Congratulations on tying the knot. It is an exciting time in your life and you will definitely find that there are many new directions for you and your spouse to take. One of the biggest steps in the process is moving in together. Woah! We said it. It is time to compile all of your items and finally move into the SAME home together.
You may be looking at all of your items right now thinking that it is impossible to combine any of the stuff that the two of you have, but fortunately for you, we have some tips to help.
- Don’t Wait
If you are not married just yet or if you just got married and don’t move in together for another couple weeks, don’t wait any longer. If you procrastinate, you will find that the process takes forever and you do not get as much done as you want. It is actually recommended that you start to go through your items and declutter six weeks BEFORE your planned move.
- Write Down What You Have
Now it is time to sit down and write down what you have in each house. This means you need to make a list of your possessions and your partner needs to make a list of their possessions. From there, you can then see what you have double or even triple of.
You will find that you do have multiple items, especially if you each had your own place. For example, you may have two microwaves, four TVs, etc.
- Start to Scale Down
Now that you have the lists in front of you and you know what duplicates you have, start to scale down. Do you really need to have three sets of silverware in your home? It is unlikely. Therefore, you can get rid of two of them or at minimum, one of them.
The same goes for all of the TVs you have, clothes, decorations, etc. This is a good opportunity for you to sell some of these items too. In fact, you could have a small yard sale or even sell the items online and make some extra cash.
- Compromise
Marriage is all about compromising and what better time to start than now. It is impossible to take everything you want into your new home and it is unlikely that you and your spouse will agree on every design and decoration for the home. Therefore, you need to compromise.
You can come up with mutual colors that you agree on or you can divide up the rooms and the decorating ideas. For instance, you can decorate the living room and your partner decorate the bedroom.
As a newlywed, your job will be difficult for a few months as you start to go through your items and sift through what you do want and what you do not want. Remember, prepare early and be prepared to throw some items out along the way.