Kitchen packing can be a difficult task.  With so many delicate breakables and oddly shaped objects in your kitchen, figuring out how to pack up all of your gadgets and gizmos quickly and efficiently can be a chore.

Lucky for you, there are plenty of specialized packing materials that will aid you in your kitchen packing endeavor.  With the right packing supplies and a little know-how, you can take a lot of the frustration out of packing your apartment kitchen.

Get the right tools
Before you get started with kitchen packing, it’s best to get a hold of all the essential packing supplies you need for moving.  Make sure you’ve got plenty of bubble wrap, white newsprint, “fragile” tape, and permanent markers.  You also need the right kind of boxes for the job.  Moving stores offer special kitchen packing boxes that are designed for protecting plates, stemware, wine bottles, and glasses.  You may pay a little extra for a special box, but the price is worth it compared to the cost of replacing your kitchen items if they break in transit.

Keep organized while packing
Now that you’ve got the right supplies, you can plan a systematic approach to kitchen packing.  Plan to pack in categories, and keep like items with each other.  For instance, you’ll want to keep all your pots and pans together, all your utensils together, etc.  Even if a certain cabinet in your kitchen contains a hodge-podge of different types of items, dedicate your boxes to holding only one type of item.  This system will help you stay organized and make the process go by faster.

Pack boxes properly
When you start packing boxes in the kitchen, take care to pack boxes properly:

• Use heavy, good quality boxes that won’t buckle or break.
• Reinforce the bottoms and sides of boxes with packing tape.
• Pack heavier items on the bottom and lighter items on top.
• Fill boxes full enough so that they won’t get crushed in the moving truck.
• Use packing materials to pad empty spaces and prevent breakage.

When it comes to kitchen packing, remember that bigger is not always better.  It might be best to pack heavy items like plates in several smaller boxes rather than trying to fit them all into one big box.  Smaller boxes will be lighter and easier to handle during your move, making the possibility of dropping a box and breaking delicate items less of a risk.

Pack delicate items carefully
The kitchen is no place to skimp on packing materials, especially when it comes to packing breakables.  Use this general system when it comes to packing fragile items:

• Secure your box with packing tape on the sides and bottom.
• Add a bottom layer of bubble wrap for cushioning.
• Wrap each individual item in newsprint or bubble wrap before putting it in the moving box.
• Don’t stack a heavier item on top of a delicate item.
• Don’t overstuff a box.
• Before closing the box with packing tape, fill in gaps with newsprint, bubble wrap, or packing peanuts. If you have extra plastic grocery bags, you can use them to fill empty space in your kitchen boxes too.

The key to seeing your fragile items survive the move is to use generous amounts of packing material to absorb shock.

Label boxes clearly
When you finish packing a box, take care to label it clearly.  You can do this with good old-fashioned permanent markers or you can invest in easy-to-notice, color-coded packing labels.  It’s helpful to use one large label to mark “kitchen” on the box and then also write the contents of the box in smaller letters.

Whatever system you use, labeling your apartment kitchen boxes clearly will help movers put them in the right place in your new home and make the job of unpacking easier on you.  With just a little extra planning and an investment in the right moving materials, systematic kitchen packing can actually get you off to an organized start at your new place.