What Items Should You Get Rid of Before You Move Homes?

Everyone’s at least done it once in their lifetime - moving from one place to another. There are many reasons for this. It could be that you are moving to another estate to start university, or you got a new job in another town, or perhaps moving into another branch of your organization, or it could be as simple as needing a change because your family is growing. 

Many people have several reasons for making a move to a new house, and there are a few things that you should keep in mind, as opposed to winging it. This could lead to an exhaustive and expensive experience, which the majority of us are trying to avoid. There are, however, ways to make it a smooth transition. 

Besides hiring movers way in advance so they are available to help you out on the date of your choosing, another suggestion is to get rid of items around the home that you will no longer need in your new pad. Minimizing the clutter in your home is one sure way of starting a new one and lessening the load when packing and moving.

But where to start? Below we have a few items that you may want to consider getting rid of before you start your packing. 

Books You Will Not Be Reading Again

Why not have a book sale in your apartment or home to sell any old books you’ve read countless times or ones that you know you won't touch? This is a handy way of sharing knowledge with other people as well as making some extra cash on the side. 

Sometimes local libraries will take second-hand books, so you can pack them into a box and drop them off if you are feeling charitable. Perhaps some friends, colleagues or family members could use a book or two? Or maybe the school next door would welcome some extra literature in their library or classrooms. 

Kitchen Items That Are Unused, Broken or Old

Old unused kitchen items are also something you could consider giving away to charity stores or selling at a garage sale for instance. Many people could make do with them even if they are not fully functioning for spare parts for instance, and if not, recycle them or throw them in the right tip. In the USA there are services where communal junk haulers can pick the kitchen appliances from you, click here to find out more. 

Try getting in touch with them or any recycling centers in your local areas to find out where you can drop off these items in an environmentally friendly manner. When did you last use that apple peeler, or spiralizer that sitting on your kitchen counter? Or perhaps those scratched out pots and pans that are not only old but also unhealthy to use? There is no need to bring any appliances with you to your new home, toss it out and get yourself something new or different. 

Dishes that Are Mismatched or Cracked

Moving into your new home comes with some responsibility of looking good too. There is nothing worse than having a housewarming party and offering people foods and drinks in different mugs, glasses and cracked dishes. It may not leave a good impression the first time around. 

If your kitchen cupboards are packed with mismatched dishes and cooking items, get rid of them and use the act of moving as a reason to get yourself a new dinner or cooking set. Go the mile by matching it with your dinner tables accessories, such as the table cloths and the mats or centerpieces. You can do a lot with just a few well-matched items. It will look welcoming and decent in any home. 

Choosing the right furniture can elevate any dining room. If you have a mint green wall in your new dining room, for instance, match the dinner set and table mats with it or opt for a cozy banquette of colorful flowers matching the colorful new dinner plates you just bought, more ideas can be found  online:https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/decorating-ideas/g1730/decor-ideas-dining-room/?slide=3. 

Your new home should be like a new adventure playground where you try new things until you feel comfortable and homely in it. 

 

If You Haven't Worn it in A Year

Personal belongings such as shoes and clothes usually take up almost as much space when moving, as bulky things such as furniture. If you are not careful you could end up with less space and more clutter in your new home, than you bargained for. 

The rule of thumb should be, if you have not worn it in a year, you should give it away. Those who live in a country with 4 seasons, usually have a different item of clothing for every season, understandably. With these, one year is the marker. However for those who live in countries where there are fewer seasons such as one or two, then this time frame gets narrowed down to 6 months.

You know the saying that goes “one man's trash is another man's treasure?”, give the clothes, to those who need them the most, instead of leaving them untouched in your closet for another year. The same goes with items that do not fit you anymore, or are outdated, or perhaps even uncomfortable and you do not like anymore. Those things that have holes, rips and stains on them should also go into that ‘donation/give away’ box. Shoes that don’t fit, are uncomfortable, heavy, outdated or worn out should also be added to this box. Wear everything and see for yourself, realistically, what fits and doesn’t fit.

Don’t Take Your Pantry With You

Food items are also on the list of things to get clear of before you make your move. There is no need for you to take your entire pantry or kitchen food cupboard with you. Instead, you can give them away, to someone you love like a friendly and helpful neighbor, friend, family member or even a less fortunate person than yourself. 

Giving away food helps make you feel better and adds warmth into the hearts of those to whom you give. When the movers arrive, they will have less fragile things to lug around into the back of their van, and you will feel better when items such as glass sauce bottles or jam jars aren’t around to break and spill all over the other belongings. 

Old Towels 

Not only are the majority of bath and hand towels bulky to pack, but they should also be gotten rid of once every few years. Because we use them every day, sometimes they can wear out and we won't even notice. Try furnishing your new pad’s bathroom with new towels that match the rest of the space, it will look good and feel good to have new bath towels for you, your family and the guest.  

The Home Office

For the most part, the majority of us have set up our home offices in a secluded space somewhere in the house. One of the things this breed is a lot of paperwork for some. If you haven't already got an organized home office, the chance are you have tons of unnecessary paperwork lying around the office. This is something you should get rid of, and carefully.

If it’s private or confidential information that you can store on your laptop or desktop computer, get rid of the paper version, by using a shredder. Papers always tend to gather in places and before you know it you have stacks load of them and no idea what to do with them. When moving, try and get rid of any paper you don’t need. If you can transfer the information onto an external hard drive, or your computer, even better. 

Cleaning Supplies

We bet you didn’t think this would be on the list? Cleaning supplies such as those partially full bottles can be a pain to move safely, there will always be a risk of them breaking, cracking and spilling all over the place, and the worse thing would be if it gets onto your other items and stains them or makes them reek of chemicals.

Cleaning supplies are almost always available in local stores, so do yourself a favor and either give them away or get rid of them in a safe and non-hazardous way. You will need cleaning supplies in your new house so when you get to the place, buy them there for ease of use. 

To Sum Up

All of the things above are a good way to get rid of unnecessary stuff that you know at the back of your mind you should have gotten rid of ages ago.  The same goes for other things such as half-empty bottles of alcohol, cheap furniture, old or broken instruments you don’t play anymore, unused or old toiletries and cosmetics, stuffed animals, old pillows, and anything that is still sitting inside unpacked boxes that you have yet to open when you first moved into your current home. Start anew and enjoy a clean and new space instead!