We love being able to look back on Day One at our previous house (as clammy as the photos make us) – so we took a second to walk around our new house on Day One (in this case, the day all of our big furniture finally got moved over) and snapped these lovely photos. What do you guys think? Gorgeous, no? Our work here is done.
The living room:
The kitchen:
Other side of the kitchen:
The office:
The dining room:
The guest room:
The hall bathroom:
The spare room:
Clara’s room (here’s us frantically trying to get it ready so she had a place that felt like home – and a place to sleep).
This is her room as it looked a few hours later:
Words can’t describe how grateful I am that she’s so enamored with the place.
Here’s our bedroom on Day One, as I was screwing the headboard back into place. Quick tip: every gal needs an accidental bouffant whilst using a power drill.
As for moving, this time we tried a new approach since we had overlapping time at our last house and this one. Instead of needing to squeeze everything into one big truck and move all on one day (which we had to do last time) this time we got to take car-loads of things over every time we went there. So if we were laying flooring we took a load each day we worked on that.
It sure looked crazy, but for the small to medium stuff it seemed to work great. And it definitely cut down on bubble wrap and boxes since just driving a few miles in the car (instead of stuffing everything into a rocky moving van) was a lot lower pressure. You can just cram things into the car in a somewhat thoughtful way, without meticulously wrapping every mirror and frame. And not only was it faster to pack, but unpacking went more quickly and created less waste too. No box graveyard like last time!
We also did one evening of moving that we lovingly called Family Caravan, where John’s parents brought their larger cars over and we did a run to the new house with some bigger stuff like dining chairs and console tables. It was amazing how much we could transport in a 3-vehicle parade over to the new house.
But we still needed a big moving truck to transport large items (beds, dressers, the sectional, our dining table, two daybeds, a few big armchairs, etc). So we recruited some hired help that John’s sister had once used for a move: four guys to lug stuff with us. We didn’t task them with any box packing or furniture dis-assembly (we did that all in advance since we were paying them by the hour). And thanks to all that prep we had the big stuff over to the new house by lunch! So our budget way to use moving help would be to do 80% of it yourself and just hire the big guns for the large stuff – which is hopefully just a few hours of their time.
Not only did things go much faster, but it meant when they left we still had plenty of time and energy to start putting rooms together (we mainly focused on Clara’s so she could feel settled). Plus, John was still in hardwood floor recovery mode so he was grateful to be spared some manual labor. Oh and I knew we’d have moving luck on our side (wahoo, no ditches!) when our U-Haul had my home state of Jersey on it. Picture me doing a good luck fist pump all around the truck before we started loading. You know, as one is apt to do.
Oh and one of my favorite tips is to have small ziplock bags handy along with a sharpie. That way when you disassemble large furniture (John and I did that right before the guys showed up to help) you won’t get to the new house and say “uh, where are those screws… and what goes with what?” I just bagged them, labeled them, and shoved them into my purse. It’s a huge time saver, and a welcome stress saver after what could turn out to be a pretty long day of searching for nearly everything since your house is such a disaster area.
My second tip is to take time to soak it up. We posed for a few nerd-tastic photos throughout the process. It really helps to keep spirits up during a pretty tiring parade of carrying things, stopping to breathe, and carrying more things.
Bet you guys didn’t know I was a windowsill ninja.
So that was Day One and a few moving tips. And you’ll be relieved to know that: A) I’m no longer rocking an accidental bouffant, B) I’m also a top-of-the-car ninja, C) the sofa is put back together, the office no longer looks like a chair convention, but the house is still pretty nuts looking.
Can’t wait to share all the photos as we get this thing together…
Jillian {Her Split Ends} says
Dude…the window ninja picture is AMAZING..aMMMmmmazing
Haley says
We just moved in the same manner, but in reverse. We hired movers to do the big/heavy stuff then did car loads of smaller stuff AND we had a family caravan as well!
We do the same thing with screws except we tape the ziplock to the thing they go with – still labeled in case they get separated. While we don’t have children (yet) we have much loved pets, and like you did for Clara we made sure to have their beds and whatnot in place before bringing them over. I think it helped a lot with their transition, particularly the cats. Much simpler than crib/daybed assembly though!
