I've moved.. it's very hard.. I would probably take my machine in the car with me.. fabric, well, even if they did 'toss' it into a box willy-nilly, it won't ruin it. True, you'll have to iron, refold, etc... but relax and let them do what they do.. YOU have plenty to do without allowing 'stuff' ,that will be okay, add to the already heavy burden of moving! (don't hit me verbally, I know its more than stuff to us) All I am suggesting is that while we would all rather do things our way, it's best we try to keep things in perspective and focus on what matters even more than our stash. Don't worry, it will all be okay if you can keep your head and your wits, and your sense of humor about you.

Every time I've moved (a lot in my life) I packed the things most precious to me. That way if it was broken, then I was to blame....no one else. I also put my most precious stuff in the car with me. I'd let someone pack my fabrics, but the mats, rulers, sewing machine....they go with me...........even if it meant leaving my husband behind!!!!!! :) You can sort out the fabrics, etc. after you get to the new place. You'll have more time to play with them then!!!!

I don't see why you can't be there when the movers pack up your sewing roon and you can tell them what you want in each box. They may not like it but hey it is your stuff. I bet they would be willing to work with you.

I totally agree! :thumbup:

Some good advice here....Moving is one of the most stressful times in life...take it easy (you are injured at the moment) and try and stay positive....maybe packing in tubs while your husband is not around is a good idea, then when he is around, you can work together on the stuff that he thinks is important. Be kind to yourself.

We've moved 8 times since 1992. 3 of those moves were handled by professionals, driving 3,000 miles one way. What I would recommend is to pack all your fabrics in totes, sewing machines in solid boxes with Styrofoam surrounding your machine. Let the movers box them in bigger boxes, but label everything. Be sure to be there when they pack your things up. Good luck with your move. :thumbup:

No you are not being unreasonable. Maybe you can sit there and tell them exactly how and where to pack it.

We have moved many times and some of them with professional packers. I can tell you from experience that they just go into a room and start putting stuff into boxes and they do not care if it is in a certain order or not, or even if it is protected or not. It really is not at all how I would have done it. So, I suggest you pack your items into smaller boxes or tubs then they can just put it into their boxes. That way it will be done like you want it to be. And if you are having difficulty packing inlist the help of a friend.

I can see why you feel this way, and don't really see anything wrong with your packing the unbreakable items, though under the circumstances, I'm sure your DH has your best interests at heart in wanting to spare you that effort. Most likely the movers will do okay. It would be good if you're able to hang around with them and write on the boxes what you need to know or, better yet, keep your own list of what's in each box according to the numbers they apply. Possibly you could line up the most urgent items and ask them to put them together. Definitely let the pros pack things that are very expensive or breakable because you could have terrible losses otherwise that would be excluded from the insurance. We've been through quite a few moves, and I've seen very disrespectful handling of things a time or two. If you challenge them, some will shrug and say - don't worry, we're insured - as if that would make up for the inconvenience of a claim process, to say nothing of loss of irreplaceable items. Many movers were wonderful, on the other hand. I hope you get that kind.

The solution is definitely NOT to pack your own machine unless you can afford to just lose it. If you pack it for the move and it breaks you may be out of luck. Breakage is probably not covered on PBO (packed by owner) items. If it is stolen during the move you might have trouble proving what was in the box you packed. Take lots of pictures of your belongings before the move, including serial numbers, if possible. Give a back-up copy of them on a flash stick or CD to someone you trust, and take all the documentation papers for valuables with you. There are websites where you can upload scans of such papers and photos of your personal property. Allstate has a link to one on their website.

Best wishes. I'll be hanging on to see your report from the other end.

The dh just doesn't understand. I would definitely want to do all the packing of my quilting stuff myself too. :)

I'm with you. I would want to pack my own. I agree though about packing in totes and then let them pack them in boxes so everything is insured. :thumbup:

No I think you are being very reasonable. We quilters have a lot of pride and protection towards our craft and in a strange way feel as though everything is like a member of the family. We want to love it, take care of it and protect it. I think you should pack your own room up the way you want it packed.

I agree 100%. We moved ourselves (had help) and even then it was a nightmare. I would at least pack my things in plastic tubs and have them waiting to be picked up for the moving men. Good luck.
Phyllis

I paid a moving company to move me from the house I was in to this one that I just renovated. It was simple put the stuff from one home to the other just 1 1/2 miles away. I lost several things including 3 BMX bikes (about $700 each) they packed a sink of dirty dishes before my wife had time to wash them (we had pancakes that morning) and they broke half the stem wear.
:roll: I paid them a little over $9000 for the move and then after they threw crap around and broke more stuff as they were unloading it the foreman had the audacity to ask for a tip.

