Packing up your kitchen like a pro … When it comes to packing for a move, most people dread the kitchen. What with all the dishes, appliances, and odds and ends crammed onto shelves. And sadly it’s not a job you can rush through, because if you’re not careful in your packing, you risk finding broken dishes and shattered wine glasses when you open the boxes in your new place.
Believe it or not though, you can avoid some common mistakes and get your kitchen packed in a weekend! 
When packing up your kitchen like a pro, you want to make sure that gran’s old gravy boat or Aunty Mae’s antique tea cup set makes it to your new home. So while care is required for fragile items, don’t forget to take into account the variety and number of other items that can be found in your kitchen as well. Things like canned goods, spatulas, or oven mitts.
In order to make your life a teensy easier, I have collected some tips for packing up your kitchen:
Items you might need
You’ll definitely need packing paper and lots of it, tape, boxes (different sizes), china cartons, bubble wrap (and anything else you may need). China cartons are specially made for glass and fragile items. They are double walled (extra thick) which will better protect your fragile items. Of course your larger boxes are able to house more, and the smaller boxes can be used for books and smaller miscellaneous items. Looking for boxes? Try Bunnings, Mitre10 or Nelson Packaging Supplies.
Before you start placing anything in any boxes, try lining the bottom of your box with paper or “crush”. This means crumpling up a few sheets to create a shock absorption layer at the bottom of the box. Items can easily shift in boxes during transportation, and this will help ensure that nothing breaks.
Plates and earthenware
Plates are best packed on their ends. If you wrap each plate in a sheet of paper it prevents scratches from rubbing. So try lining the plates up vertically in the box, standing next to each other. Do the same for any small saucers or small plates. Once you finish a who layer of plates, fill the carton with more crush and start another layer, until you’re done, or the box is full. The same principle goes for large plates or large bowls.
Glasses
When packing glasses, once again, make sure to wrap each glass in paper. This will prevent any rubbing or chips that can result from shifting around in transport. Stacking glasses standing up in a box, will prevent cracks / breakages. Glasses put on their side are not very strong you see, and can easily break.
Silverware 
Silverware often comes in a plastic tray which allows you to keep all the utensils separate. Simply take a few pieces of paper or glad wrap and tape them overtop the tray. This will keep the silverware from spilling out and creating a mess for you to sort through when you get to your destination.
Pots and Pans
Packing up your kitchen like a pro includes all those pots and pans which can easily be packed in a larger box. Because pots and pans typically aren’t all that heavy, you can put more of them into a larger box. Wrap each pot individually in paper to avoid any scratches to the pots and pans. Pots can be placed in the box on their bottoms as they are more stable that way, and pans can be placed in the box vertically, the same way you pack your plates.
Plastic containers
These are much easier to pack, and the same principle applies to plastic containers as pots and pans. Due to the fact that they are quite light, you can pack plastic containers in larger boxes if you have a lot of them. In the name of efficiency, you can also place containers inside one another and wrap them as a bundle.
Small appliances
Small appliances, can easily be placed in a larger box, or in the original box they came in, should you still have it. The reason that they can fit into a larger box, is because you typically cannot fit more than a few into one box. To avoid any scratches, maybe wrap each appliance in paper and tape them up so the paper doesn’t come off. This will also help stop them rubbing against other items.
Cookbooks
Cookbooks or recipe books, might be better stored in smaller boxes. Only because boxes filled with books can easily become quite heavy. In order to protect your books, wrap each book in paper, to ensure that they don’t rub or are torn during transportation.
Canned food
The same goes for canned goods as for cook books. These items can be packed in a smaller box because the overall weight of a group of canned goods can add up quite quickly. When you pack your kitchen, try to group cans together and wrap them in paper. Any glass containers can be wrapped up individually. Be sure to write on any box that contain glass containers. So that whoever is carrying it knows what’s in the box, and load it accordingly.
Hope my tips for “packing your kitchen like a pro” can help you a bit. It definitely is one of the more time-consuming rooms to pack. Mainly because of all the individual packing. But you will have fragile items, and you wouldn’t want them chipped or scratched.
It is important to note that you can use other miscellaneous items around your kitchen to pack around or fill in your box. Things like oven mitts, aprons, or dish towels, which can be great items to fill up boxes, or to tighten the box up. If you run out of those items, of course paper will also work to tighten up the carton.
you are moving, and require some storage until you can move into your house, call us on 03.544.4393. or visit our ‘Storage options‘ for more details. We’re more than happy to help you with your queries.
Good luck with all your packing! Bye for now..
Visit the spruce for more tips and advice.
