Ack, I think I should have planned this better... and a question...

I'm moving in six weeks (however I am going away for two weeks between then and now, so I actually only have four weeks to pack everything and get everything sorted out), and there are a few pieces of furniture that I wanted to get rid of - my desk, which is too large for my new living room, my bed and mattress, which are too small for my new bedroom (it's twin-sized, which is all that would fit in my current glorified closet of a bedroom, but I have a huge bedroom at my new apt., so there's no way I'm going to keep cramming me and four kits into the twin), and my TV stand, which fits into a corner, and with the layout of my new living room, the TV isn't going to go in the corner - for some reason I had assumed it would take quite awhile to sell them, so I *thought* it would be a good idea to start now, so I put up ads on craigslist, and flyers around my neighbourhood. Well, today I got a call from someone who wants the bed and mattress AND the TV stand, and she's coming for them TONIGHT! And not half an hour ago I got an email from someone who wants the desk, so that'll be gone in the next few days, too. Ahhh, I had no idea things would go this quickly! Now I'm stuck sleeping on my couch for four weeks, and I have no clue what I'm going to put my TV, digital cable box and DVD player on, either! Really, really wish I had planned this better.

I am actually having a lot of difficulty with planning the packing in general - this is my first 'real' move (I moved into this apartment from my dorm, so all I had were smaller things, I bought all the furniture after I moved in), and I'm not sure how to plan the 'timeline' for what stuff I should pack, when - for example, there are lots of things I'm going to need on a regular basis, so I don't want to pack them too soon, but I'm also afraid to leave it to the last minute. I was wondering if any of you who are more experienced with moving could give me sort of a timeline for when you packed what sort of items. Eg. how soon before you moved did you pack books, linens, dishes, knickknacks, toiletries, cleaning supplies, clothes, etc. ? Anyone have any other general advice about packing/moving? TIA if anyone has any suggestions!

Well, as far as a timeline, better too soon than be rushed and running out of time at the end. Kitchenware always takes longer to pack and unpack, but you can eat at McDonald's for several days before/after the move. I mark each box with a one or two-word description of the contents and the destination room.

Now, I don't know how much stuff you have to pack, but I moved from a 2 bedroom apartment, and hubby and I had about 6 years worth of stuff plus our son was almost 4 at the time, so we had all his toys. We bought our house and closing was set 3 weeks away.

Week 1 of packing, I packed all wall hangings and things I could do without. Things like dishes, I packed what wasn't needed at all, leaving out only what was needed, ex. 1 plate for each person, 1 glass for each person, etc. About 1 week before the move, I packed everything, only leaving out clothes for the week, and whatever else needed for that week. I got those traveling dispensers for soap and toothbrushes, so the night before we moved, I just put those and my shampoo in a plastic bag, so this way I could definitely identify it in our new place, since I would definitely need to be able to find them almost immediately to use, plus by putting them in a travel container, I didn't have to worry about my toothbrush dropping in something nasty...
Don't know if this helps or not, but good luck to you!

I started packing as soon as we put our house on the market. Actually, I think I started a little before. I went through closets, etc and figured out what I wouldn't need in the next few months and packed all of that up. Then we got an offer and had three weeks to get out of the house (similar to your situation). Everything came off the walls, all decorations got packed. Go through your clothes and anything you absolutely don't need in the next 3 weeks can go. I left about a week's worth of towels and a few days worth of dishes and packed the rest. By the last week, it was paper plates and cups. Whatever you do, LABEL, LABEL, LABEL!!!! Put the essentials that you need to have in order to function in separate boxes (coffee maker, some dishes, clothes for a few days, some towels, etc). Keep track of these boxes. Always know where they are. When you get to the new place, you will know where they are and will be able to function right away and can take some time unpacking the rest. OK, I am done rambling for now! GOOD LUCK!

I have moved 18 times in the past 20 years, and worked for a moving company for 7 years. Moving sucks any way you look at it. I am also currently packing to move again. I have a few tips.
If you have a moving company near you, you may be able to scrounge good boxes and packing paper from around their dumpsters. If not, those places often have good used boxes and paper that they will sell at a reduced rate. You have to know to ask, or you may have to buy new ones. If you have a lot of fragile stuff, ask for dish barrels. Buying boxes can be a bit pricey, but they are worth it. You can often sell them to other people that are moving. Check the bottom of any boxes you get from other places, they will list their bursting strength. The higher the better. Pack them full to the top and add a layer of crushed paper to make the tops even. You should have to hold them down to tape them. Then you can stack them without having them collapse. Investing 5 bucks for a tape gun from Wal-Mart will make your life much easier. Tape across the bottom twice, and make a short diagonal tape at the ends of the seam, and they won't come apart.
Towels, sheets and off season clothing make great padding, and for filling up the corners of a box to keep them strong.
Pack all the knick knacks, decorations, and stuff first. They will be out of the way, and they will not get broken. You can sit your cable box and stuff on the first boxes you pack.
Set aside clothes, toiletries, etc, like you are going on a long trip. Pack the rest of them.
Get a supply of paper plates and cups, pack everything but the barest minimum of kitchen stuff. It will all be out of the way so you can clean. If you have blinds on your windows, take your curtains down, wash them and put them with the kitchen stuff. That will probably be among the first stuff you unpack, and you may need to put them right up at the new place.
LABEL! LABEL! LABEL! Movers will list 3 items in each box and what room it goes to.
I hope this helps. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Good luck with your move.

Wow, so much helpful advice, thank you so much! It hadn't occurred to me to label by contents AND room - I was only labelling by contents, but that's a great idea to help with organising! Thank you again!

i will move at the end of october, now.. you did start a bit early with getting rid of your furniture but you never know! You only have 4 weeks which is plenty of time, then again i dont know how big your appartment is.
You can start packing today or with in the week all of your little breakable things (i have many of them) start packing up things you dont need such as pictures, Frames, What ever is on the wall.
Have you gone through your house and done a spring cleaning, getting rid of paper, junk that you hadnt thought of having stuck in those cupboards or desks? even clothes for this matter.

Considering i am only moving down the street 2 block appartments down, i am only going to pack the last week of going down there.
Ben and i made a deal that i will carry the not so heavy things and i will just pack all of the stuff in the suitcases and roll them down.
Since i knew i was going to move with in the year or so i kept every box of things that i bought and that really does help alot!

Some things though i can already start packing that are lying around in the basement. If you have one also, it might be a good idea to go down there to refresh your memory of what you have stored there.

As the rest of your things such as tv ect. you can just place it on the floor, okay its going to look messy but its only 4 weeks

THE LAST THING YOU SHOULD DO is pack up the kitty stuff hehe

Check Yahoo Groups for a Freecycle board. There are usually people there who have boxes to give up Or watch for people moving into your area u may be able to get packing stuff from them when they unpack.

[size=-1]ca.groups.yahoo.com/group/CabbagetownFreecycle/
[/size][size=-1]finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/freecycleto/
[/size][size=-1]freecycle.meetup.com/15/
[/size][size=-1]freecycle.org/newswire/2005/01/24/toronto-star-recycling-online/[/size]