An international move requires a lot of work, including packing your clothes. Though there is no strict rule for doing so, unlike packing fragile and breakable items, clothes packing and shipping still need careful attention to ensure that everything arrives in your new home in excellent condition.
The primary challenges when moving clothes are how to keep them clean, packing them without getting wrinkles, and moving them in an organised manner. This may seem like an enormous hassle for some individuals, so they turn to movers and packers in Dubai for help.
However, there are simple ways for packing clothes if you are committed to doing it.
Here are eight tips and tricks for packing your clothes when moving to Dubai.
1. Sort your clothes
Before anything else, sort your clothes first as this can save you significant time and money. It will also prevent you from wasting essential resources in terms of unpacking and regretting why you have brought items you don’t need or not knowing where specific items of clothing are.
Here’s how you should sort your garments:
Get rid of clothing items you no longer need. Clothes to discard should include:
- Out-of-fashion garments
- Clothes that don’t suit you anymore
- Worn-out or torn clothing
- Clothes that you have outgrown
Once you discard these items of clothing, decide which you should sell, donate, or throw away.
Make sure you separate the clothes you want to wear on your moving day. Ideally, you need to opt for comfortable clothes. Take note as well of the weather in your current place and new residence. Set aside underwear, pyjamas and towels you’ll need as soon as you reach your new home.
You should also group your clothes into categories. Separating your clothes into groups will make packing a lot easier and faster. This will also guide you on how they should be packed.
Group your clothes by:
- Material – Cotton and other natural fabrics can crease, so place them on hangers. Polyester and synthetic clothes don’t crease, so you can stuff them into boxes. Wool clothes may take up the largest space, so you might need several extra boxes for these.
- Need – Set aside comfortable clothes from formal garments.
- Size – Separate small or short items from longer clothes, and put them in different boxes. But if you’re mixing them in a single large box, don’t forget to pack similarly sized items together and put them in clearly labelled plastic bags.
- Season – This will help you unpack the clothes you will need right away based on the season.
2. Move the dresser as is
If your dresser contains lighter items like underwear and socks, you can move it as is without emptying it. But you need to check with the international moving company first to make sure that this is acceptable.
In case you can move the dresser as is, make sure you secure it by sealing the openings so none of the items inside will fall out and go missing.
3. Use your suitcase
If you have several suitcases or travel bags, use them for packing your clothes. Make sure you label these as well to easily pinpoint where certain clothes are in case you need them.
4. Use vacuum or garbage bags
Vacuum-sealed bags can hold several clothes. By taking out the air, these bags can be shrunk to use up less space. These are especially useful for keeping out-of-season clothing since you will most likely put those into the storage in your new place.
Garbage bags are useful for packing clothes, too. Unused bags can be used to cover garments and shield them from dirt and other debris. You can also make a small hole at the bottom of each bag where you can pull the hangers (with your clothes) through before tying a knot in the bag opening.
5. Wrap clothes in sheets or plastic
Sheets and plastic wraps are good alternatives to garbage or vacuum bags because they are not slippery. They can also be wrapped to fit the precise size of your hanging clothes or the amount of clothing you want to pack.
You can also use plastic wraps and sheets to protect and secure the clothes in your dressers or drawers.
6. Use regular boxes
In general, regular, moderately sized boxes remain a popular choice for packing clothes. Avoid using small boxes because clothes weigh a lot. Too-big boxes, on the other hand, can collapse at the bottom and can be hard to carry.
Don’t forget to label each box properly. The label must include the type of clothing inside, season, who it belongs to, and which room it’s going into.
Moreover, use clear tape to cover your labels to keep them from getting damaged or distorted during the move. You should also use a dark pen to ensure that the ink will not rub off during transit.
7. Pack your shoes separately from your clothing
Packing your shoes separately will prevent your clothes from getting dirty during the move. You can use shoe boxes and stack them in a bigger box. If not, stuff your shoes with paper so they will not get deformed while in transit. Put each pair in a paper or plastic bag and then put all your packaged shoes in one big box. As always, secure the box and label it.
8. Let some of your clothes do double duty
Use sweatpants, sweatshirts, old clothes, and balled up socks as padding for other packed items. This way, they can provide cushioning for your valuables or fill in the gaps in your boxes so the items won’t shift around during the move.
Before placing these back in your closet or dresser in your new place, make sure to run them through the washer after unpacking.
Pack your clothes with care
Your clothes need care and attention to preserve their cleanliness and quality during transit.
Get rid of those that you don’t need, group and pack your clothes in categories and place proper labels on the packaging. Also, make sure you set aside a change of clothes for when you arrive in your new home.
For packing unpacking services, tips and advice, contact our highly experienced international movers and packers today