Nichelle says
Hi. First time commenter, but long time reader. I was wondering if you ever went back to your first house to do something similar to the “House Crashes” you do with other people? It would be interesting to see how the new owners made your old house their home (i.e. how they chose to decorate or change things around.) My apologies if you have done this or answered this question before. I didn’t see it on the FAQ page.
BTW, I love your site, and enjoy reading regularly. You guys are great. And kudos for getting Clara’s room together quickly for her…Even in the midst of the chaos of moving you guys still seem to prioritize well. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, we’d LOVE to do that! The folks who bought our house were private and although we waited by the phone it never rang, but there’s a new homeowner now and she’s down for a crash sometime after she gets settled, so we’d LOVE to get in there and see our first house. Wahoo!
xo
s
Kay says
The ziplock bag tip is genius. I just moved last month and I’m still finding pieces of paper, loose bolts and the assorted tool in my purse.
Glad you’re settling in! It already looks exciting–and Clara’s room looks perfect.
Wrenaria says
It’s great that your decor color choices are so complimentary throughout the house that you can switch which rugs are in what room like that. Easy way to keep things feeling fresh. Fun switch.
Looking forward to seeing where everything ends up! Good luck with the unpacking and arranging!
Sherry from BC says
I am so excited about your new home. I found your blog when you were already in your 2nd house so it is great to see you start with a house and make it your home. Can’t wait to see what you do next.
Koliti says
The couch is a pile-up of football players, the office chairs are awkwardly waltzing, the egg chair is a bit dazed ’cause it hasn’t had it’s morning coffee yet, the dining room chairs are quietly holding a meeting about what to do with the corner cabinets, the guest room bookcase is holding down the fort, the hallway bath towels are too pooped to party, the stuff in the spare room is forming a line so they can enter Clara’s room in an orderly fashion, and is that John doing the bend & snap in Clara’s room?
What a great idea to have 4 men with beefy arms carry heavy stuff – especially up your new stairs.
Love your playful spirits – I can tell your new house is HAPPY you’re there :)
YoungHouseLove says
Hahah! I love your play by play Koliti. Awkwardly waltzing = my favorite.
xo
s
Brittney Everett says
I LOVE The paint job behind the headboard in your room! That cracks me up!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, we’re trendsetters. Door overspray is the new chevron.
xo
s
Sesselja Thorberg says
Oh I cant wait to see what you do with this one! Good luck!!
Barbara says
If you got rid of the blue on the cabinets, the dining room is the only livable looking place right now outside of Clara’s room. What’s going on with her wall? Are those branches, trees or what?
Your table and chairs do fit awfully nice in that room!
YoungHouseLove says
We sprayed the doors against the walls upstairs (remember those pics when we removed the rugs and sprayed the trim?) so that’s just overspray that will get covered when we paint the rooms :)
xo
s
Gail says
I love your dining room built in’s. They look so great with your table and wicker chairs..Have you decided if there staying or going..Your home is going to be spectacular!
YoungHouseLove says
We’re all for trying to work with what we have first, so that’s the plan…
xo
s
Barbara says
Hey, where’s Burger?
YoungHouseLove says
Sleeping on a pile of pillows! We instgramed/Facebooked his cute mug. He’s already king of the house in his own mind, so I’d say he’s chuffed about things.
xo
s
Chelsea @ two twenty one says
I totally agree with moving via the carloads-of-stuff method. We did that when we moved from our apartment into our house– a 30 minutes drive. I got to the point where I was throwing stuff into trash bags because I was so over packing. Glad you guys had a successful move! And I’m so happy Clara loves the new house!
