Starting a household over

[confustication]

We will be doing a long distance international move soon. Most of our belongings now are secondhand/thrift/etc, and quite honestly, aren't "worth" the expense of hiring a moving truck for an international move. Things that *are* worth it, will probably be gifted to family, as still the cost of moving them is prohibitive. We will take fairly minimal stuff with us, planning to replace much at the other end. Also, some furniture will stay here as this house will remain set up for family or friends coming to visit my parents who live nearby- as well as for our family when we come back to visit the area.

All that to say...

Starting largely from the ground up- what furniture/things would you plan to have/invest in if you were starting over?

[proudmomof4]

BTDT - where are you now and where are you heading?

[Delicateflower]

I've done that more than once, and it's really quite fun. Definitely freeing.

Don't plan yet. You might get a house with built in closets or you might get one without even a wardrobe. It's also going to depend where you and what is cheap. You might be able to live without things that you thought were essential because they're really expensive to replace. And you might get attached to your cardboard box furniture after a while. But, I'm not sure how different Canada and the US are, really.

We always build ourselves new bookshelves because they're easy, fill up a room and are great for storage. Have you seen knockoff wood? http://ana-white.com/

You end up with a surprising amount of little stuff, because it will slide into cracks and crevices in boxes. I have thread from five moves ago, for example. Fabric and clothes, too. I have not left behind any scarves because I use them for packing.

[confustication]

We are currently in the US in a very rural area, and are moving to the Fraser Valley in BC- so it's not a huge scary distance, but it's a long way and when you add a border crossing to a move the cost suddenly skyrockets.

I think I'm mostly ok with leaving a lot of our stuff, but convincing my 8yo that we have to leave some of her stuff will be hard (she's very much a born-hoarder.) We will be driving our vehicle there, and while it has a tow-hitch so I could consider a trailer, we will be crossing the continental divide and even without a trailer that drive is a beastly one.

I have a feeling we may wind up quasi camping-out in our new place for a bit while we reestablish ourselves there, but I'm looking at this as an opportunity to really purposefully choose what we invite into our home.

[whoami]

Originally Posted by confustication

I have a feeling we may wind up quasi camping-out in our new place for a bit while we reestablish ourselves there, but I'm looking at this as an opportunity to really purposefully choose what we invite into our home.

You could start by gathering some magazines and creating files for differnt rooms you like as inspiration. When you get there you can slowly make your inspiration become a reality. Things to invest in will be personal choices. For us we like quality items for things that get used daily, so a bed, bedding, couch, table and chairs are a few furniture items we would invest in.

We aren't moving but we're basically trying to do the same thing as you, start a household over. It's rather freeing.

[zebra15]

Ive done this more than once and it was great. Start with things you use daily. Beds, sheets, linens, kitchen needs then grow from there.

I may be looking at doing this again and its wonderful!

[Usually Curious]

Originally Posted by Delicateflower

I've done that more than once, and it's really quite fun. Definitely freeing.

Don't plan yet. You might get a house with built in closets or you might get one without even a wardrobe. It's also going to depend where you and what is cheap. You might be able to live without things that you thought were essential because they're really expensive to replace. And you might get attached to your cardboard box furniture after a while. But, I'm not sure how different Canada and the US are, really.

We always build ourselves new bookshelves because they're easy, fill up a room and are great for storage. Have you seen knockoff wood? http://ana-white.com/

You end up with a surprising amount of little stuff, because it will slide into cracks and crevices in boxes. I have thread from five moves ago, for example. Fabric and clothes, too. I have not left behind any scarves because I use them for packing.

WOW. After visiting that site I would sell everything and buy a few power tools!

[wallabi]

woah - awesome site!! may have derailed my cleaning plans for the day, but then cleaning would be easier with some decent shelves ....

as to the moving to a rural house, and, I am thinking, probably an old farmhouse? I would think carefully about what kitchen stuff you want - if you have good storage stuff (flour bins and such could be invaluable in an old house to keep bugs `n` stuff at bay) then bring it, if not, ditch it and plan on getting something new.

[Logan]

If I were starting over I would think really careful about what larger furniture was brought in. I am trying to make more room in our house at the moment and we have some really beautiful, irreplaceable (its no longer made) furniture that I cant part with yet. Trying to find a spot for every thing in my vision of lots of open space is very hard, it takes up so much of the wall space. Little things are easier to store and easier to get rid of. So I would start with the bare minimum basics for furniture and be very selective about what was really needed, and always try to buy furniture with a dual purpose. Like a cabin bed with drawers under for example so you dont need a separate dresser. Good luck, sounds fun!

[Dingletwitz]

We did this! And even after the move when all I had were 50 or so boxes of stuff that I shipped, I still unloaded more at the other end!

Things I always end up replacing when we end up somewhere--
A bed of some sort
A comfy chair
A table
Some kind of thing for dd's toys
A bookshelf of some type (but we have no more books, really!)
Glassware--mason jars and pyrex type stuff (cheaper to replace than ship)
Things that grow

But--we're pretty minimalist anyway and above mentioned furniture is all that is here.

