and friends (and their vehicles), I have decided to just pack my clothing in suitcases; my suitcases need to move too and I figured this would be easier than trying to find even more boxes to put it all in.

3. Organizing and packing kitchen supplies - I have been collecting a lot of kitchen supplies over the last 5ish years, and up until now they were all living in our laundry room closet where I had no clue what I actually owned anymore. A couple weeks ago I started going through everything and packing what I could into storage bins while creating an inventory on my computer of what is within each bin. I pretty much have my entire kitchen ready to go, minus a few pots and pans.

4. Brainstorming (and sometimes purchasing) odds and ends - For over a month I have been adding to a running list that I keep on my phone of different things that I will need for my new place that aren't exactly big ticket items that are easy to think of. As I get closer and closer to my move I try to be conscious of items that I use within a day and if something isn't on the list and will definitely be needed once I move, I add it on. I have purchased some of these things and have set them aside for the move - these are things like dish soap and dish cloths (to wash all of the new kitchen stuff before putting it all away),  cleaning supplies (the place should be clean before I move in, but you never know), hand soap, and toilet paper. These are just a few of the things that I don't want to be caught in my new place without and having to run out right then to go and find before continuing on with my unpacking.

Since I'm in the same city as my parents, I am purposely leaving things like setting up internet and change of address until I am settled, since I can have my mail delivered to their house a little longer and if I desperately need internet I can pay them a visit too.

Other than that, I really haven't been doing much to get ready, just lots and lots of thinking and planning, but I haven't been actively, physically been doing much else. As I mentioned, this is my first big move out, so I am starting up a new place, not just moving a whole house to a new one. I still think this moving prep could be helpful if you are already established in your own place and are planning a move to somewhere new, you just might not need to stock up on as many "essentials" as I need to - you just might need to corral them into one bin or box and make sure it gets to the new place first.

Any tips on more things I can do to prepare for my move? They would be much appreciated!

Downsizing

I have come to realize that I have too much stuff.  This has been a pretty slow realization, and even once I began to realize it a little over a year ago, I still kept on accumulating more and more stuff - I just felt better about it because I was getting rid of so much too (does not make sense, but that psychology worked for me for a bit).  

Being in the preparation stage of my first big move has made me realize it now more than ever. I am seriously a consumer and, for a very long time, I was an advertiser’s dream.  But not anymore!  I have cut back on my accumulation of stuff substantially and I have been trying to be extremely real with myself when evaluating the place of each of my belongings in my current lifestyle. 

I have had it pretty great at my parents’ house; I have a large room with a large closet completely to myself, but I have also been able to spread out all over the house. The laundry room, which is neighbouring my own room, has a full closet that has housed all of my “future home” items (the things my mother and father purchased for and gifted to me, starting with Christmas in Grade Twelve, for when I move out - talk about hinting! ;) ) and the rest of the room houses much of my office-type furniture and belongings alongside the washer and dryer. The space outside my bathroom has a whole dresser full of my makeup, towels, hair products, and hair tools, and I even have a closet in the front entryway that is filled with my coats and shoes.  It never seemed like much over the years, but listing it here, I realize I have been completely spoiled with space. I certainly cannot fit all of this in my small room once I move.

So, I am still downsizing. Thankfully I have a month before I need to actually move the items that make the cut.  I do have the added benefit of living in the same city as my parents, so I do have the option of storing a few things with them. Out of season clothing, extra luggage, and not-frequently-used household items will probably make a home in the laundry room closet as we have pretty much no storage space in our place. 

Any tips on how to be brutally honest with yourself when downsizing? I am trying, but I think I need to be a little more tough!

Big Steps

In a little over a month I will be moving out for the first time! I guess it’s not technically the first time, because I moved to Muenster for my first year of university and I moved to Halifax for summer 2012 - but this will be the first time that doesn’t have an end date. My first legit moving out. It’s pretty exciting!  This certainly could have come much earlier, but there were many reasons why I chose to wait and save and spend a bit more time at home.  

As I prepare to move I have to hold myself back from going crazy purchasing items for my new home.  I’ll be sharing with two other women in their early twenties, and none of us have anything other than what goes in our bedrooms, the rest of our place is completely unfurnished and it is both exciting and daunting to think about.  

What’s nice is we don’t have any large pieces of furniture that we need to think about or work around when decorating, so we can really go any route.  This is a rental, so we won’t be able to change anything about the paint (our landlord is taking the month of June to freshen up the place - but it is pretty much perfect already as is!), but it’s going to be a light tan, so that’s about as neutral as it goes.  

I have a few ideas that I’ll share as time goes on, but I would love to hear some suggestions. Our living room and dining room are one long room, so we have a nice open concept, and there is room for a substantial dining set along with a full living room set. Any suggestions for colours, themes, textures, or perfect pieces that are on your wishlist?  Please share!