Moving house is never easy. No matter how much you prepare, no matter how much you’re ready for the move. If you’re lucky enough to do it without a hitch, I absolutely salute you.
While we were beyond sad to say goodbye to our Leyton neighbourhood and our lovely housemate Ella, the boy and I both felt it was time to move on and begin the process of movin’ on up in the London property world. Still renting of course and certainly paying more than the ‘30% of your monthly wage’ UK average. I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you again, London life ain’t easy.
Somehow, after deciding in February that it was time to take the plunge, we’ve found ourselves all settled into our new place, minus a sofa and a desk. It was a few weeks of living and working in ‘cushion corner’, but after a delayed IKEA delivery as well as a super speedy dining table delivery from DFS, we’re now starting to feel like we’re not missing too much at all.
Here’s a few sneak peeks of what we’ve labelled as the ‘Earlsfield Loft’ as well as a few of my own tips to help make moving that little bit easier.
Make it a weekday.
SO many people give up their weekend to move, not willing to give up a day as a holiday. In reality, it’s just not the best idea for your mind or your body. Book a few days off in the week and allow yourself the time to settle in just a little, you’ll feel all the better for it. It can also be substantially cheaper when it comes to renting a van AND there’s less traffic. Win-win, right?
We rented a van through Enterprise and were surprised when they let us know that we had the van for a full 24 hours (we only paid £50 for the day). With that in mind, it’s much nicer to split the loading and unloading of the van over an evening and a morning, give your body a break and live that slow life.
Declutter as you go.
Moving is an amazing time to declutter your life and throw away things you’ve been holding on to. For most people, it makes sense to do this when packing, but actually, I found myself to be more ruthless on the other end. I’d advise decluttering both before and after. You just need to give yourself enough time to do so. Start packing early and you’ll have plenty of time to get out the Marie Kondo book and start that life of minimalism – leading perfectly on to my next point.
Unpack everything.
One of my top tips for moving is to unpack everything on arrival. I know this sounds INSANE but actually, it’s the quickest and simplest way of getting everything into a home quickly. One of the easiest things to do when moving is to ignore boxes. Boxes that subsequently end up packed in storage until the next move. If you get everything out and looking a bit of a mess, you’ll quickly find somewhere to store things properly. If you can’t place it or it doesn’t bring you joy, chuck it away!
Shop local.
One of the biggest mistakes I made was to buy lots of things immediately in the excitement of having a new home. Thankfully everything fits and works in the space but ultimately this could have gone horribly wrong and we could have ended up with a furniture, too large or too small for the actual space we moved into.
I’d also suggest doing your research on your new area as you may not know the hidden gems it has on offer. We’ve ended up in an area surrounded by incredible charity and antique shops, all of which could have pimped out our house for about 1/4 of the price and would have saved us lugging lots of things half way across London.
Take the time to enjoy your new home.
It shouldn’t all be hard work when it comes to moving. I made sure I had a box of my ‘home comforts’ ready to go, including my favourite cushions, fluffy blankets and a box of Newby Tea’s amazing Strawberry & Mango silken pyramids. Bliss! Take a break, set up that little corner that’s going to make you feel special, pour a refreshing cup of tea and RELAX, you’ve done it!
What do you think of the first EJP abode shots? There will be more to come over the next few weeks but I’d love to know what you think so far and what else you might like to see.
I know I’ve already said, but I’m hella impressed by how quickly you guys got settled! The loft is looking awesome – happy new home x
Thanks lovely! It’s just not in my bones to be surrounded by boxes. Maybe I’ve just got less stuff than I thought! You’re welcome for tea anytime though. x
You’re welcome over anytime lovely lady! x
I’m about to move house – this is great advice and you’re new house looks lovely! 😀 xx
Thanks so much Nicola! Good luck with the house move – it’s not all stressful! x