The Most Organized Way to Pack Your Clothes for a Move

Moving is not pretty or pleasant. But it’s something that has to be done from time to time. One of the reasons it’s such a pain is that you’re stuck moving all of your stuff of all shapes and sizes from one location to another. You’ve purchased furniture, vases and plates and long discarded the boxes they came in. And you’ve amassed a wardrobe over the years, making small purchases here and there, bringing your clothes home in bags until they find a home in your closet.

So when it’s time to pack up all of your belongings, it can seem like a serious chore.

Moving isn’t a frequent occurrence for most people, which means that when it comes time to relocate, you might not know where to begin.

We’ve come up with some helpful tips to help you get your clothes from point A to point B without having to wash, dry clean or iron each piece of clothing when you hang it in your new closet.

1. Clean out your closet

What makes a move even more painstaking is realizing you’ve transferred clothes and shoes that you really don’t wear anymore. When you know you’re moving to a new place, you should clean out your closet and donate or toss clothes and shoes you no longer wear. You should get rid of clothes that:

• Are a size or two too small
• Have stain or a tear that—let’s face it—you’re not going to fix on your own
• Are out of style and might never come back in style
• Never looked good on you
• Have sentimental value, but you never wear
• Are of a lower quality than what you wear regularly now

Donate clothes that are still in good condition; the rest should be thrown out. Once you go through this exercise you’ll have a much better idea of exactly what you need to move.

2. Use what you already have

There are a few ways to tackle clothing transport. First, you should use what you have. Suitcases are meant to store clothes, as are your duffle bags and other luggage. Start by filling these with clothes that you’d normally fold like sweaters, pants and t-shirts.

You may also be able to keep your folded clothes in your dresser, provided you clear it with your mover. If that’s the case, you can buy stretch wraps, which look like giant rubber bands, to wrap around the dresser and secure the doors. Your movers can then transport your furniture and you won’t have to do anything.

3. The hardest part: Packing your hanging clothes

The clothes that are hanging in your closet are always the hardest to move. Of course, you don’t want to take each blouse, dress and pair of pants off its hanger, store it in a box, unpack it, iron or press it and rehang it. That’s too time-consuming.

Instead, you’ve got a few options: You can buy wardrobe boxes that include a handy hanging rod. You simply hang all of your hangers on the rod, just like you would in your closet. Then, secure several hangers together with a zip tie or rubber band to give everything a better shot of staying on the rod during transport.

If you don’t want to spring for wardrobe boxes, you can also use plastic wraps or even garbage bags. Cut a hole in the bottom of a large bag with a drawstring. Pull the hooks of the hangers through the hole and secure them with a rubber band or zip tie. These groups of clothes could be stored in a moving box or transported in the back seat of your car if you’re making a short trip.

4. Pack early and often

Packing up your stuff usually takes longer than you think. Give yourself enough time to do it the right way so you’re not pulling an all-nighter to get everything boxed up before the movers arrive.

Pack out of season clothing and accessories first—you obviously won’t need these garments between now and your move. As the move approaches, plan your outfits for the few days leading up to your move, as well as what you’ll wear on moving day and the following day or two. You might want to keep a small overnight bag empty for this purpose.

Finally, tackle your everyday wear. It’s better to begin organizing these items and restrict yourself to a few outfits than packing your clothes last minute.

If you take some time to plan out how you’ll pack your clothes, you’ll have a much easier time unpacking everything and organizing the closets in your new home.

If your new home could use a little organization, contact us to learn more about custom solutions.