I recently moved – for the first time in 13 years – and while I love my new place, and did most of my move right, there were a few things I messed up on when it came to packing. So whether you are moving in NY, like I was, or you are moving elsewhere, maybe you can learn from me about how to make your packing go more smoothly. Read on to learn more.

Label all of your boxes – not just the ones you first pack

I had a plan to label all of my boxes, and be really efficient with the move. Unfortunately, that plan fell by the wayside, as I was busy with work before the move. And my meticulous notes on the boxes ended up being a casualty of getting my move done quickly. This lack of labeling had a variety of consequences for me, including not being able to find my winter coat when a cold snap hit a few days after the move. If I had just taken a little more time, I would have been able to have a winter coat easily accessible, instead of having to layer a bunch of sweaters together.

Another benefit of labeling boxes – things can go into the proper room

If I just had labeled all of my boxes, I could have put the boxes in the room they were meant for, instead of stumbling around when unpacking, finding kitchen supplies in the bedroom, my DVD boxes in the bathroom, and clothing in the kitchen, it would have been a lot easier. So label your boxes – please! And if you have a digital camera, and access to a printer, you can do what Oprah Winfrey recently did when packing up items from your home for auction – she had pictures taken of the contents of each box.

Buy the right size boxes

If you have books, even the “small’ boxes from U-Haul are really too big – if you load them up, the boxes are way too heavy to carry.  Make sure you buy the boxes specifically labeled ‘book boxes.’ On the other hand, some of the large and extra-large boxes are too big for your other items. Keep this in mind when it comes to moving in NY or elsewhere, while movers may be carrying your boxes into your home, you may have to move your boxes again yourself around your new home.

Get rid of more things beforehand

While I at first thought I did a good job of getting rid of things beforehand, the reality was that I ended up throwing a lot of stuff out after the move. What I needed to ask myself more beforehand were some of the following questions:

• Do you love the item? Don’t take along things you don’t like I was surprised at how many things I lugged to the new place that I didn’t really like.
• Is it in great condition? I had two dressers which were adequate for my old home, but looked terrible in my shiny new place.  If I had admitted beforehand to myself that the dressers were not worth lugging across town, I would have saved myself some aggravation.
• Do you have room for it? My new place is nicer than my old one, but it is smaller. I should have downsized much more before moving.

Get the movers to pack for you

I did not do this myself, but I wish I had. Movers in NY like Moving Man, Inc. can do the packing for you. It is something to consider – after all, they know more about how to pack than we do!

Lisa Swan writes for a variety of moving and home improvement sites.