[MiniMum]

OMG that Ana White stuff! The tree house bed would be so fabulous for a kid. We live in a one-bedroom 600 sf apartment and I don't ever want a big house even when we have to move out of this one. This kind of bed would work as a private space for an older kid no longer co-sleeping, and if there were more than i kid, they could each have their own tree house bed in one big shared room!!!! As far as what I would replace..

A mattress (perhaps with box spring, but NO bed frame) big enough for co-sleeping

A table and 1 chair for each family member

Desk and work chair (we use our computers a lot)

Shelving system for toys, books

Some kind of family wardrobe if there were no closets

Totally optional, if there was space, would be a couple of arm chairs or bean bag type chairs for the living room.

2 sets of linens and two towels per person (if there is a dryer, just one set may be enough)

[Juvysen]

Things I would definitely replace:
Kitchen - a couple good knives (a pairing knife and a chef knife) and a knife honer. My pressure cooker, which can double as a stock pot... also a small pot and a small and big skillet. A good sized cutting board. Flatware and plate/bowl for each person in the house. A mixing bowl, a measuring cup and measuring spoons... and a spatula and ladel. I think that's it?

For the rest of the house - a couch or some floor pillows or something to sit on. Enough mattresses/bedding for everyone. Towels, a few wash cloths. Someplace to store toys.

[OkiMom]

Im kind of doing that right now, Im moving from Japan back to the states. The military moves our household goods but DH is deploying and our goods will be put into storage until he gets back (Im not going with him till his next duty station since he will deploy less than 3 weeks after checking in). We have very little in household items anyway (toys, a few kitchen items, clothing and a living room couch) so we would be redoing most anyway..

Luckily my MIL/FIL live where Im going to be living until DH gets home (thats why Im moving there, doing a deployment without a support system wouldn't work) so they are getting a few items for us before we get there..

Important things to me:

-bed for me/baby with bedding

-bed for DD1 and DD2 with bedding

-dining room table (I use my table as a desk, crafting area, school area, extra place to prepare food, place to eat etc) and enough chairs to fit everyone

- a couch for the living room

- at least 1 large pot, one saucepan and one frying pan

- a couple of sharp cutting knives

- enough dishes to last a day and silverware

- a cookie sheet, a casserole pan and a bread pan

- a bookcase (we all LOVE books though and have quite a few packed in our suitcases)

- A towel for each member of the family

- A few toys and someplace to store them

- kitchen utensils: grater, large spoon, spatula, can opener

- at least 1-2 mixing bowls

- shower curtain and rug for in front of the shower..

-someplace safe to put the baby down if I need to

-coat hangers to hang things

-someplace to neatly put undies/PJs etc away

-basic cleaning supplies

Of these my In-laws have gotten:

dishes, a set of pots/pans, the living room set, some toys, washer/dryer (not on the list but so nice they were able to get them so us!), a bouncy seat for the baby and some toys for the girls.

They are picking up beds for the girls this week and are looking at a dining room table and bed set for me. Im ordering bedding for the girls soon and they are going to pick it up and wash it so its nice and clean when we get there.

Now Im sure Im a bit more high maintenance than some people. I like comfort so sitting/sleeping on the floor, using paper dishes etc is something I wouldn't want to do more than a couple of weeks if I had to. What you want totally depends on what you like, people in your family, situation etc.

[1jooj]

OP, have you moved? How's it going?

We're doing this too. We have a 1000-pound shipping allowance, and we're bringing our bikes, some kitchen stuff and a few special things (a few rugs, blankets, decor items). Ds will bring his Legos, dd a few toys. We're bringing our laptops.

We're getting rid of a lot of clothing, since we're changing climates. No furniture can come.

Right now, I'm demanding:

Chef knife & paring knife

The good stainless pots and pans

A handful of cooking utensils

Mixing bowls

Coffee cups we're attached to

French press

Teapots & kettle

Camping dishes

A couple dish towels (can use in packing)

Some flatware?

Bath towels (very expensive in new country)

Wash cloths

Sheet sets for each bed (very expensive in new country)

Special quilts for each child

4 bikes (1 for each family member)

As much of dh's clothing as we can ship (long story)

3 laptops (carried, not shipped)

For clothing, we'll only need summer things and a warmer layer for winter months. I plan to bring light dresses and skirts/shirts, a sweater and a jean jacket, workout clothes, running shoes and sandals, and keep the underwear as uncomplicated as possible. 

Children will wear uniforms to school, so they only need a few casual things. We have to buy uniforms in country. Packing swimsuits.

Other than that...sandals and sneaks for all but dh (he needs a work wardrobe). Hats, my scarves, sunglasses, extra sunglasses. Spare extra sunglasses. Maybe an umbrella.

Most clothing will come in our flight luggage, along with some toys. Water bottles and important paperwork will be hand carried.

What am I forgetting?