Monthly Archives: September 2017

Make Moving A Breeze With These Tips From Professional Packers

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Anyone who has ever done their own packing in preparation for a move can tell you what a daunting task it can be. You can start off with the most perfectly laid out plans, lists, intentions of labeling each and every box meticulously, only to quickly find yourself surrounded by utter chaos. It makes one wonder how anyone could possibly do this for a living.

Fortunately, however, there are people who do just that, and do it well. They know all the tricks to packing for even the biggest move in a quick and orderly fashion. Here are some of their best tips for making your packing and moving experience simple and stress-free:

1. SORT AND SAY “SO LONG!”
The first cardinal rule of packing for a move is to toss out anything you no longer use, want, or need. It may be a good idea to enlist a friend to help with this process if you find that you simply cannot be diplomatic in choosing to part with some items. The bottom line is, the more clutter you get rid of the less work packing, moving, and unpacking will be.


2. SKIP THE LIST-MAKING
Save yourself some valuable time by using your cell phone to take a photo of the contents of each box as you get it packed. Mark each box with a number and save the photo to your phone under that corresponding number. When it’s time to unpack, simply pull up the photo to know what each box contains and which room it goes in. You’ll save a lot of time by not having to write out itemized lists.

3. PACK HEAVIER ITEMS SEPARATELY
Never overpack a single box in the name of saving space. This will only make handling the overweight box more risky as it creates the potential for damage to the items inside and/or injury to the person moving the box. A good rule of thumb is to never pack a single box in excess of 25 pounds. Items such as small to medium-sized appliances, stereo or video equipment, etc, should be packed separately from other items and labeled as ‘heavy.

4. DON’T SKIMP ON MOVING BOXES
While moving can be a costly process, the one place you do not want to try to cut costs is on moving boxes. Rather than using flimsy cardboard boxes from your local grocery store’s back room, buy sturdy cardboard boxes specifically designed for packing for a move. Ultimately your belongings will be well protected from mishaps that can occur when using unstable boxes created for lighter jobs.

5. PROTECT FURNITURE WITH PLASTIC BAGS
Upholstered furniture items such as sofas, chairs, mattresses, etc, can be covered with special heavy-duty plastic bags designed specifically to protect these types of items and keep them clean during a move. Slip them over your furniture, secure with packing tape, and then place cushions, pillows, etc, also wrapped in plastic, right on top for added room and organization.

6. MAKE USE OF ALL BOX SPACE
The obvious reason for this is of course to utilize all possible space for packing. However, packing things snugly into a moving box also prevents items from being jostled around during the move. Even if it’s just enough room for a rolled-up T-shirt or a pair of socks, make use of that space and protect your belongings.

7. PACK USING THE ITEMS YOU’RE PACKING
Save space and protect your more fragile items by wrapping them in your clean clothing as you pack them. Wrap glass items in clean T-shirts, larger or more delicate pieces in sheets or blankets. You’ll save packing space and know that your belongings are well-protected.

8. SMART PACK CLOTHING ON HANGERS
Rather than creating more work for yourself later on by grouping clothing items together while they are on the hangers, then slipping drawstring-tie trash bags around them starting at the bottom, pulling up, and securing at the top of the hangers, leaving the hooks exposed. Use a marker to write on each bag who the clothing belongs to. This way you can simply re-hang the clothes in your new closets, remove the bags, and you are all organized!

9. MAKE SEPARATE STORAGE CONTAINERS FOR THE FIRST WEEK’S ESSENTIALS
Pack a plastic tote with enough essentials (clothing, towels, hygiene items, etc) to get you through the first 3 to 5 days in your new home while you are getting unpacked and settled in. Pack a separate tote for each family member plus one for basic household needs (cleaning supplies, laundry needs, toilet paper, etc).

10. CHOOSE A GOOD QUALITY PACKING TAPE
This is another area in which you don’t want to cut corners to save a few dollars. Make sure the packing tape you choose is one that is recommended for the job, and use enough to make certain your packages are secure and safe from mishaps.

11. HAVE EVERYTHING READY TO GO WHEN THE MOVERS ARRIVE
Allow yourself plenty of time to have your packing done by the time the movers arrive. If you have additional items or items that will require special handling, make sure to stay and inform the movers in person or via pre-arranged text messaging regarding any special instructions or needs.