We have been here for close to 7 years now and I am still finding out things that are missing and broken from the move.

Billy

I have moved back and forth the ocean several times and my question is if you pack your own boxes will the moving company still insure. All the boxes I packed were marked PACK BY OWNER by the moving company. Karen Sue

You--1 Husband--0

Me too

Just a word about professional movers - pack your own jewelry and take it with you. Have your silver packed under your supervision, labeled, listed on the inventory, signed, etc. I had a very valuable antique gold watch and fob stolen by the packers when they packed my jewelry. They left the case but I never noticed when they slipped it out of the case and the insurance didn't take my word that the watch and fob were there when the packers arrived. It would have been so easy to have put it in my purse. It had been my great-grandfather's. I find the small things are the things to watch out for.

Anything you can pack in tubs or boxes and seal, they can put in their boxes and mark the boxes and the inventory list so the contents are known. That just requires organization and isn't difficult. If your material is folded now, it can be put in boxes as is if someone insists on it, extra space can be filled with their paper - but only if someone is there insisting. Maybe a friend can supervise the packing of your room, as you will have to be in 6 places at once. Good luck.

Dear Friend ...... having moved many times in the service, I can appreciate your concern, but I can advise you with a backlog of experience: let them do the work! They will let you supervise, and be ready with a big black marker to list what is in each box, so you know what room to send it to, what to unpack first, etc. I used to say I was so fussy about such things, I thought the clothes wouldn't dry if I didn't hang them on the line myself. I got over it. I'm a lot happier now ..... and so are the people around me! Good luck! :thumbup:

I have heard so many bad things about professional packers/movers. My experience was devastating for my mother. She was living with my sister in MD and after selling her home in Ohio. She was going to FL to live with another sister so we found a mover to ship the few things she had left. Not much furniture but all her clothes, family pictures, financial paperwork, etc. Luckily we had taken her jewelery and a couple large suitcases of clothes.....because everything was stolen! I spent weeks trying to find this stuff and learned so much about the rip-offs these people do - it could cause you to never move again.

So I say pack your own, take photos of valuables and take pictures as they load and as they unload. I can't say enough about how sad it was to my mother to loose the last of her loved items.

Everyone's ideas are great sounding, but call the moving company and see what they have to say about your packing your sewing//quilting items yourself, depending on the answer, I would still take my most valuable things with me in my vehicle, even if I had to rent small trailer one way :D

When ever I have moved, the movers can take everything except my sewing machines...they go in the car with me!!!

We have made two cross-country moves and both times we packed ourselves. We were cautioned by the moving company estimater that we would be insured, but the final word would be up to the actual moving men upon inspection of our boxes.

He took one look at our boxes on moving day and said there was no problem as the boxes were packed very tight and were very solid. So, yes you can be insured if you do the packing, but you should check with the specific moving company. We used Allied.

I would recommend you pack it yourself, or supervise them, my old coot was in the navy and we moved alot, you never know what is going to happen

I understand where you are coming from. I just moved fairly recently and had professionals move us, as they were paid for by my new job. They were very rough with our stuff and quite a few things were broke. My sewing machine was not handled right and somewhere in the move my bobbin case was lost and I had to get another one. Then to top it all off, they told me that all we had to do when we got to the new house that we just had to call them and tell them that we were ready for our belongings and the person on the phone told us that we didn't decide when they delivered the belongings they did. It took them 2 weeks more from when I moved to the house before I got my belongings. You talk about stressful.
I am sure though that you will not have that problem.
Just had to vent, sorry. Jennifer:(

I am the same. if you pack things into plastic boxes as you want them, then they can be repacked into other boxes by the professionals. That way it will be easier to find everything you want as it is already packed as YOU want and they will be still covered by the insurance.

I'm late in offering my opinion, but I don't think there's anything wrong with you.
When I bought my sewing machine, the salesperson told me her husband was in the military, so they moved a lot, and her sewing machine always took a lot of abuse.
If I were in your situation, not only would I pack my own stuff, I might hand carry my machine.

Just BE THERE, IN THE ROOM, when they pack it so YOU can label every container in addition to whatever labeling they do.

I would probably rent a uhaul and take my own stuff with me. Wouldn't trust the movers...

I know I would absolutely hate having someone packing up my stuff but, really? This man has been commuting all that way every day?
I say he deserves a break.

Maybe not that must of a break - he is staying in Maryland during the week. He leaves here on Sunday afternoon and comes home either Thursday night or Friday morning.