Danielle Purtle says
Everyone is commenting on the dining room chandelier! It is dated, but with some bright spray paint, it could be a great addition to Clara’s room! ;)
noelle says
That is the best way to move! Each time I’ve moved, I rented the uhaul myself and hired guys to load and unload. Moving day is hectic enough with help, its exhausting to do the lifting too. Best way to go! Saves the back and allows for the few moments of coffee and pictures! Last time we moved I snapped a few of my husband and son playing with a styrofoam airplane outside. It was worth every penny and I gave the guys a huge tip. They earned it!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so sweet!
xo
s
Teresa @ wherelovemeetslife says
Such fun!!! :)
One tip that I can give in case it hasn’t been mentioned already. I am an army brat and moving is something I have done WAY TOO often. Keep a small pad of paper on hand when packing and list the items you are putting in a box. Keep like room items together, and once the box is full, tape that list to the top of it! Or heck, the side if you are stacking a few. There is nothing like trying to find something and you cannot for the life of you remember which box it was in! :) Oh and mark boxes for the room they should live in at the new place.
YoungHouseLove says
So smart!
xo
s
Marie Holmes says
My mom’s #1 tip when moving. Always put your bed together and made, FIRST. That way as exhaustion catches up later that evening; you have a clean ready bed to climb into.
And mom is was right on…many times.
YoungHouseLove says
So smart!
xo
s
Jessica says
I have recently become addicted to your blog! Call me a $herdog/J-boom-aholic! :) But seriously, I LOVE your style, and it’s very inspiring to see what you can do on a budget. We JUST bought our first house ever… moved in less than 3 weeks ago. It is so fun to be able to start putting personal touches and style into a place you love. I am so excited to see how you transform this new canvas! Best of luck to you!
Lindsay J says
We’ve learned to not only bag up the screws, nails etc for each piece of furniture, but to then tape the bag onto the furniture also, so that there isn’t just the one person with all the bags who you constantly have to hunt down.
This has worked for us on 4 state to state moves and 3 international….
YoungHouseLove says
Smart!
xo
s
Jenn says
Please, please, please build a window seat somewhere in this beautiful house. I’m begging for it!
YoungHouseLove says
We’d LOVE to!
xo
s
Shannon says
Love it. The dining room table looks great in there! I can’t wait to see it finished, especially what you do with the built ins! They will look great white without the scrolls on top. I can’t wait to see the old house empty, it’s kind of bittersweet.
Ryan says
Between this move and transporting the hardwood flooring it might be time to trade the Altima in for a truck. The place is looking good!
Erin says
We are planning a bit move later this Summer (FL to RI) and have been scouring craigslist and freecycle for moving boxes. I received an email from a women the other day who gave me her address and told me that she had a bunch of boxes in her carport and to just stop on by and take what I can fit in my car. Turns out, most of the nice, big sturdy boxes were all Depends boxes. I can only imagine what our new neighbors will think when they see us moving all of these boxes into our new house. Welcome to the neighborhood!
Mandy says
“I’m also a top-of-the-car ninja” – pics or it didn’t happen! ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh it’s ON.
xo
s
Mandy says
I, too, enjoy the new placement of the rugs. And man, all that pink in Clara’s room really reflects on the walls in there!
The upstairs wood floors look a lot darker than the existing ones downstairs… Will you be refinishing the downstairs ones?
Glad you had a somewhat easy move!
YoungHouseLove says
They’re the same tone as the wood stairs, so we’re happy they flow together. The floors downstairs are in good shape so we don’t have any immediate plans to darken them (since they’re not connected to the ones upstairs, and the attached stairs go with them) we’re happy for now :)
xo
s
Karen says
Ahh I didn’t realize the stair color was different from the downstairs! And forgot about the slate floor in the entry were the stairs were…so makes sense that you went with the stair color and are not concerned about the downstairs color. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Yeah, since they don’t run into each other and look clashy I think it’s all good!
xo
s
Kristin says
So much potential in your new home. The new hardwood floors look great! Amazing what paint and floors can do. On top of that, I love (risk-ay, in a good way!) that you are switching up the area rugs by using them in different rooms than your previous home. Looking forward to seeing your progress in the years to come!
ErinEvelyn says
I’m picking favorite elements (ala House Crashing): 1) Clara’s Crocs ON her dresser….. of course! somewhere she can actually find them! and 2) I still really like the flame stitch wallpaper in the DR. What’s wrong with me? Lol!
Martha says
I already am more in love with Clara’s pink rug now that it’s against darker flooring!!! And I like the living room – master bedroom rug switcheroo! Was that on purpose, or just to get stuff in the house?
