Unpacking is all about having a system
Unpacking is just as important as the planning and the packing phase. It’s tempting to put all the boxes aside and forget about them until a later day. If you’ve ever moved homes before, you are probably familiar with asking a million “Where did I put that?” and “Has anyone seen my ….” questions. No one really plans on putting unpacking for a later day, searching for items as you need, but after days of packing and moving it is easy to give in.
In this post, we will give you some tips so that you can unpack efficiently and effectively, so you can organise your home in no time and enjoy the comfort of your new home. Unpacking doesn’t have to be tedious and time-consuming. It’s all about having a system to be prepared and doing things efficiently.
7 magical tips to unpack efficiently
- Cleaning an empty house is easier than cleaning a house full of furniture: This one is straight forward. Examine the state of your new home, and carry out the necessary cleaning so that you won’t have to juggle furniture and boxes while cleaning.
- Utilise colour-coded box system: During your packing phase, if you’ve utilised our tips for labelling boxes, you will have distinctively marked boxes. Setting a colour for each room and labelling boxes with the same colour not only saves time when labelling, but it also makes it easier and faster to place boxes in the correct rooms without having to shuffle them around.
- Create an unpacking system – set priorities: When it comes down to unpacking, I highly recommend prioritising necessities and communal areas. Simply put, start with what you will be using, and if possible where it would impact everyone.
- Start with special necessities: If you or your family members have special needs for mobility or needs for medication, be sure to unpack these items first.
- Start with the kitchen: There are three things that everyone must do; eating and sleeping and going to the toilet, however, the kitchen is where you will have perishable items, and it is an area that everyone benefits from 2-3 times a day.
- Bedrooms and bathrooms: Each family member can work on their own rooms. If you have children, why not get them to work in their own room? It will increase engagement on one hand to get more work done, and on the other hand, you will spend less time supervising your children. You can read more about this from our other guides; Moving with children, and How to make moving fun.
- Assemble and arrange: Assemble and arrange furniture once you’ve sorted out your rooms.
We’ve shared with you ways to make your unpacking efficient. Just as packing and moving require some planning, unpacking also needs some thought and planning in advance. These ‘unpacking in new house’ tips are general in nature but likely to work for most families. Be sure to individualise your system of unpacking depending on your families and individual requirements.
