Techniques for Pre-Packing Fragile Items

Fine China: delicate, expensive and most likely a family heirloom handed down for generations. And it’s as if the responsibility of keeping this decades-old dinnerware set in pristine condition wasn’t enough, now you have to toss them inside a moving truck and hope for the best. Better grab your packing supplies before it’s too late!

Underestimating the time and effort spent on packing these breakable items is one catastrophic mistake. Fragile items may not be the most labour-intensive job on your packing checklist, but it is certainly one of the most detail-oriented chores you have to accomplish.

Here are some tips to get your prized dinnerware, crystal and Swarovski from your china cabinet to your new home, unblemished. For more packing techniques, you can get more information on How To Pack The Perfect Box.

What you will need

Small boxes – small moving boxes are highly recommended for fragile items to avoid overpacking. With a manageable weight, these boxes can easily be stacked on top of heavier boxes.

Butchers paper – newspapers come at virtually no cost with an unquestionable advantage in terms of size, but we strongly caution against using your daily broadsheet for packing your valuables. Printed ink from the newspaper may bleed and transfer onto your belongings, and possibly never rub off. Invest in butchers for wrapping but keep the newspapers for extra padding.

Tissue paper – when packing expensive wares such as your Lladro, Baccarat and Swarovski items, the tissue paper’s texture adds extra protection to your delicate wares. Not to be confused with regular tissue paper, this material is precisely made for moving purposes and can only commonly be bought from removal service companies. This is ideally used for items with irregular shapes and protruding curves.

Bubble wrap – one of the best packing materials for fragile items. Numerous layers of this material can provide shock and vibration isolation, making it ideal for long-distance moves and shipping purposes

Tape dispenser and high quality tape – keep in mind that packing tape will seal the base of your boxes together, so using anything less than superior packing tape, might become a liability. Avoid the scenario where your breakable items could fall through the box once it’s lifted.

Fragile stickers – prevent your boxes from getting mishandled by visibly placing these on all sides of your boxes. This will let our removalists know that heavy items should not be stacked on top of these boxes.

Black marker – a regular black marker can be used for labelling your boxes with their contents and “This Side Up”.

MiniMovers Oversupply Pack – once you’ve booked your move with MiniMovers, this package inclusive of moving boxes, sticky tape, butchers paper and fragile stickers, will be delivered to your doorstep free of charge. 

How to pack fine china and dinnerware

1.  Arrange a workstation with a clean, flat surface. Unravel the butchers papers and lay them flat.
2. Assemble your moving box by closing the bottom flaps and taping it at the seams forming an “H” pattern. To guarantee a sturdy base, add more tape forming an “X” pattern over the “H”.
3.  Add extra cushioning to your dinnerware by placing crushed butchers papers at the bottom of the box.
4. For plates take a single plate and wrap it with butchers papers. Place the wrapped package atop the stack of papers. You may now add a similar-sized plate on top of the wrapped package and take a sheet of butchers paper and wrap the two together. Continue stacking plates up to a maximum of 5 per bundle, then secure with tape. Place these in an upright position inside the box.
5. For cups and glasses fill them up with crushed butchers papers and wrap them individually. Place them inside the box with the rim facing down.
6. For stemware, it is suitable to use tissue paper for wrapping the stems. Once secured with tape, you can now proceed to filling the inside with crushed butchers papers or tissue paper and wrapping the entire package. Place your stemware inside the box, rim-side down.
7.  Place all of the items in an upright position and fill the gaps with crushed butchers papers before closing the box and securing it with tape.
8.  Label your box with “Fragile” and arrows indicating “This Side Up”.

How to pack porcelain, crystal and more delicate breakables

1. Prepare a workstation with a clean, flat surface. Unravel the butchers papers and tissue papers and lay them flat beside each other.
2. Assemble your moving box by closing the bottom flaps and taping it at the seams forming an “H” pattern. To guarantee a sturdy base, add more tape forming an “X” pattern over the “H”.
3. Fill the bottom of the box with crushed butchers paper or crumpled newspapers for cushioning.
4. Take an item and thoroughly wrap it with tissue paper. For figurines with thin arms and other oddly shaped nooks, fill these gaps with more tissue paper. Once fully wrapped, secure the package with tape.
5. Now wrap the tissue-swaddled package and wrap it again with 2 layers of butchers papers then secure it with tape.
6. Place all of the items in an upright position and fill the gaps with crushed butchers papers before closing the box and securing it with tape.
7.  Label your box with “Fragile” and arrows indicating “This Side Up”.

*If you are having any of these valuables shipped or sent to storage, it would be sound to wrap them with bubble wrap in addition to everything else.

If you are too swamped to take on this tedious task consider hiring a pre-packer, because it’s impossible to pack fragile items sloppily and expect nothing to break.  Moreover, our professional pre-packers are trained to pack boxes that could withstand tumbling down a full flight of stairs, without incurring any damage to its contents.

MiniMovers offers pre-packing services at an hourly rate. Our professional pre-packers can come to your home or office and pack all of your belongings or even just a few unwieldy items that you are sceptical about DIY. And if you book your move with us, all items packed by our pre-packers will be covered by our written “No-Damage Guarantee”. Hire a packer today!