Downsizing
Less room, and everything that matters still with you
Going from a house to a condo usually means letting go of half of what's in it. We make that a series of small, clear choices instead of one big, sad one.
Four places for every thing
We set these up in a spare room or the garage on the first sorting day, so you can see the piles grow and know exactly where things are going.
Keep
It's on the floor plan, or it fits in a drawer you'll have. It gets packed for the new home.
Family
Photographed and offered to children and grandchildren. We pack and ship what they claim.
Donate
Clothing, kitchenware, linens and furniture go to local charities. We drive them there.
Sell
A few good pieces listed online or taken to a consignment shop. Small sales, not an estate sale.
The floor plan
Know what fits before you pack
We measure every room in the new home and every piece you'd like to bring, then draw it to scale. You can see where the sofa goes, whether the armchair still fits by the window, and that the dining table for six won't.
- Furniture you're bringing, drawn at its real size.
- What the new home already has: kitchen counters, bathtub, closets.
In this one, the big dining table stayed behind. A small round table from the basement took its place, with room for two chairs.
Letting go kindly
Some things take longer, and that's allowed
We don't rush the drawer of letters.
A wardrobe of clothes can be sorted in an hour. A box of photographs can take an afternoon, and it should. We plan the sorting so the easy rooms come first and the hard ones get time.
A few things that help:
- Keep a story, not the object: we photograph pieces before they go.
- Choose a few favourites from a collection rather than keeping all of it.
- Leave the decision for next week if today isn't the day.
- Know where things are going. A coat given to a shelter is easier to part with than a coat put in a bag.
Donation and dump runs
We load our van and take donations to local charity shops and shelters, and what's left to the Hartland depot. You get a list of what went where. From $95 a load.