How to Pack Glassware & Fine China for Your Move

Moving day can be an exciting time. There’s your new place, a new neighbourhood, and new goals to look forward to. However, before you can start delighting in decorating your new home, there are a couple of hurdles you need to overcome first – the most time-consuming and stressful of which is packing.

It also doesn’t help that packing different items requires a variation in packing techniques. For example, you would need to take different levels of care in packing, say, books and electronic gadgets. Packing rare, fragile china is even more challenging, though. And it would be so much easier if you can just let moving company pros do the job for you.

But if you’re working within a tight budget, or if you cannot bear the thought of other people handling sentimental family heirlooms, you’d better be up to the task. In this post, we’ll be giving you moving tips on how to properly pack breakable glassware and fine china for your upcoming move.

1. Assemble Your Packing Materials

To ensure your glassware and china packing session goes without a hitch, you need to have the necessary packing materials ready. These include:

• Tea chests and book cartons designed for moving
• Cell or cardboard dividers
• Lots of packing paper
• Bubble wrap
• Individual pieces of cardboard
• Packing tape
• Permanent marker

Make sure you have sufficient space in your designated packing area or table.

2. Pack Your Fragile Glassware And China

As much as possible, designate separate boxes for plates, glassware and fine china. Ensure all your different glassware, dinnerware, and other dish sets are clean, complete and ready for packing.

• To pack “regular” plates and saucers and similar items, you can pack them together using a large piece of packing paper. Be sure to put a layer or corner of the packing paper for every plate added to the set. Each set should not exceed four pieces. For added cushioning, wrap each set in another piece of packing paper. You can do the same with bowls; however, each set shouldn’t exceed three pieces. Alternatively, you can use bubble wrap for wrapping each set. Secure each set with packing tape.
• For teapots and similar items, separately wrap the body and the cover in packing paper. Once done, wrap the two parts together in another piece of packing paper or bubble wrap, and tape it up.
• Glasses, cups and mugs need to be individually wrapped in packing paper or bubble wrap. Also, make sure to stuff the opening with some crumpled packing paper.
• Wine goblets, champagne glasses and the like require a special packing technique. First, fold the packing paper into three or four, depending on the height of the glass flute or stem. Use each folded packing paper for wrapping each glass stem. After you’re done with this, wrap each individual wine glass with another piece of packing paper. Stuff the opening of each glass with crumpled packing paper.

3. Pack Everything In Dish Packs Or Corrugated Boxes

When you’re ready to put your fragile crystal and china in boxes, be sure to do the following:

• Line the bottom of each box with a generous amount of crumpled packing paper.
• Start packing with the heaviest items at the bottom. Lightweight items should be packed last or on top.
• Put plates, saucers, bowls, and other items that have been packed together on their sides inside the box. Again, put some crumpled packing paper on the sides, in between and on top of these items for extra cushioning.
• Cover the finished layer with a piece of sturdy cardboard.
• If you’re putting wine glasses and similar items in the same box, put a cell divider on top of the cardboard piece. Then carefully put each wine glass into a slot until you finish. Cover this section with another piece of cardboard. If there’s still space for more wine glasses, repeat the same procedure.
• Finally, before closing the box, make sure to put one last piece of cardboard on top. You can then close the box and secure it with packing tape.
• Indicate what the items are on the box or label the box appropriately.

Make Moving Day Easy

Moving house can be a fun though tiring venture. To reduce the stress of packing, you can avail of professional packing services usually offered by leading Sydney removals experts like us, Zoom Removals.

You may also want to consider getting your fragile goods insured for an added layer of security with our premium removals insurance.

Finally, for more help don’t forget to check out our excellent moving checklist or our top ten tips to reduce stress while moving homes.