Here, the THE team caught up with Clea & Joanna on their recent moves, their must-haves, and, of course, how they're getting and staying organized.
Q: How long has your recent moving process been?
Clea: The move, I guess, has been in the works for almost two years exactly, but sincerely in the works for the last six months. And now it's here!
Joanna: I would say from start to finish it's been about a two year process - although we’re already moved in, we are still finishing up!
Q: What is your favorite and least favorite part of moving?
C: My least favorite part about moving is the anticipation. I love everything else!
J: I'll tell you my favorite part of moving. That's the editing! I mean, what's better than getting rid of things and knowing that they're not coming to a new place to start fresh? My least favorite part of moving is the boxes. I just want them immediately gone – like gone, gone, gone!
Q: When did you start & finish packing?
C: So, the most important part of packing is actually way before any boxes arrive! It's going room by room, drawer by drawer, cabinet, closet, all of it, and weeding out anything you do not want to bring to the new house. That means things you don't use, things you don't love, things that aren't even special to you anymore. I went through my sentimental boxes. I went through things that I thought were special and then I was like, it's not that special. So by the time packing started, honestly, most of the work was done! The movers just put everything in the box and that was it. Starting packing and finishing packing is a one day process!
J: Well, that's an excellent question! Here's the thing, we actually had movers pack us. I had already thought about where every single little item was gonna go, down to the suitcases! I don't recall how long it took all together, but I know I was prepping for months.
Q: What are your must-haves and must-edits when moving?
C: I get rid of a lot, like, shockingly a lot, especially beauty products. Moving is a great time to get rid of things! Especially in the food/pantry department. Can I just come with my closet? I just want to come with my clothes and let's start over with everything else. A must-have is, of course, champagne. It's good when you're stressed, it's good for celebrating. It's also good for the in -between moments. Stressed? I'll have a glass of champagne. Time to celebrate? I'll have a glass of champagne!
J: I need a lot of coffee and a lot of sweet treats and rewards because you need to keep the energy up! I refuse to keep items that I know my kids no longer need, play with, or fit! Often, we don't get everything edited out during the packing process, so we do another pass once we move into the new house. So two passes, it's two for the price of one!
Q: What was your biggest learning from this move?
C: Building a house for this long and the anticipation was hard for me - I can’t do this again! I know that is tough to believe because I've moved so many times, but I’m done! I can't, I'm finished! Show this to me the next time I say I want to move. Here's the thing, I'm not moving again. So you'll never show it to me. Because I'm not moving again.
J: What I learned about this process is not to let my husband weigh in at all! Because I asked him one question about one wallpaper, and I didn't like his response. I didn't ask him anything else, and he basically didn't see the house until we moved in!
Thoughts welcome!