Packing Up Tips - Don't Lose It

I am the queen of accessories.  I have tons of necklaces, earrings, scarves, hair accessories and more.  Packing these smaller items up can be a huge headache because I don't want them to get tangled up or (god-forbid) lost along the way.  The trick is to pack carefully and efficently.  As I've been saying, do NOT just throw everything in a bunch of totes and go, not only will it make everything much more difficult but you will certainly lose several of your belongings in the mess whether they are broken (like your favorite picture frame) or lost (like that ring you have had for four years).  Thankfully there are many ways to avoid such tragedies:

::Packing Jewelry::
Probably the smallest of anything you will try to pack, jewelry can be tricky.  It isn't the worst idea to invest in a jewelry tote of some sort; they are especially good for moving your rings and earrings from one place to another.

Alyssa Plush Fabric Jewelry Box in Pink by Mele at Organize.com

Unfortunately, the most difficult item, necklaces, are rarely given a space in these travel totes.  But have no fear, you can still take them to college without collapsing in despair because they have become irreversibly tangled.  The trick is to wrap them up somehow.  I have (not surprisingly) a lot of bandanas I've collected over the years, these work great to wrap up necklaces in.  Just lay one out, wrap a few times, lay another one out, wrap, and so-on until it is full.  Some of my necklaces are much too long for a bandana though, but no worries!  A tee-shirt works wonderfully for these longer items.  It's the same process as I explained with the bandanas.  Make sure to secure your roll once you have it all rolled up.  I use rubber bands, its quick and easy.  It's best to use a few, one on each end and one in the middle.  For your longer necklaces, it is usually a good idea to fold the wrap in half and secure so that the necklace can't manage to slip out the ends.  Don't want to lose your favorite piece after you went to all that work to avoid just that!

::Packing Fragile Items::
I take quite a few different vases, jars, frames and other trinkets that are more than easy to break, so I have to pack these very carefully.  If you want to spring for bubble wrap then by all means do!  That is probably the best way to pack anything really fragile.  But it's not really necessary to splurge on that (although it is fun to play with, who doesn't love popping bubble wrap?)  It works just as well to use newspaper or, my favorite, cloth.  I have what seems like a million tee-shirts.  I will be taking these with me to college anyway, so it works nicely to go ahead and use those to wrap up any fragile items I have.  Make sure to tuck some of the fabric on the inside too!  Also, don't forget which boxes you have fragile things in, its very easy to just pull things out and accidently drop that favorite glass figurine.

Packing Up Tips - The Organized Approach

A good trick to keep in mind when packing up is this: Divide and Conquer.  If you take on packing by just throwing things into boxes you are bound to wind up on move-in day at college digging through every single tote for one thing, which in no way adds to the so-called "fun" of moving day.  Have a different box/tote for the different categories of your belongings.  For example, a bed tote would have (obviously) bedding, pillows, and perhaps, if there is room, your by-the-bed standbys (diary, chap stick, ect).  Here is a working list of categories to help you out:


- Bedding - (see above)
- Hygiene - shower caddy, shower flip flops, toothbrush holder, soap, and maybe even your towels.
(and don't forget the first aid kit, though that could go under misc.)
- Kitchen - cups, plates, silverware, toaster, ect.
- Desk - pencils, pens, notebooks, pencil holder, tape, stapler, organizers, folders, corkboard ect.
- Shoes/Accessories - [may be separate or combined] shoes, scarfs, purses, perhaps jewlery
- Clothes - if you have a lot, like myself, you could divide into sub-categories such as: lounge, fancy, tee-shirts ect. (*NOTE* don't forget to keep your hanging clothes hanging!)
- Decor - frames, curtains, storage baskets, and even spare blankets if they didn't fit into the "bedding" tote
- Entertainment - books, DVDs, CDs, any chords and cables for TV/DVD/CD player, board games, cards
- Miscellaneous - I like to use a smaller box and put some odds and ends in it, things I may have forgotten to pack earlier or random things I know I'll need like flashlight, batteries, extension chords ect. 


Like I said, this is a working list, but do categorize your belongings before packing, or at least while you pack.  It will make moving day much less of a headache.  If you really want to get fancy you can color coordinate each of the categories; this is really nice if you have several totes for one category, like clothes :D.


Also, don't forget to label!  It does no good to be so good about separating everything out if you have no idea what is in which box.  So grab your packing list and get to organizing!  Move-in day isn't so very far off...