12. ORGANIZE BOXES ACCORDING TO WEIGHT
You will be doing your movers – and ultimately yourselves – a huge favor by having your boxes arranged by weight when they arrive to load everything up. Separate boxes into Heavy, Medium, and Light categories as well as having any fragile items clearly marked and set to the side for easy identification. This will assure an expedient and safe loading and unloading experience, and will be much appreciated by your moving team.

Moving doesn’t have to be the stuff nightmares are made of. Put these tips into action and your moving experience will be smooth sailing for everyone involved, making it possible for you to begin enjoying your new home right away!

Your Guide to the Best Residential Movers

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Shifting from one place is always an exciting idea until it comes into play. It is no one’s cup of tea, and if not handled with the seriousness it deserves it will not only tear you apart to the seams but also lead to losses. Fortunately, professional residential moving companies are now the heroes of the day when it comes to this tedious activity.

However, these companies offer different types of services and at different rates which make it difficult for anyone planning to move to make a decision. That is made worse by myriads of residential moving companies coming up with each new day. Luckily for you, we’ll take that load off your mind by going into more details on how to make your moving experience less hectic.
First things, first, you should know that the best companies usually offer their clients a diverse array of services to ensure their fulfillment. To reach their goal, they conduct a series of small tasks which all aim at making the primary job trouble-free. For instance movement of the cardboard boxes filled with your precious possessions and other household items are just but a few activities which professional movers will do. Below are much more to expect
Home evaluation
The final cost usually depends on some factors such as the ones briefly highlighted below
Risk assessment
Before the main activity of the day, the professionals evaluate your items to ensure they have a detailed list of them. Through that, they can prevent any unseen events after the move
Management of priceless items
We all have that unique painting up the wall, piano or any other objects in the house which we will never leave behind for anything. Furthermore, we want them to be handled with special care which mostly we won’t be able to do so ourselves. Through residential movers, we can get that care we crave for.
Hoisting
Let’s face it; if you are moving, there are situations which you cannot handle on your own. For example moving that piece of furniture through a narrow opening. That leaves you with no option but to move it into the new place through the balcony or any other bigger space. With a moving company manned by professionals, you can enjoy this type of service.
Others include

  • Packing and unpacking
  • transient storage services
  • Custom crating

Metrics to use while choosing a residential mover
Since investors learned of how lucrative residential moving is, many of them are now turning into the business now and then. That makes it a nightmare for people who want to move to choose which they should go for. Luckily for them, the internet is the secret ingredient to making this big decision. There are hundreds of customer reviews online giving their experiences with such companies. There are also plenty of websites which you can be sure that the reviews are genuine such as Yelp. Through such, you can get to know the most reputable moving companies by looking at the ones with top ratings

Pricing
It all depends on one important thing; the cost. Residential movers offer different services based on the distance therefore if you are moving locally you are likely to pay less than someone moving into another state. The standard charges of a local mover are usually $30 which means that if two of them take five hours you end up paying averagely $240-$300. Therefore the more the number of movers the more you get to pay. Apart from that extra services are also charged. On the other hand, someone going over a long distance is charged depending on:

  • Distance
  • Additional services, for example, someone moving from one bed roomed house is likely to pay less than the one moving from a 3- bed roomed one
    Weight of the moved items such as cardboard boxes
  • How to settle on the best
  • If you’ve decided that a self-move will not do, it is essential that you find the best residential mover. In a nut shell below are steps you should take to ensure that you don’t settle for less than you deserve
  • Ask around from friends and family who have moved previously
    Fill an online cost estimator which will give you the exposure to reliable moving companies which will give you their quotes
  • Make a comparison of the quotes, pay particular attention to the additional services and also final cost
  • Finally run online to do the evaluation of the companies through reviews
  • Make sure they are properly licensed and have confidence in your gut feeling

How To Make An Easter Candy Basket

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Making easter baskets is something that every Easter lover looks forward to. Making a cute little basket with Easter goodies to give the kids is one of the most exciting parts of the holiday. If you are wondering what kind of basket to make this Easter, why not give edible baskets a try? Edible baskets mainly use candy boxes as the base, with candy inside of course, and there was nothing wrong with more candy! Your boxes will not only end up looking good but will also make the adults wonder why they can’t get one of these baskets too!

