Edit, donate, sell: The secret to moving house is knowing what shouldn’t move with you | Robyn Ingerson

I‘ve had plenty of experience in this department and like to consider myself an expert, writes Robyn Ingerson.

Never has the slogan Just Do It seemed more appropriate than in the past week.

Packing a house is never a simple task, one that needs to be tackled with precise organisation and gusto.

I have had plenty of experience in this department – having just moved into my 23rd home, a small two-bedroom apartment, seen for the first time on moving day.

Leaving our family home now that Child #1 is travelling abroad for six months and Child #2 has declared a state of independence with my services no longer required (we’ll see about that), has turned the move into an edit, donate, sell, hard rubbish kind of scenario.

It is a good time to reflect on how much one person requires when flying solo. I have selected the smallest of the four beds, a new but modest double, with the second bedroom becoming my designated writing room.

Not wanting to deter guests from staying, I am sure a sofa bed will be purchased at some point in the future ...

I like to think I am an expert mover. It is a process.

First, purchase the required number of boxes you are prepared to take – in this case, 15.

It seemed an adequate number to reflect the necessary items required to sustain a home with key kitchen utensils, crockery, cutlery – but especially the objects that sum up the 57 years of a life lived.

The travelling objects incorporated my favourite books, antiquities, various mementos and favourite soft furnishings.

To adhere to the 15-box rule, I realised there were going to be some old friends that were not going to make the trip.

Various books, vases (how many does one really need), platters, cane baskets, trays, cushions, bedspreads, blankets and ceramic swans that were going to become someone else’s treasure.

It was actually a thrill to drop things off to various charity shop locations and observe the staff’s eyes clap on what they knew would be a great seller, either for a potential customer or themselves.

At some charity shops, I had people assisting unpacking my boot just to see what the latest drop-off treasures included.

The secret to moving house is to plan to travel light. Picture: iStock

The key, I find, is to curate the future rooms in your mind rather than just purge.

Think about the collection of paintings, objects, soft furnishings that will create the theme for your bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, lounge and dining areas.

I have had comments in the past that all my homes look the same. Well, this time I am mixing things up ... to a degree.

Famous US designer Ralph Lauren says: “Home is an expression of personal style. It should tell your story.”

My belongings do tell a story.

Paintings that reflect periods of my life. Pieces of furniture that have hosted many happy dinners and mixing bowls that have baked most of the kids’ birthday cakes, as well as my infamous lemon pudding.

It did, however, feel cathartic to send some items on their merry way. It is healthy to look forward, not reflect on times gone by – but surround yourself with items of beauty and joy.

That does not mean extravagant or expensive, but items you have lovingly sourced, collected or remind you of a great trip or adventure.

To keep items that are useful, such as my grandmother’s bottle opener, my papa’s small ladder, a cherished Alessi lemon grater gifted from old friends and is used daily.

It feels great to travel light.

That includes finally doing an edit of the kids’ paintings and schoolbooks. I know they are not wedded to any of this, but I am sure when they become parents they will want to share with their own children their obsession with painting foxes and dachshunds.

Now entrenched in my new apartment, I am amazed how much from the family home has fit in. I may have surpassed the 15 boxes with the car filled to the brim but to have reduced the duplication in every room feels good.

I have managed to lose my keys multiple times. Perhaps, it is time to invest in a designated key bowl.

Charity shopping it is!

Originally published as Edit, donate, sell: The secret to moving house is knowing what shouldn’t move with you | Robyn Ingerson