The case of the Survival Box
Any kind of a trip, long or short, brings you to this part of the process: packing your items into a suitcase. While a move might not be an ideal vacation on a beach, in the end, it is simply one long, one-way trip to a new place. So, naturally, the problem of how to pack your suitcase for relocation arises at one point or the other. Luckily, we’re going to offer you some advice on the matter in this short post.
If you have begun to wonder how to pack your suitcase for a move, begin with…
Even though we’ve mentioned that a move is really a long, one-way trip, we must consider the differences in packing for a vacation and for a change of address. Naturally, when preparing your suitcase for a move you will need less clothing than for a holiday. So, first and foremost, let’s start with a couple of useful questions:
- How far are you moving to?
If you aren’t relocating to a house too far away from your current residence, you may not need too many items in your Survival Box. In case you will be staying overnight on the way to your new home, a little bit more clothing will be needed.
- How well have you packed your house before your move?
In case you have packed all of your belongings in a convenient manner, like we’ve talked about in our previous posts, you won’t need to pack a lot of clothing for the first day in your new home. In case you aren’t certain if you had packed strategically for your move, or you don’t plan on unpacking as soon as you arrive to your new house it is another matter altogether. Then, consider packing some extra clothing for the first couple of days after the relocation.
- Survival Box Checklist:
- Tops – when packing for a move you should definitely put more tops in that bottoms
- Bottoms – when packing the bottoms for your move, make sure to take into account the weather of your new neighborhood
- Underwear
- PJs – In case you want to save space it is always good to have leggings which can moonlight as PJs, or something similar
When packing your suitcase for a move, thing about the actual packing part…
It is a common debate of every frequent traveler how they should fold and pack their clothing so that they can take it out and wear it without needing to iron it out. There are a few common methods which we will cover, and they each have their own advantages and disadvantages. So, read on and then decide which one will be perfect for you when you are packing your suitcase for a move. Let us begin with:
- Fold ‘n’ Stack – simply fold your clothes and then stack them in piles into your suitcase:
- Advantages: This method of packing a suitcase for a move is logical and it is rather quick and easy when implemented. You will be packed and ready to go quite quickly.
- Disadvantages: Folding doesn’t really save space in any way and some of your clothing might end up getting wrinkled
- Fold ‘n’ File – fold your clothing, but this time, place them back-to-front, almost like files in a drawer when putting them into your suitcase:
- Advantages: This method will allow more than just a few outfits to be placed into your suitcase. In case you aren’t planning on unpacking in the first couple of days after your relocation, it might be a good choice
- Disadvantages: Mostly, there isn’t too much wrinkling in this method of packing compared to the previous one, as the clothes are still folded the same way
- Bundle it up – instead of folding the clothing separately, choose between which of them aren’t prone to wrinkling and fold those first. These will be items such as underwear or jeans which you will be able to pack easily onto one pile together. After that, continue wrapping wrinkle-prone clothing around them, until you have one large bundle of clothing.
- Advantages: If you have any clothing which you want wrinkle-free during your move, this might just be the best method for you
- Disadvantages: In case you are good at folding clothing into one another, you will be able to pack a large amount of your clothes. However, if you still need some more practice, feel free to use another method when packing a suitcase for your move
- Roll away – this time, while packing your suitcase for a move, we’d suggest rolling your clothing into tight, small bundles. This is also called ‘army packing’ as it is quite space efficient. Take a look at our video below
- Advantages: This method of packing a suitcase for a relocation definitely allows for more space than any of the other ones which we’ve mentioned so far. In case you are taking a longer trip to your new home, as well as planning to unpack at a leisurely pace, this might just be the perfect way to pack your suitcase for a move
- Disadvantages: This method, as efficient as it is, is prone to wrinkling the clothes which are folded. Since they are rolled up so compactly, there will most likely be in need of a good ironing after your move
- Compress them all – after folding your clothes place them into plastic bags with a zipper and suck the air out with a vacuum
- Advantages: The pressed clothing is quite compact and easy to pack into a suitcase. It will be a quick process to pack for a move if you are using this method.
- Disadvantages: There is some wrinkling, but it isn’t the main problem in this way of packing a suitcase for a relocation. The main issue with compressed bags is that once you open them there is no going back – you would need to ask the hotel/motel staff to lend you a vacuum
Finally, which method should you use to pack your suitcase for a move in the most efficient way possible…
Which came first, the egg or the chicken? There is really no right answer. We suggest that you don’t look at these methods as separate, but simply the smaller parts of a whole. So, when packing your suitcase for a move, choose which way you will be folding which clothes in order to pack everything you need in the best way possible.