Moving guide
How to pack so moving day doesn't break you
Hundreds of moves in, I promise you the difference between a calm day and an absolutely horrible one almost always comes down to the packing. So here’s what I’d tell my own little sister before she moved.
- Pack an essentials bag that stays on you. Phone charger, loo roll, a mug and teabags, painkillers, water, and snacks. It’s the stuff you’ll be desperate for the second you arrive, and you do not want to be tearing open 30 boxes looking for the kettle.
- Please, actually eat something. Everyone’s up at 5am with nerves, runs on empty all day, then has a massive crash at about 3pm. Nine times out of ten it isn’t the move, it’s that you’ve not eaten or had any water. Build in real breaks and the whole day feels different.
- Buy proper boxes, I’m begging you. I know suitcases and bags-for-life feel cheaper, but bags don’t stack, won’t seal, can’t be labelled, and the handles cut your fingers on every trip. Boxes, tape and bubble wrap come to under £50 and make everything easier. A folding sack truck on top and you’ll wheel five at a time instead of dying on your feet.
- Pack heavy with light. One big box of every hardback you own is deeply satisfying right up until you can’t lift it off the floor. Mix it up: books with jumpers, glasses wrapped in paper with cushions on top. Every box should be a weight an actual human can carry.
- Give yourself more time than you think. A Friday-finish, back-Monday move just isn’t enough to pack, move and unpack properly, and then you end up hating your life for no reason. Take a couple of extra days if you can, including time beforehand to declutter, so you’re not paying to cart stuff you don’t even want.
- Stop judging how much stuff you have. Every woman I move says “I’m so embarrassed, I’ve got way too much stuff.” And every time I turn up and go, this is a completely normal amount to own. It only looks like too much piled in the middle of the floor. There’s no correct amount of stuff for a person to have. You’re a normal woman with a normal life, so be gentle with yourself, okay?