You never really cared for that stemware you got from your mother-in-law for your wedding — 30, 40, or 50 years ago. It has sat, unused, in your china closet next to your aunt’s gravy boat and the porcelain vase from that trip to France in the 1970s.

Now that you have decided to downsize, how do you decide what china, artwork, books, and even clothing to take to your new space?

One of the biggest parts of my business is to help people who have lived in their homes for decades sort through their many belongings to determine what they need when they move. 

Even though you may like to keep it all, downsizing does not mean jamming everything you have into less square footage; it means being mindful about what you bring, so that you can feel less encumbered and use the new space efficiently and comfortably.  

Well, how the heck do you do that?

We will divide the topic into two blog posts. This one will look at the sorting and packing process, and next time we will delve into the unpacking and setting up.

A Game Plan

On a job I did recently, the client had been in her home for 53 years. 

The first thing I did was to learn about the space she would be moving to. What is the square footage? How many kitchen cabinets? How many closets? How big? 

From there we were able to go room-by-room through her possessions  to determine exactly how much she could — and should — take, down to the number of salad plates and cereal bowls. 

The rest of the stuff that she would not be able to take was divided into several categories: donate, sell, toss. 

A Simpler Life Now will handle it all, taking all of the hassle and aggravation out of the moving process for you. 

We professionally pack up and label all of your boxes, and will either bring the items you don’t want anymore to a donation site, or will arrange for them to be picked up. We can run an online auction for you, or, if you have high-end items like sterling and artwork, we can bring in an auctioneer. We can do a complete clean out for you. 

We can arrange for a professional mover to relocate your boxes and furniture. 

Next comes the wiping down and sweeping of the house, or, if necessary, arranging for professional cleaners to come in. 

Any outside professional we recommend or secure for you has been vetted by us so that you can trust them. I have wonderful connections to companies who provide all of these services, and they have all performed consistently, efficiently, responsibly, and cost-effectively. I will oversee their involvement every step of the way so you can rest assured that your possessions are treated with the respect and care they deserve. 

Not Just for Seniors

These services are not just for seniors who are downsizing. I am happy to help organize your home so you can stay there, and live more comfortably. I can sort and pack for families who have pregnancies, small children, injuries, or are just too busy to do it all themselves. 

It’s hard to move, and even harder to downsize. I know how important your possessions are, and how much sentimental attachment you have to them. We will work through the process together so that you can have a simpler life, now.

The second part of this discussion will focus on setting up your new place.

A client, whose son played trombone when he was in elementary school, only allowed him to practice when she was out of the house picking up his sisters from their various afternoon activities because, during his earlier lessons, his screeches were so dreadful.

She told me this story as we were cleaning out some of her closets and we found her son’s old trombone practice books.

In her case, when he was done playing after a few years (and much improvement!), they just returned the instrument to the school. But it’s not always that easy.

What if your child played the piano? You spent countless quality hours with your child sitting in your lap, having him model what your hands were doing. Hours listening to your child practice from the other room while you were making family dinners. And the nerves you both had before each recital! Great memories.

But after that…well, that piano has looked beautiful in your living room or den for decades, and it has been a great showcase for all those precious family photos, but, face it, no one has played it in years, and now that it’s time to move you really need to think about what to do with it. 

Your new space is short on room, your kids probably don’t want it, and if the grandkids are learning to play they probably are using an electric keyboard. Plus, moving a piano can be quite costly. 

Once you have made the difficult decision to part with it, now what?

Lots of clients ask me what they can do with their pianos. The sad reality is that even though you may have paid a fair amount for that upright, which was once even considered a status symbol, it is worth next to nothing right now. 

We can try donating it to a church, school, or community group, but someone probably beat you to it. Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity, and veterans groups in your area might accept pianos. Pianos for Education accepts pianos for donation if they meet certain criteria.

One solution is to join a Facebook town group and offer it for free. Whoever wants it will pay for a mover to take it off your hands. A scan today of free pianos on Craig’s List in North Jersey showed offers for plenty of free pianos, ranging from uprights to Baby Grands to antique ones. “Freecycle” type websites are another great option, where old possessions get new homes.

It is wise to look for “piano wanted” listings on postings for a few months before you need it gone.

Parts of pianos can be recycled. Many of its parts--the wood, steel wires, cast iron, screws, etc, can be reused. This is usually done locally because of the prohibitive transport costs.  

If no one claims it even after you have offered it up for free, you will have to pay to have it hauled away. If this happens, we can shop around for movers. Often they charge a set price, plus additional fees for having to move it up or down stairs. 1-800-Got-Junk removes pianos, and charges based on how much room it takes up in their truck.

It’s not easy to part with an item you have loved for so many years, but once it is gone--either being enjoyed by a new generation of music lovers, or, sadly, destined for a landfill, you will feel lighter and freer and will have one less item to worry about.

Frederick Chopin once said, "Simplicity is the highest goal, achievable when you have overcome all difficulties. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art.”

Together, we will help you achieve A Simpler Life Now.