Classy and Opinionated Lifestyle Mom Blog
Key Takeaways Understanding the implications of traditional laundry on the environment. The advantages of adopting green laundry solutions. How subscription models can propel sustainable consumption habits. Embracing energy efficiency through modern appliances and washing techniques. Alternatives to using a dryer and the benefits for the …
I’m a fanatic about keeping my kitchen sink sparkling clean. With that said, it gets a heavy workout almost every day. I cook 3 meals a day for my family and I’m a home canner. My kitchen sink can get dirty and greasy in a …
Moving in New Jersey, with its bustling cities and tight-knit communities, presents unique challenges and opportunities. The process of packing up a life and transitioning to a new home can be overwhelming. Yet, downsizing and decluttering before the move can transform this daunting task into a manageable, even refreshing experience. By shedding excess and focusing on essentials, movers can navigate the Garden State’s diverse landscapes more freely. Beyond geographic concerns, these strategies are universally beneficial, streamlining the move and setting the stage for a fresh start.
1. Understand Your New Space
Before you start packing, take a hard look at your new space. How much room do you have? Are there storage areas? Knowing the dimensions and layout of your new home is crucial. It dictates what you can take with you. If you’re moving to a smaller place, this step is even more critical. You might love your massive sofa, but if it won’t fit, it’s time to let go. Use a floor plan of your new home to make informed decisions about which large items to keep.
2. Getting Professional Help
Downsizing and decluttering are massive tasks, especially if you’re on a tight schedule. That’s where professional help can be a game-changer. Consider hiring New Jersey local movers like Booth Movers to streamline the process. They’re not just for moving day. Many offer services to help you sort through your belongings, decide what to keep, and even pack your items. Their expertise can make the difference between a stressful move and a smooth transition.
3. Sorting Your Belongings
This step is all about making decisions. Start by dividing your belongings into categories: keep, sell, donate, and discard. Be honest with yourself about what you use and need. Memories attached to objects can make this difficult, but remember, you’re moving towards something new. For each item, ask yourself if it has a place and a purpose in your new home. This process can be emotional, but it’s also liberating to free yourself from clutter.
4. Embrace Digital Solutions
We live in a digital age, yet many of us cling to physical items that can easily be digitized. Photos, documents, and even DVDs can take up unnecessary space. By scanning and storing these items digitally, you not only save space but also protect them from loss or damage. There are numerous services and devices that make digitizing easy. Start this process early, as it can be time-consuming, but the effort pays off in reduced moving boxes and a lighter load.
5. Tackling One Room at a Time
Looking at your entire house as one project can be overwhelming. Instead, focus on one room at a time. This approach breaks the task into manageable pieces and allows for small victories along the way. Start with the rooms you use least, as they often contain items that are easier to part with. As you progress through each room, you’ll build momentum and decision-making will become easier. This method also allows you to gradually adjust to the idea of moving and changing your living environment.
6. Selling and Donating Items
Once you’ve sorted through your belongings and identified what you no longer need, consider selling or donating these items. Selling items can be done through online marketplaces, garage sales, or consignment shops. This not only helps you declutter but also offers a chance to make some extra money to offset moving costs. For items that aren’t sold, donating to local charities or community centers can be a great way to give back and ensure your items find a new life elsewhere. Remember to check donation guidelines, as some organizations may have specific requirements.
7. The One-Year Rule
A practical approach to decluttering is the one-year rule: if you haven’t used an item in the past year, it’s likely you won’t use it in the next. This rule helps cut down on the “just in case” items that take up space but serve no real purpose. Apply this rule especially to clothes, kitchen gadgets, and hobby-related items. It’s surprising how much space you can free up by letting go of things that no longer serve you.
8. Essential Packing Supplies
Having the right packing supplies can make a big difference in how smoothly your packing process goes. Invest in quality boxes, packing tape, bubble wrap, and markers for labeling. Consider specialty containers for items like dishes or clothing to keep them protected. Using the right materials not only helps keep your belongings safe but also makes unpacking easier. Don’t forget to label boxes clearly, indicating not just the contents but also the room they belong in at your new home.
9. Creating an Inventory
As you pack, create an inventory of your belongings. This list can be as detailed as you like, but it should at least include the items of significant value and boxes’ contents. An inventory is invaluable for keeping track of your items during the move and can be essential if anything goes missing or is damaged. Additionally, this list can help you unpack and ensure everything has arrived at your new home.
10. Setting Up a Moving Day Kit
The final step in preparing for your move is to assemble a moving day kit. This kit should include essentials you’ll need easy access to during the move and the first few days in your new home. Items might include toiletries, a change of clothes, medications, chargers, snacks, and important documents. Having these essentials handy will save you from rummaging through boxes on moving day and help you feel more settled as you begin to unpack.
Conclusion
Downsizing and decluttering a home before a move is not just about reducing the number of boxes to transport. It’s about taking a thoughtful approach to what you choose to bring into your new home, ensuring it’s a place filled with items that serve a purpose or bring you joy. By following these ten steps, you’re not just preparing for a move; you’re setting the stage for a new chapter in a space that reflects the best of your life. Start early, take it one step at a time, and don’t hesitate to seek help when you need it. There are professional movers who can help you. With a bit of planning and effort, your move can be an opportunity for renewal and a fresh start.