Making candy box easter baskets is incredibly simple that even a child could do it. (You can turn this into a fun easter activity too if you would like)

To start making your Easter candy basket, you will need a few things to start out, mainly:

  1. Six boxes of Candy (Preferably all of them should be the same size)
  2. Rope Candy (Taffy Ropes or Nerd Ropes should do the trick)
  3. Faux Grass
  4. Cardboard or mount board
  5. Scissors
  6. Glue Gun
  7. Ribbons (In whatever color you like)
  8. And of course, the treats that you will be putting into your basket.

The first step to making a candy box is to glue all the boxes together to form a basket. Start with the base and use a glue gun to stick two candy boxes to create the base. After that, stick one candy box on all four sides in a vertical position. You will end up with something akin to a box that is open on the top.

The base of the basket might not be strong enough to hold all the contents of the basket, which is why the next step is to ensure that this is sturdy. Cut out a small piece of mountboard or cardboard and stick it with hot glue on top of the base boxes that you have assembled. Make sure that all your boxes are well stuck together and do not fall or break apart since that will end up in a candy disaster.

The next thing that we need to do is make the handle for the basket. This is where the rope candy is in. For this, you will need to glue the ends of the packets of rope candy on either side of the basket to form a handle. You can use as many rope candy’s as you like, but two should suffice if you are going to a simple basket. You can then tie up the rope candy’s from the middle using a pretty ribbon. Make a bow on the top of even stick one, and your basket will already be on its way to looking cute and delicious.

Leave your basket to dry for a bit and once again make sure that all the parts of the basket are properly glued together. You can then begin filling it up. Take some easter grass and fill the basket up to make a small grass bed inside the basket. If you can’t find any easter grass at the store, take some crepe paper or green paper and cut it up into really fine strips. Place your treats in the basket, and you are ready to go!

The Maker Movement: Transforming Brand Identities

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For a long time, brands have been defined by two key elements: a name and a logo. The uniqueness of the company name and insignia, coupled with the firm’s marketing strategy across traditional and, more recently, online platforms have determined the success of the business in question up until now. However, the so-called “Maker Movement” has been gaining traction in recent times, forcing both brand owners and designers alike to visualize their brands in a three-dimensional manner in order to get them effectively across to potential consumers.

Basically, the Maker Movement is the term of choice used to refer to and document the rise of individuals or small groups of people creating new, innovative, low-cost products using discarded electronic parts and open source knowledge available on the Internet. The proponents of this “do-it-yourself” culture, usually small businesses, have captured the imagination of a greater audience of modern-day consumers than the large companies using standard methods to mass-produce generic goods in China and shipping supplies across the globe.

The Maker Movement has thus led established companies towards pursuing policies of acquisition. An example of this is the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry, where large legacy firms are acquiring smaller maker businesses in order to attract millennial customers who prefer healthier and more natural and organic food options made available by those ‘makers’. In addition, big CPGs have conducted surveys and set up online portals asking for innovations in their products that their customers would like to see, all in an effort to remain competitive in the rapidly changing market of today.

Whether the products are borne of an artisanal approach or are simply mass-produced, the maker method is followed to get the desired level of branding. This involves combining the traditional concept of a brand, which is an effective name and logo, with creating and testing a 3D model of the product, a prototype, to see if it works well with the brand.

The multiple facets of creating a popular brand name, such as market research, demographics, consumer demand, nature of competition and selection of appropriate channels to propagate the brand are now expected to leave an impact on the physical characteristics of the product itself in order to form a complete brand. This necessitates model making and testing to see not only if it works as intended, but also if it fits with the image a company wants to establish for itself in the eyes of the public.

Therefore, the Maker Movement has turned brand creation into a more holistic process, combining all aspects of market research with effective design and model making so that all three deliver a consistent image of the company to potential customers. Model making, the major aspect of the do-it-yourself culture, helps manufacturers get a realistic preview before finalizing the product design. This realistic preview is the main purpose of the Maker Movement and one of the primary goals of its developers and founders of the project.

The Maker Movement method is one of the most realistic and up-to-date projects in the creation of a 3d modeling project, and because of that it is very recommended that everyone in the field checks the method out, as it has a lot to teach producers in the field and developers who are starting their first lessons as well. The Maker Movement welcomes all types of approaches.