Also: hurray for the return of a boob light! {pause} Not.
YoungHouseLove says
Rooms are different sizes here, so it makes more sense for the larger rug to go in our bedroom (doesn’t even fit in the new living room) but we’re loving the switch so far!
Also, I love your pause. And the use of not. Bring it back, Martha, bring it back.
xo
s
Jan says
I love your new house. I can’t wait to see it once it is painted. But a body can only do one thing at a time. It looks very organized the way you moved. I don’t blame you for hiring someone to move you. It is worth every penny. Last thing you need is a hurt back with all things one has to get done moving.
Best of luck in your new home. Very wise move.
Tracy says
This is so fun! I’m really enjoying living vicariously through your new move!
Sarah says
Love the rug switch! The darker rug just seems to work so well with Karl.
I’m all about hiring help to move the heavy stuff – especially when there are stairs involved. Our last two moves were into PODS (and then off-loading those PODS at a later date at the new house) and both times we packed the POD ourselves & then hired moving guys to unpack the POD. I loved it because that means you still have energy to unpack the boxes because you’re not exhausted from carrying furniture around.
Ethne @ Wom-Mom says
Wow. I hate moving, so I’m not totally jealous. But can’t wait to see what you do to the place and where you start first! I’m taking bets with my bff.
Danielle O. says
You guys are awesome!!!
What does Burger think of the new house??!!! Trying to picture that little pup pouncing up stairs :D
YoungHouseLove says
He thinks he’s the king of this house already! It’s hilarious to watch him march around sitting on piles or laying out in sun spots. He doesn’t seem to mind the stairs at all, and it’s funny to hear him hopping up and down them.
xo
s
Meredith says
I’m glad Burger doesn’t mind the stairs—I wouldn’t expect him to, since he’s little. I grew up with a basset hound, though, and stairs are rather hard to navigate for them with their short little legs and loooooong bodies. Our dog growing up was afraid to go down them, so if you went downstairs to the basement, she would stand at the top and howl mournfully. It was kind of hysterical and heart-breaking at the same time! (She got “elevatored” when we were going down for a long time—she was spoiled.) :)
YoungHouseLove says
That. Is. Awesome.
xo
s
Cort says
I love it! It reminds me of that game “find it” like “I found the zebra pillow and the moose lamp!” Lol. As someone who has the Zgallerie moose head on her wall I am curious if there was a brand or anything on the moose lamp? I’m seriously on a mission to find one. Love it!
YoungHouseLove says
Alas, he has no brand name on him at all! Wish I could help.
xo
s
Constance says
You may have already addressed this, but what are things on the ceiling in Clara’s room and others (vents? speakers?)
YoungHouseLove says
I had no idea what those were either from having a ranch for so long! But apparently they’re ceiling vents for heat, which were pretty common in a lot of houses we toured with a second floor!
xo
s
Traci says
I really love the built-ins in the dining room. I can’t wait to see what you guys do with them. I’m crossing my fingers that you keep them, but freshen them up.
Kayla says
Just have to say that I am SO EXCITED for your family and this new house. I literally got goosebumps scrolling through the new house’s Day One shots… there is so much potential for this home and I know you two are going to do an incredible job. I am so happy that you taking us along for the ride. Happy unpacking!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks so much Kayla, you’re so sweet!
xo
s
Jenny S. says
It looks like you already stripped wallpaper from many of the rooms, is that right? (You both have lots of energy!)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh heck no! We haven’t touched wallpaper, so it’s still there in the kitchen, dining room, half bathroom, master bath, foyer, and about a million other places that it currently resides. Haha!
xo
s
Jody says
When we moved my brother we had a caravan of 8 cars, trucks and a van driving 20 miles out in the country. It was pretty funny for my sister and I bc we were the last car and every turn down the roads you could see this big line of vehicles. When my mom moved it was just across the street so everything was moved by hand.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s awesome!
xo
s
rachael says
This post is bad, so very bad for me. Suddenly I want to move somewhere just so I can rearrange my stuff in a new house and paint new colors on the walls. And I want to do a kitchen renovation and switch rugs around and have a pillow explosion!!!! I’m SO EXCITED for you guys!
