The kitchen is where moves go to die. Honestly. Bedrooms are easy: clothes in bags, books in boxes, done. Then you open the kitchen cupboards and find forty mugs, three blenders and a cupboard of spices from 2019.
I’ve packed a few kitchens now, mine and other people’s, and I’ve broken enough wine glasses to have opinions. So here’s what works.
Start With a Ruthless Clear-Out
Before you wrap a single thing, cull. Expired stuff goes in the bin. Duplicates go to the op shop. That fondue set you’ve used once in seven years? It’s time.
For the last two weeks, we basically live on freezer meals and whatever’s in the pantry. Weird dinners, sure. But every jar you eat is one less jar to wrap, and one less thing to leak soy sauce all over the books.
Get Proper Boxes
Supermarket boxes are fine for tins and dry goods. They are not fine for plates. For anything that breaks, buy real double-walled moving cartons. Cheap boxes squash. Squashed boxes at the bottom of a truck stack mean a box of crockery turning into a box of gravel.
Grab packing paper too. More than you think. Then some bubble wrap for the precious stuff and a tape gun, because peeling tape with your fingernail gets old by box three. I tried newspaper once. Grey smudges on every white plate we owned. Never again.
Plates Go on Their Side
This one surprised me. A mover told me plates crack less when they’re stood up on their edge, like vinyl in a crate, instead of stacked flat. So: wrap a plate, scrunch some paper into the bottom of the box, stand the plates up in a row, and shove more paper in wherever there’s wiggle room.
Glasses? Roughly the same deal. Paper inside, paper around, upright. If the box comes with those cardboard dividers, use them. If not, honestly, a few socks work.
Heavy Small, Light Big
Small boxes for heavy things. Big boxes for light things. Pots, pans, tins and cookbooks go in small boxes so nobody does their back in. The big boxes get the fluffy, light stuff: tea towels, the lunchbox mountain, oven trays.
Appliances
Kept the box the microwave came in? Legend. Most of us didn’t, so a beach towel or an old duvet does the job. Empty and dry anything with water in it. The fridge needs defrosting and drying out at least a day before, or you’ll find a puddle in the truck and a smell in the new house.
Label Like Your Life Depends On It
Write on the top and at least one side. “Kitchen – plates – FRAGILE – this way up.” It feels like overkill. It’s not. When you’re unloading at nine at night, you’ll thank yourself.
Keep One Box Back
Pack a survival box last and load it last so it comes off first. Kettle, a couple of mugs, tea and coffee, a frying pan, one knife, one chopping board, plates and cutlery for each person, dish soap, a sponge. That’s dinner and breakfast sorted while the rest waits.
When to Get Help
Packing a kitchen takes longer than people expect. A full family kitchen can easily eat a whole day. If you’re working right up to moving day, it might be worth paying someone else to do it.
A lot of movers and packers in Auckland offer packing as an add-on. CityMove, for example, will pack the house or just the bits you want, and bring the cartons and materials on the same booking. You can also leave them the kitchen and do the easy rooms yourself, which is what I’d do.
The Short Version
Clear out first. Use proper boxes. Plates on their side. Small boxes for heavy stuff. Label everything. Keep a survival box back. And if you’ve got a full day’s work and a full kitchen, think about letting the professionals take over. I’ve seen the Auckland moving crews get through a kitchen in the time it takes me to find the tape.
