How to Downsize Your Furniture Before You Move

Are you thinking about moving, or will you be moving soon? Downsizing will help you reduce the volume of your stuff so that it’s more manageable. Plus, if you’re transitioning to a smaller home, remember that not everything will fit, so it’s a smart idea to get rid of the things you don’t need, want or use ​now​.  One of the biggest mistakes people make when moving is to not take the time to properly prepare for their move before they move!  They run out of time and send everything with the notion they will figure it out later. That rarely happens!

The big bonus of downsizing before you move is that not only will your move cost you less but you will be able to start fresh without all that unnecessary furniture and excess stuff weighing you down.

To help you kick off your downsizing project, we generally recommend that people start with their furniture

Furniture First, Then Everything Else

A great way to go about this is to create a furniture inventory of what you plan to keep and what you plan to get rid of.

Once furniture is identified, things start to fall into place. It identifies what furniture is moving, which the moving company will need to know and you will need for your space plan. It also identifies all the things you need to get rid of!  Getting rid of the excess is a whole other part of the moving process! The part people really hate to do!

For your inventory, start in the rooms you use the most and list all the furniture, have 3 columns, one for MOVE, UNDECIDED and NO MOVE. Start to list all the must have, can’t live without MOVE items, next list the UNDECIDED, the maybe pieces, the ones you hope will fit  and last list the do not want, NO MOVE pieces.  Use a different colored dot or sticky note for each category and label the pieces accordingly.  This will save time later.

While you are listing your furniture, take measurements of the MOVE and UNDECIDED pieces.  This will become very helpful later when you layout your space plan of your new residence. If you know where you are moving, doing a space plan is a priority! You will then be able to visually see what will fit and what won’t.  The space plan is where you find out if the UNDECIDED pieces get to move.  It is also the reality check of how much space you have to work with. A well prepared space plan makes the move process go so much more quickly and smoothly.

Sometimes you don’t know where you are going exactly, but you have a pretty good idea of what you are looking for.  Maybe you envision yourself in a small studio or 1 bedroom apartment, a 2 bedroom condo with a garage or a single family residence with 3 bedrooms and a den. Just having a notion of where you plan to move can get you started on your furniture plan.

Once your furniture is identified and you have some idea of the space you are moving to this starts to bring into focus the Part 2 of Downsizing  – Downsizing your Stuff.  This is where things start to really get fun.

For example – Have 6 bookcases full of books but only plan to take 2? Downsizing project #1 – go through those books and only keep what will fit on 2 bookcases.  Box up the rest for donation or sale.

Moving from a 4 bedroom house to a 2 bedroom?  Downsizing project #2 – go through the closets and drawer space of those extra rooms and sort for donation, disposal, family or possible sale.

We will talk more about working your way through your stuff in our next blog.

Take the Next Step

Need help jump starting your Downsizing project or help creating your perfect space plan? NextStep Transitions has you covered. We can get you going in the right direction and create a space plan that becomes your blueprint for a successful move.

Knowing exactly what will fit and what has to go will give you peace of mind as you transition to your new home. Contact us​ to set up your initial consultation today.