Cleaning the kitchen isn’t one of my favorite things to do. Matter of fact, I’ve never met a person who will admit that they enjoy spending hours cleaning doing it. With that said, I do enjoy cooking, baking and canning, so a dirty kitchen is …
Two years ago I built a custom Catio outdoor cat enclosure for Romeo. I ordered a Catio kit online and then made custom changes to it as I built it. It’s a large cat enclosure that he loves to spend time in. I made a …
The two deep cleaning events most people will do in their home will be spring cleaning and winter cleaning. At these two times of year, they may go room by room and really give their home a thorough cleaning. There may be other times where a deep cleaning is called for, like when the home is really dirty or when you are preparing to have family stay with you for a while.
When you need deep cleaning done, should you hire cleaning services to do the work or should you do it yourself? Let’s discuss.
Deep Cleaning Can Be Stressful
Housework is hard; we all know that, but it can also be really stressful. If you are someone who normally becomes easily stressed and you struggle to get that under control, then maybe tackling a major deep cleaning project throughout your entire house is not the right move for you.
Here’s what you may want to do: start out with the deep cleaning work and see how it goes. If it starts to feel overwhelming and you begin to stress about it a lot, then why not leave it alone and let the cleaning services San Jose trusts handle it for you?
What happens to many people when they start deep cleaning their home is that they think about all the work they have left to do and how long it will take them. They start fretting about the other things they need to do that aren’t housework- things that are probably being neglected. As their normal workload falls far behind, they become stressed. As they get tired from cleaning, they get stressed that they won’t finish the deep cleaning of the house by the deadline they set for themselves. These kinds of worries can really stress them out and make the job much worse than it needs to be.
If you stress a lot but you want to get the work done yourself, you can just do a little at a time and take breaks to allow your body to recover and destress. You could also pull in family members or friends to help you out. If they are willing, they can take some of the workload off of you and help you to get the jobs done faster.
Deep Cleaning Is Time Consuming
Who has time to clean their home room by room, really taking the time to get each corner clean and make the place look spotless? Not most people, since many of us live very busy lives and have responsibilities to our families and our employers. A deep cleaning is the kind of task that many people will put off for months and even years, as their schedule just doesn’t allow for it.
It makes sense to have professional cleaners do it when your workload and responsibilities are simply too much for you to add anything else to the pile. Before trying to tackle the work on your own, consider how long it might take you. Calculate the time it would require for cleaning each room, giving yourself more time for very dirty rooms and for large rooms. See if you can fit that into your schedule. One way to do it for yourself is to split the work of deep cleaning up across multiple weeks rather than try to fit it all into one week. If there is no way to fit it all in within a reasonable amount of time, then you should consider hiring deep cleaning experts.
Deep Cleaning Is Exhausting
Another reason that deep cleaning is often delayed or professionals are called in to do it is because of how tiring it is. Of course, it is hard work to clean your entire home meticulously. Even small homes can take a while to deep clean properly. The deep cleaning process usually involves emptying each room, one at a time, and then cleaning those rooms. You may need to sweep, vacuum, mop, scrub, and wipe down, and when that is all done, you still need to put everything back into the room. You might have to organize the items as you put them back, getting rid of some things and putting everything else away where it goes.
All of this can take a long time, and that’s just one room we are talking about. Some rooms require extra work, like the kitchen with its appliances that need to be cleaned out. If you have to move any furniture, that can be really exhausting, and it needs to be moved back when you are finished cleaning. You may feel like your energy has reached rock bottom after a couple of rooms, and you might not feel like you have the ability to continue deep cleaning in your house.
Do You Need Help?
You may feel energized and excited to start your deep cleaning, but partway through the process, your energy may drop out and your motivation could plummet. You can either give yourself a break and try to get your motivation back after you rest or have deep cleaners come in and do the rest of the work. Consider what you can do and what you might want to leave for someone else.
Maybe there are specific tasks that you can handle and others that you would rather leave to cleaning experts. For many homeowners, it is the carpet cleaning and appliance cleaning that they don’t want to handle. For others, it is window washing and tile scrubbing they feel unable to do on their own. Your limitations may be different from another person’s, but you should know when you reach those limits and when it is wise to call in some help.
Deep cleaning is an essential part of keeping your home in order and ensuring that it smells nice and has no pests. How often it is deep cleaned is up to you, but if you cannot handle it yourself, then it could be worthwhile to call for professional help.
Cleaning your home is a task that can often last for the entire day, if not for multiple days. Therefore, it’s safe to say that many people tend to put this off until they cannot tolerate it anymore. However, did you know that you can …
Let’s face it, outdoor doormats aren’t cheap. These days a good door mat will cost you $45.00 and up. I’ve seen them as high as $75.00 for one door mat! With that said, quality does matter. If you spend $10.00 on a cheap doormat it …