Wednesday 30 April 2014

LIFE: Packing and More Packing

Packing Up Cookbook Packing

There's currently a human life size game of tertis going on in what was our dining space, what with piles of boxes and bags for moving. I actually didn't think we had that much stuff, apparently most of it's been hiding in cupboards and closets and is only just coming to life. It's actually got to the point of having to break down the next three or so weeks down with tasks to have achieved to feel like i'm getting somewhere with the packing, it's slow work!

You start on a mission to fill up every inch of a box, you come up with random code letters for the final dumping ground, and you realise you never ever have enough boxes. Cats start to think your piling up all these boxes just so they have a new kitty tower. One kitty Ed, being perfectly happy just to make the large box at the bottom her new sleeping and sitting ground, the other - Smokey a nosey tiny kitty loving the challenge of being able to sleep up high. Stacking even more boxes doesn't deter her nosiness, she just loves to sleep even higher.

And don't get me started on packing up the vinyl. 800 plus vinyl aren't the easiest thing to move when you're pretty short on boxes. Inventive we must become methinks. The dinning room table has been taken apart, all my vintage compacts are safety piled away and the nails are being pulled out of the wall - although my embroidery hoop collection will be one of the last things to be taken down, I hate how stark the walls look without them.

It's not that we even particularly know when we're moving per say, although we do have a closing date of mid May. After the home inspection not going as well as we hoped, we came up with the list of the items (major issues) that needed fixing - all 14 of them (electrical, gutters, raising concrete, fixing the garage etc), the seller actually agreed - even though it took them over a week to think about it. There's still a bit of a way to go, the closing date is in a little under three weeks but there are still some hurdles for the house and paperwork to jump though, but maybe, just maybe everything is working out!

If you have any packing tips - I'm all ears!
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22 comments:

  1. Packing is the pits, no matter how organized I usually try to be everything just goes everywhere! It must be tricky packing when you are still not 100% sure when you will be moving! x

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    1. I battle trying to be organised and trying to not make the apartment so empty and stark! While we have a closing date we can't really move in until we get all the major appliances because the house only comes with a dish washer and we own none and we threw our microwave out haha. It's probably going to be a gradual move me in reality methinks over a couple of weeks.

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  2. I spy the kitty that prefers to sleep up on the "top bunk." Cats see everything as a fun game. Packing is the very worst part about moving. You don't realize how much you have hidden away until it all needs to go into boxes at once! And the sometimes packing up things you don't think you'll need, only to find you do need them. Oh well, it is a means to an end, and a very exciting one at that! Hope your house closing happens on its projected date and good luck with the rest of the packing. : )

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    1. Thank you so much! And yeah she's a little terror when it comes to where she's sleeping at the moment, plus she just has to have her nose in every box when it's empty. Lucky she hasn't been packed into one!

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  3. I haven't even started packing. I've decided not to bother until we actually hear anything. Most of our stuff is still in boxes from when we moved here nearly 3 years ago! I can't wait to see what we have forgotten about. I hope you get the house sorted for you! x

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    1. I feel that it's tempting stuff to pack at times, but I want out of here fast to be honest so I don't mind, plus we have so much stuff it feels less work to do it gradually over the last month or so.

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    1. I don't think they really understand what's going on but they are sure having fun climbing everywhere! I think they'll miss being able to sleep on the boxes after we move!

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  5. I moved my vinyl in carrier bags, that way you get a good batch of albums in a bag you can carry. I filled the backseat of the car with the upright bags and drove them over to the new house, no way I was letting them in the van!

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    1. We have about three hundred that aren't in boxes, so I'm not sure if we have enough carries for all that many to be honest. I think we're going to buy some of the smaller storage boxes from Ikea and we'll find a use for them in the future anyway.

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  6. Packing is awful!
    But I got a whole stack of boxes from the work recycling bin. I work in a office building with a cafe so all our CDs were in Chicken Nugget boxes, our clothes were in Kleenex boxes, and a lot of Dell Computer boxes.
    Maybe you can find a recycling bin to get stacks of boxes from.
    http://polkadotsandsparkles.com/2013/11/28/finally-its-tomorrow/
    http://polkadotsandsparkles.com/2013/10/21/hulloooo/

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    1. Thank you for the links! Joe's been picking up a couple of boxes from work which are just the right size for my work related stuff so that's been really helpful, we did end up having to buy some for the vinyl but they'll be useful in the future for other stuff! It's a shame stores all rip them up these days and don't set them aside.

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  7. Good luck packing, Rachel! I know how tough it can be. What worked for me is to work systematically and not try to do a ton of packing in one time!

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    1. That's how i'm working with it, I have to do lists and time frames which in theory sound a great idea but i'm a very un-organised person so it'll probably be all last minute haha.

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  8. My dad has a lot of vinyl which was a nightmare to move back in 2009. We had to be so careful not to wreck any and it weighed a tonne! As much as I look forward to actually buying a house (I want a garden so much!) I do dread having to pack up all our stuff again. The other half and I had to live apart for six weeks before we moved into our flat so at least next time I won't have to pack his and her things separately!

    It can seem like a neverending task but you'll get there! :)

    Debi x

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    1. I always forget how much vinyl weighs especially when you then have to consider the weight of the boxes too. Our vinyl was all once organised and yeah, that's gone out the window!

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  9. Eeeeek. Good Luck with the packing. I've just started and I'm finding that those jute shopping bags are just the right size for books, it also means I can't pack them so full we can't lift them. And I have charity shopped soooooo much stuff it's crazy! Our big problem is not knowing when (if ever at this rate) we might move though!

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    1. Those bags are so helpful aren't they?! I always over pack and then can't move stuff which has been the main issue with our books there's just so much stuff. Ahhh. It's got to the point of throwing light stuff into bin bags and praying I don't throw them out in the mean time lol.

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  10. Good luck with the packing! The only advice I have is to make sure the very last box to be packed (ie. the first one to be opened) contains teabags/coffee, milk, the kettle, biscuits and toilet roll! :-) x

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    1. Yeah i'm hoping to put together a box of things - cleaning stuff, food, change of clothes and bedding separately plus all the kitty stuff because we'll move them first and put them into a spare room. Hopefully we won't have a mad dash to get out of our apartment so we can move in gradually - I hope!

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  11. Hello Rachel, I new here on your page and would like to be a regular one :)
    I like packing :) I like first photograph, the one with books :)

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  12. You never realise just how much stuff you have until you need to move! It definitely made me appreciate how much stuff I just don't need x

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