The day has finally come! You’ve said your goodbyes, packed up everything and next thing you know – Beverly Hills. The movers you hired have done the hard part, they handled the transportation and have dropped everything off. But now you have a new apartment full of boxes which need unpacking. And in case you haven’t thought this far ahead, let us offer some sound advice.
Things you need to know before and during unpacking
One box at a time and you’ll be done before you blink
Now, if you’ve been paying attention to our previous tutorials, you should now have a pretty organized pile of boxes. And as long as you remembered to mark each box, you should have no problems at all. And even if you forgot, it’s no big deal. It’ll take a while longer but we’ll help you get there.
The amount of time you will need to set out
This might be your main concern, which is why we’re tackling it first. It’s always hard to determine how long a certain task will take. Unpacking is no exception to that rule. For starters, you need to define how you’ll go at it, based on the amount of stuff you have. The choices would include:
- Self-unpacking – if you’ve moved to a new apartment all by yourself, the logic is that you won’t have too much boxes. However, everyone is different. In any case, these are the types of situations where you can go about doing all of your unpacking by yourself. No complications and you have all the time of the world to go about setting up your new place the way you want to.
- Having family and friends help out – these would be moves including the whole family. And in such cases, everyone needs to help out. The thing here is that you need to set up the essentials so that everyone can function properly. The comforting part is that if everyone does their part, the entire process will be done in no time.
- Hiring professionals – these would be situations where you have an entire house to unpack and no time to do it. Given that this is a measure that has additional costs, you need to think hard before deciding on it.
No matter the path you take, consider that this is no easy one-day thing. But with a little planning and sacrifice, it can take a whole lot less. So on to the next part of the task.
Where to begin?
Standing there and looking at all those boxes makes your head spin a little. But hey, one step at a time and it’ll be over before you can say: “Beverly Hills”. To start you off, make sure that you separate and stack all the boxes to the designated rooms. Since you won’t be looking to unpack in a day, it’ll definitely give you more space to move around. Also, bare in mind that this can be a fun activity. You are decorating while unpacking, so make the best out of it.
Once you’ve organized everything, time to get started with the essentials. So you need to consider the following:
- Everyday living supplies. This includes supplies such as personal hygiene (toilet paper, toothpaste, shower gel, soap etc.) and sleeping commodities. In case the unpacking takes longer than expected, you need to have these two covered.
- Cleaning equipment. The thing with new places is that sometimes they need a thorough cleaning. And what better timing for this than when they are empty. So go about unpacking the box with the cleaning supplies early on.
Make sure that everything finds its proper place
Make sure that everything is cooking in the kitchen first
Although you should be prepared to order or go out for food while you unpack, it’s still important to have you kitchen up and running. So you need to commit yourself to unpacking the kitchen first. This does not mean that you have to have everything ready and going.
For starters, make sure to hook up all the major appliances. Then make sure that all the shelves and cupboards are in place and tight. Finally, go about unpacking the pots, pans and dishes. Everyone needs to have that morning cup of joe before getting down to business. But remember, essentials for everyday use only. No need to overdue it and spend too much time unpacking grandmas antique tea pot.
Next step – setting up the bathroom
Even though most of the bathroom should already be set up (shower, toilet seat, sink etc.), there are still things to unpack. For starters, setting up your medicine cabinet and personal hygiene drawer. Unpacking can be tiring and dirty work, so make sure that the plumbing is in order. At the end of a busy day, nothing beats a good long shower.
Time to lay out the bedroom
Now that you have secured food and hygiene, time to secure a place to rest. Basically, it’s enough of a fix to pull out a mattress, get a pillow and some sheets and there you go. But still, nothing beats the comfort of a fully set up bed, especially after a full days work. Also, you’ll get rid of quite a number of boxes when you fill out your closet with wardrobe.
Putting together the living room as a gathering spot
Unpacking is all good and well, but at some point you’ll wish to have a cold refreshing drink and rest. What better way than by unpacking your living room in a suitable relaxing manner. In case you are planning on having guests early on or people helping you out, you’ll need a common room. However, before you start putting the furniture together and arranging, we advise planning out the layout of the room. It’ll be easier to do so without having to move around an entire sofa or armchairs.
Finishing touches
Now that you’ve taken care of the major areas, everything else should be a stroll. And the best part since you have all the necessities covered, you can take your time with the rest. But that doesn’t mean that you should go about unpacking for the next half a year. Just take off several hours each day until you’ve got everything set up. After all, this is your new home and a reflection of you as well. So why not make it out as best you can..
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