Making Your New Place Feel Like Home

When you move abroad, it can be difficult to know what to take with you. If you have a house full of furniture will you be able to fit it all in or will you need more than you already have? Perhaps it’s time to have a good old clear out? One thing that you should try and achieve, especially if moving with a family, is creating a home and not just somewhere you eat and sleep. Consider the following and make sure you are fully prepared for your move.

Is your new accommodation furnished?

If you are moving as part of a relocation package you may be moving into accommodation that has been selected and furnished for you already. If this is the case then all that you’ll need will be your personal belongings to give your flat our house that homely feel. Things like picture frames, ornaments, sentimental items and perhaps some soft furnishings will help you achieve this.

 

Moving to unfurnished accommodation

If you are moving to an unfurnished property you will want to ensure that all your furniture will fit in your new house or apartment. It is a good idea to measure the rooms in the property before you decide what furniture to bring on your move. Spacious accommodation with lots of floor space and large open spaces is great if you have a lot of furniture as you don’t have to worry about how it will all fit, however, some countries are known to have very small houses with small rooms. Make sure you can get your super king-size bed through your new front door!

The making of a home

It is important to make your new place feel like home, particularly if you are moving with family. The children may feel more settled if they are surrounded by their belongings and you may want to try and re-create their bedrooms to make them feel more settled. Try to bring the following for your kids’ bedrooms:
• Beds or at least the mattresses
• Duvets and pillows
• Curtains and light shades
• Pictures and posters
• Cuddly toys
• Night lights

It is also important to have reminders of your old home around the house so try and fill your new house or apartment with framed pictures or things you have collected.

 

Time to have a good old clear-out

Hard as it may be for all you hoarders, there comes a time when it is a very good idea to have a really good clear out and be disciplined about it. Don’t just throw a few things away in some half-baked attempt to convince yourself you have had a clear out. Devise a strategy. Categorise your belongings into essential, useful, barely used and never used. ‘Never used’ can go straight to the charity shop, recycling centre or on your local buy, sell, swap website. ‘Barely used’ will be a bit more of a struggle, ask yourself when you last used it and if you are likely to use it in your new home. You will be surprised at how much you don’t actually need. The money you get from selling things you don’t need can go on new things or days out as a treat for the whole family.

Treat yourself to one or two new things

Will it make the transition easier if the kids have a new source of entertainment and something to look forward to? Perhaps you could offer to buy them new bikes to explore the new area or a pair of roller skates. The excitement of new things and new adventures may help to take the edge of the uneasy feeling that some get with a move – especially children.

 

Have fun planning your new home

If you have a floor plan for your new home, you can together as a family talk about who is having the biggest bedroom and what furniture goes where. The kids can work out where things will go in their new rooms, they can choose what colour to paint the room in and where their bed should go. If they are sharing a room let them work out how they will divide the space and you can spend time working out where everything will go in the rest of the house. The important thing when embarking on such a big change is to prepare everyone and try to remove some of the anxiety by making it fun and staying positive.