Our homes are full of fragile items, from everyday crockery to Christmas ornaments and Mirrors - the ones that no one wants to smash. But how do you protect them when you decide to move house? There’s no way you want to re-buy all these fragile items once you arrive after you’ve just forked out for the cost of selling and moving. Check out how we reckon are the best way to pack and protect all of these items for the big move.
How to transport plates
We’ve all done it, the plate’s in your hand, you’re trying to get the tea towel round the whole thing at once for ultimate drying momentum and suddenly the plate’s in pieces. You realise you are bare foot and surrounded by sharp ceramic shards and panic sets in (okay, bit dramatic). That happened with the plate in your own hands, just think what could happen when they’re loaded into a van and out of your sight for a couple of hours.
We’ve found that the best way to transport plates is to start by using a piece of packing paper as a base and then positioning your biggest place down on it first. Wrap the edges up and around the plate and secure in the centre on the top, allowing for maximum coverage by the paper. Continue on with this working your way up to the smallest plates you’ve got.
After this you’re going to be tempted to stack the plates flat in the box, but this is actually one of the easiest ways for things to smash! Stack the plates on their sides, with the largest around the outside and working inwards with any spare space padded out with extra packing paper for even more cushion if they are jostling around.
How to pack glasses/cups/bowls
Much like plates, glasses/cups/bowls etc. need to be wrapped individually before being stacked in the box for ultimate protection as, if you’ve ever worked in a bar will know, that there’s always those two pint glasses that become stuck together and shatter into smithereens during trying to get them apart. We don’t want that.
Take each item and make sure to wrap with packing paper, newspaper or we always find that this is a great way of packing your tea towels as well as they allow the best cushion for the fragile item.
Once you’ve protected them we suggest that you separate into similar sized items or into the same items so that you can stack (rim side down) in boxes that you have lined with more packing paper or cloth first for extra protection.
How to pack mirrors/frames
None of us want the dreaded 7years of bad luck brought on by breaking a mirror, so this is one to definitely give some food for thought.
First off, wrap each item individually with tape going in three directions, much like a six-pointed star – this helps to stop the glass moving around and means it’s less likely to get broken with it being secure.
Much like the plates, you then need to place on a large piece of wrapping paper and wrap like a present to make sure as much of the mirror or frame is covered as possible. Pack them into boxes vertically and pad out any extra space with more packing paper or bubble wrap so that should they move around they aren’t crashing into each other.
How to pack ornaments and other weirdly shaped items
This one is going to take some creativity!
Fragile ornaments and other strangely shaped items are harder to pack as they tend to have a number of pieces that can be chipped off or smashed and are going to be a nightmare to try and superglue together (don’t worry, we’d put it in the bin too).
The best way to pack these is to cover the item in bubble wrap (we recommend a couple of sheets just to be on the safe side) so that, should they be dropped, they are well cushioned and are less likely to smash.
Now the fun bit – when it comes to boxing don’t just stuff it into a box and hope for the best…build your own! Get sheets of cardboard and fold it around each part of the item so that everything is covered, which might actually take a few sheets or cut pieces, but it is for the best!
Pack each one separately and mark FRAGILE just so that everyone is aware that they are very, very FRAGILE.
Hopefully if you follow these simple steps to packing fragile items then you’re less likely to be disappointed by the sad sight of piles of broken dinnerware and dreams (too far?).
The STORED removal teams take the upmost care with your belongings and have been trained on the best ways to store and transport your items and can bring packing equipment and assist you in packing any sort of item for a small fee! Simply book your slot online and let us know if you need assistance in packing and we’ll make sure your fragile items are safe and secure when you’re going through home removals.
