So the moment FINALLY happened, where you get to live out all of your adolescent fantasies of what true adulthood is like: you get your very own apartment!
This summer, I said "bye-felicia" to dorm life, and embarked on the journey of finding the perfect little apartment in the city. Don't get me wrong, dorm life was AH-MAZING. But now that I've lived on campus for 2 years, I was honestly so ready for the next chapter of my collegiate years in a new setting, aka, my very own place that would be a tad bit bigger than a walk-in closet.
Well, within two weeks, I found the perfect spot to call home, and a week later, I began the moving process. For those of you who don't know me, I watch a ton of HGTV...Chip and Joanna Gaines are my life, as well as the whole team of Design On A Dime. So basically, I was ready to start the decorating process and completely skip moving and organizing my things. But, unfortunately before you can start decorating, you kind of have to get situated and organize all of your clothes and things like that (which I was dreading). But, I made the best of it, and learned some things along the way: hopefully these tips can help you.
1) Have a packing party!
Do you remember that amazing scene from Sex and The City, when Carrie was finally selling her apartment to move into that dreamy penthouse with Mr. Big, and she invited all of her girlfriends over to help her throw away old clothes and pack up all of her things? DO THAT! Grab the wine, champagne, even the beer if that’s your fancy, order some take out and have a packing party with your girlfriends.
Cleaning out your closet and packing up all of trinkets can be a whole lot more fun and productive when you have some loving helping hands. Y’all can listen to music and reminisce on old times…what could be more perfect?
2) Ditch the card board boxes, and buy giant plastic bins instead!
Card board boxes are hard to carry and you can’t see what’s in them. Recently, when I was packing up to move into my new apartment, my mom suggested I get giant plastic bins because they are much more sturdy than card board boxes, hold more items, and are completely reusable for more storage! I would highly suggest purchasing them from Walmart because you will get a really good deal on the prices.
3) Tackle one bin at a time!
I organized all of my plastic bins into the following categories:
-winter/fall clothes
-summer/spring clothes
-athletic clothes,
-hygiene and beauty products,
-kitchen ware,
-cleaning products
-purses, totes, traveling bags
-breakables
Having each bin organized, made unloading them so much easier. There was no scrambling around trying to find this item or that item, everything had its place, which made my life way less stressful.
4) Get your family involved in this fun process!
Whether you’re moving in with a friend or a significant other, your family can still be a part of this process. During my moving week, my mom flew up and spent the entire week with me. Not only was she a big help, it was also so nice being able to spend some quality time with her.
5) Get WIFI set up ASAP!
The first day in my new place was so great, but it was also quite frustrating not being able to use my internet to get some work done at night. Luckily, I had scheduled for Charter to come set up my internet and cable on Day 2 of the big move, so I wasn’t without internet for too long, but trust me get that booked as soon as possible because nothing is worst than coming home to your new home and not being able to access the internet…*hello overused data*
And there you have, my 5 tips on how to make moving into your new home easier and fun, hopefully it helps. And more importantly, enjoy and cherish this moment...it's one of the biggest and most exciting times in our young, twenty-something lives!