YoungHouseLove says
Hilarious. Warning: this post may have unexpected side affects, such as the urge to paint things and buy too many pillows.
xo
s
Jennifer says
Yahooo for easy packing!! It’s all that stuff that takes the most time (& sooooo tedious) to pack the longest! I also use the ziploc back trick, but bc I would end up leaving my purse somewhere, I actually use painters tape to tape the bag to the item it belongs too. I still label it, just in case…what can I say, I love sharpies! Good luck!
Katherine says
Whoa whoa whoa… am I the only one wondering what in the world “top-of-the-car ninja” means??
YoungHouseLove says
I can do some serious lunges up there. It’s a sight to behold.
xo
s
kelsey says
Hey guys,
Love all the posts about your move! Would you be willing to write a post on exactly what steps you took in order to sell the house on your own rather than with an agent? (i.e., how you chose a price, where you advertised, how you made sure all of the legal documents were adequate and not hiding anything shady etc.) I would love to hear all about it! Thanks ;)
Kelsey
YoungHouseLove says
We did that for our first house, so hopefully this helps: https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/11/how-we-sold-our-house-by-owner/
xo
s
TonyaM says
I’ve had such an itch to move, but my husband doesn’t agree….so I’m having a blast living vicariously through you guys! I love the style of the new house. It just screams Forever Home to me, like the house you can imagine grandkids coming to.
As far as Clara’s sleeping situation, here’s some unsolicited advice from a parent with kids far older than her. If she fits in her crib and sleeps in her crib and is not attempting to climb out, LEAVE HER THERE. For the love!!!! I had a kid who slept with ME for five years and one who was a monkey and climbed out of her crib at ten months. Thankfully, that was when those tent/cage thingys were still sold and that bought me about another year of sanity before she realized she could escape that too. I was always so jealous of friends who had three and four-year old’s still
sleeping in their cribs. There can be such pressure to push all those milestones. And for what? In your case so there’s a toddler on the loose at 3 a.m.? Who then ends up in your bed with her feet in your face? :)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, thanks Tonya!
xo
s
Jane says
Wait,Sherry has a sister ? Or is that john’s sister you are talking about ?!
I love how bright and airy clara’s romm looks..I bet she is thrilled to have that room!
YoungHouseLove says
Ok, technically sister in law. I just wish she was my sister.
xo
s
Jane says
Didn’t mean to be nitpicky , sorry!!
YoungHouseLove says
No worries at all!
xo
s
Kasey Befeler says
This is exactly how we moved last time too! It was a luxury (albeit expensive luxury) to own two houses at once so we could take small carloads of stuff to the new house and even start unpacking. Then we hired two men and a truck (but it was actually four guys) to move our really heavy furniture over. They didn’t have to box a thing, and it went really fast! Plus it saved our backs (and our friend’s backs)—so worth it!
Claire says
The blue trim is growing on me. ;-)
Brandy says
I’m cracking up over that last photo of Sherry in the window. Short girls for the win!
Laurie says
I have to admit, while I hate the actual moving part (it’s hard work and my hands always get swollen!) I adore the nesting part at the new house. You get to chose where drinking glasses go and decide what will be the best, fastest access cupboard for coffee mugs. No junk drawers at first. Clean, tidy and organized bit by bit.
I’m a nerd.
YoungHouseLove says
Uh oh, we already have a junk drawer. We’re in trouble.
xo
s
Kelly says
Great tips on moving! Very excited for you guys.
Question – Since you guys do so much renovation, are you tempted to take a lot of light fixtures, etc with you to the new place? It takes me so long to find things I love that I would hate to leave it behind. Just like that beautiful blue pendant you guys hung in your master bathroom. Did it stay or did it come with? OR the sweet one over the kitchen sink? How about the clothespin one from the laundry? How do you know what to take and what to keep I guess is my question.
YoungHouseLove says
We sold them all with the house, which is really common in our area. We just didn’t want to put a bunch of boob lights into our pretty house before we left, and we know we’ll find awesome things (or even make some of our own) that fit the new house better than dragging old ones along might :)
xo
s