In the movie The Incredible, Helen calls her husband Bob at work to celebrate a “momentous occasion”:
Helen: We are officially moved in.
Bob: And the last three years don’t count because?
Helen: Because I have finally unpacked the last box!
The scene is funny specifically because it is something that anyone who has ever moved can relate to. Some people go years without ever getting their homes completely unpacked. We’ve even heard stories of people who move again before they’ve even unpacked from their last move! Unpacking does not have to be a tedious, painful, or time-consuming process. Follow these tips and you will get unpacked faster.
It is all about How you pack
When you pack your belongings, you should be thinking about unpacking. This means that the goal shouldn’t be to get items in as few boxes as possible. It should be to keep all things together in a logical way. Put all your cups together in one box and label it “kitchen cups”. Put all your towels together in another box and label it “towels”. Then you can just open the box and unload all the items to where they need to go in your new home without having to run around placing individual items.
Use a color-coding system for rooms
This is one of the most important things you can do for saving time with unpacking. Get some colored labels at an office supply store and assign one color to each room. At the new home, put the appropriate colored stick on the door of each room. The movers can then unload boxes where they need to go, saving you the hassle of running around between rooms when unpacking.
Pay for furniture assembly services
Moving is expensive, so you may want to cut costs by doing as much of it yourself as possible – including putting your furniture back together after the move is complete. But remember how difficult and annoying it was to assemble that IKEA bookshelf when you got it? Imagine assembling all of your furniture, and at a time when you are already tired and stressed! Professional movers are trained at furniture assembly. They can do it much faster than you can, so you can focus on getting unpacked.
Unpack in order
As a general rule, you want to unpack by room and do it in this order:
• Beds and bedding
• Bathroom
• Kitchen
• Rest of bedroom
• Living room
• Dining room
• Other rooms
Don’t unpack electronics yet! You will be too tempted to relax instead of focusing on unpacking.
Decorating
You don’t want to start drilling holes all over your walls to hang pictures, only to realize you want them in another spot. But you also don’t want to prolong the decorating process because you “can’t decide” where to put things. Strike a balance. First get all the major pieces of furniture in their places and your main belongings unpacked. Put all decor off to the side. Then, after about a week of living in your home, have a “decorating day” where you put everything up. Don;t over-think the decor or you will never get it up!
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