Arranging & Decorating Your New Home—Steps to Take Before the Move

Pre-arrange for services such as carpet cleaning or replacement, wallpaper hanging or stripping, and/or painting. These services can be done much more easily when the house is vacant, so if you have that luxury, it will be much easier on you and the job will be done more quickly.

I strongly suggest that improvements be made after you own the house, however, because otherwise you put yourself in a poor bargaining position should any problems arise at closing. In the worst case, the sale falls through and you’ve lost any funds you invested in the property—and you may even need to pay to undo the work you’ve had done.

Arrange the furniture
Figure out ahead of time how you’d like to arrange your furniture. You can make scaled drawings of the rooms in your new home, cut out scaled drawings of your furniture, and play around with them that way. Or you can go online and find software which will help you to do it on your computer. Or you can even spring for a magnetic furniture planning kit, such as that offered through Scale Space Planning Products (www.furnitureplanning.com or 877-215-4420). However you choose to do it, it’s especially helpful to figure out where the heavy pieces will go. You may wind up moving them afterwards, but it really helps if you can have the movers place things properly as soon as they bring them into the house. Remember to note where doors and windows are before you start this project. Inevitably something in the house will need to be moved, despite your best planning, and you can have the movers do a minimum of this before they leave. (It would be nice to tip them a bit additional for this service, because they’re not actually required to do it.) The more prepared you are, the better.

Make sure to allow enough room between your dining room table and other furniture, to allow people to sit at the table and others to pass behind them. Approximately 3–4 feet between the table and the other piece of furniture, or a wall, is usually sufficient. Also, make sure your traffic paths are wide enough to walk around comfortably.

Color schemes
When selecting color schemes, if you’ll want to purchase bed linens, towels, curtains and/or rugs, look in stores to see what current accessory colors are, to make sure you’ll be able to find accessories in the right colors. Just because mauve towels were everywhere when you decorated your last home, doesn’t mean you’ll be able to find any now.

There are some great sites online which will help you select paint colors, such as www.benjaminmoore.com and www.glidden.com. At www.behr.com you can upload photos of your own rooms and view them in different paint colors using their Paint Your Place™ feature. You may also want to check out paint and other materials from www.healthyhome.com. This company has earned several green certifications, and among other products, it offers paint which has low or no odor, and no VOC (gassing off).

Some of the sites also let you look at external colors, but we prefer driving around the area looking at similar houses, to see what appeals to us. Some colors which look great on the outside of a house in Pittsburgh really don’t fit in on a house in Florida or New Mexico, so check out what colors are typical for your area and try to stay in character.

New purchases: be prepared
Years ago, an interior designer gave me this hint: You never know when you will see something which might be perfect for your home, so be prepared. Collect small samples of fabric from your furniture (obviously from places which won’t be visible or damage the integrity of the piece), window coverings, carpet remnants, or anything else which will be in your new home. Place them in a small plastic bag and tuck it in your purse or bag. Then, when you unexpectedly run across something that you think might work for your new home, you’ll be able to compare it immediately with your swatches and see whether the color or pattern really goes with your things.

Appliances

Refrigerators and freezers which are being moved should be turned off one to two days before the move, and defrosted, dried and aired out, with the door open. Take appropriate safety precautions if you have children around. To absorb odors and make the appliance smell fresh, place baking soda in a dish or charcoal inside a nylon stocking, knot at the top, and place inside the appliance. All removable parts should be individually packed. Check with your Owner’s Manual or consult the manufacturer for details.

You may want to load up a cooler for the few items you’ll need between the time you turn off the refrigerator and moving day. Unless you plan to drive with the cooler in your car, you can dispose of any remaining contents and get the cooler onto the moving van before it leaves. Ask the driver when he comes to load the van, when you’ll need to have it emptied. Remember to keep a towel or some paper towels available to dry out the cooler before it gets packed.

Computers

Original packing materials
Even if the movers will be packing your belongings, it will be helpful if you have the carton and packing materials in which these items were originally packed. If not, extensive use of bubble wrap and a large, sturdy box should hopefully keep them safe.

Back up your computer
Make sure that you have a computer back-up strategy in place. If you don’t, then figure one out prior to the move. Besides the normal back-up, also back up your most important files onto something easy to access (for example, an external hard drive or memory stick) and be sure to keep the back-ups with you during the move, or send them to your destination using an insured, traceable method.

Saying Your Goodbyes

Plan get-togethers with close friends, and consider hosting a party a few weeks before the move. Take photos of relatives and special friends, possibly making them into a collage after the move. If you have children at home, you might want to do a separate party for them and their friends, in a setting where they can interact and you can take photos of your children with their friends.

Use a camcorder (borrow one if you need to) to record a tour of the house while it’s still intact (before pictures are removed from the walls, etc). Include family members, especially the children. Shortly before one of our moves, we had our second grade daughter give the tour, which we captured on video. That made it a very special keepsake, and a real treat to watch years later.

What places in your area did you really enjoy going to, and believe you’ll miss when you don’t live there anymore? Try to find the time to revisit them before you leave.