Bedrooms look simple until you start packing them. A bedroom holds more than most people guess: a full closet, dresser drawers, a bed that has to come apart, nightstands, lamps, mirrors, and a pile of things tucked under the bed. It is also the room you need most on the first night in your new home. This guide walks through how to pack bedrooms and closets for a move in Naples, what to leave for the moving crew, and how to set things up so the first night in the new place feels normal instead of chaotic.
Start With the Closet, Not the Dresser
Closets are the biggest job in most bedrooms, so start there. Do it at least a week before moving day if you can.
Go through everything on the hangers and on the shelves. Southwest Florida closets tend to collect two wardrobes: what you wear here most of the year, and the heavier clothes you keep for trips north or for the few cool weeks in January. A move is a good time to decide what you really use. Every bag you donate is one less box to pack, carry and unpack.
Once you have sorted, split what is left into three groups:
- Clothes that stay on hangers. Suits, dresses, dress shirts and anything that wrinkles easily.
- Folded clothes. T-shirts, shorts, workout clothes, sweaters and jeans.
- Shoes, bags and accessories. These need their own boxes so they do not crush clothes or get lost.
Hanging Clothes: Wardrobe Boxes Save Hours
A wardrobe box is a tall moving box with a metal bar across the top. You lift clothes straight off the closet rod, hang them on the bar, close the box, and hang them back up at the new home. Nothing gets folded, and very little gets wrinkled.
Professional movers usually offer wardrobe boxes as part of their packing supplies. If you are packing yourself, ask about them when you book. A few tips:
- Do not overfill the bar. If the hangers are packed so tight you cannot slide them, the box gets too heavy and the clothes wrinkle anyway.
- Put light items like shoe boxes or folded scarves in the bottom of the wardrobe box. Keep heavy things out.
- Group clothes by person and label the box with the room it goes to, such as “Main bedroom closet” or “Guest room closet.”
If you do not use wardrobe boxes, you can bundle 8 to 10 hangers together with a rubber band or twist tie around the hooks, then slide a large trash bag up from the bottom over the clothes. It is not as neat, but it keeps clothes clean and together.
Folded Clothes: Use Medium Boxes and Soft Items as Padding
Folded clothes are light, so they can go in medium boxes. Avoid the biggest boxes for clothes. A large box packed full of jeans gets heavy fast and is awkward to carry down stairs or through a condo hallway.
Clothes also make good padding. Wrap a picture frame or a small lamp base in a sweater and it rides safely in the middle of a box. Just keep anything breakable in the center and surround it with soft layers on all sides.
Seal each box and write two things on it: the room it goes to and a short list of what is inside. “Main bedroom, summer clothes, Sam” is much more useful at 9 p.m. on move-in night than “clothes.”
Shoes, Belts, Bags and Hats
Shoes are heavier and dirtier than people expect. Pack them together in their own box, pairs wrapped in paper or tucked into a plastic grocery bag so soles do not rub on the uppers. Stuff dress shoes and boots with paper so they hold their shape.
Handbags can be stuffed with paper too, then laid flat. Hats with a structured brim should go in their own box on top of the load, not at the bottom of a stack.
Dressers and Nightstands: What to Do With the Drawers
This is a common question, and the answer depends on the piece.
A sturdy, solid dresser can sometimes travel with light, soft clothing still inside the drawers. An older piece, an antique, or anything with thin drawer bottoms should be emptied completely. Drawers full of heavy items like books or tools always need to come out, because the weight can crack drawer joints when the piece is tipped onto a dolly.
Whether soft clothing can stay in the drawers depends on the dresser. The easiest way to avoid a problem on moving day is to tell us what is in your dressers when you book, and we will tell you what makes sense for your pieces.
Whatever stays in the drawers, take out anything that could break, spill or be hard to replace. That includes:
- Jewelry and watches
- Medications
- Passports, birth certificates and other papers
- Perfume, lotions and anything liquid
- Chargers and small electronics
Those small, important items belong in a bag or box that travels with you in your own car. Our guide to items to set aside before moving day covers what to keep with you in more detail.
Beds, Mattresses and Headboards
Beds are the biggest pieces in the bedroom and usually the last thing to go on moving day, since you will likely sleep in yours the night before.
Bed frames and headboards
Most bed frames come apart. Platform beds, sleigh beds, four-poster beds and storage beds with drawers all need to be taken down before they can fit through a doorway. Professional movers handle this as a normal part of the job, and the hardware goes into a labeled bag that stays with the frame. You can read more about how that works in our post on taking furniture apart and putting it back together.
If you plan to take the bed apart yourself, tape the bolts and brackets into a zip-top bag and tape that bag to the headboard. Snap a quick photo of how the frame connects before you take it apart.
Mattresses and box springs
Mattresses should travel in a plastic mattress bag. It keeps out dust, dirt and moisture, which matters on a humid Florida moving day when doors are open for hours. Mattress bags are easy to find and come in sizes from twin to king.
A few mattress tips:
- Strip the bed the night before, or first thing in the morning, and pack the sheets and pillows in a clearly marked box.
- Do not fold a mattress unless it is made to fold. Most modern foam and hybrid mattresses should stay flat or on their side.
- Adjustable bases are heavy and have motors and cords. Unplug them and tell us about them ahead of time so the crew plans for them.
Mirrors, Lamps and Bedroom Art
Dresser mirrors, full-length mirrors and framed art are the most fragile things in most bedrooms. Large mirrors usually travel in special mirror boxes or are wrapped in moving pads by the crew. Smaller framed pieces can be wrapped in paper and packed standing up on their edge, never flat, with padding between each one.
For lamps, remove the shade and the bulb. Pack shades on their own in a box with nothing heavy on top, since they dent easily. Wrap the lamp base in paper or a towel and pack it upright.
If you have valuable artwork in the bedroom, our guide to packing artwork goes into more detail.
The Space Under the Bed
Under-bed storage is where forgotten things live: old photo albums, gift wrap, spare blankets, holiday clothes, boxes of paperwork. Clear it out a few days before the move so you are not sorting through it while the crew is waiting to take the bed apart. It is also the easiest place to find items to donate or toss.
Pack a First-Night Bedroom Box
This single box makes more difference to move-in night than anything else on this list. Pack one for each bedroom and mark it clearly, or put it in your own car.
- One set of sheets and pillowcases for each bed
- Pillows and a light blanket
- A change of clothes and pajamas for each person
- Phone chargers
- Toiletries and any daily medications
- A small toolkit with a screwdriver and hex keys, in case a bed needs one more bolt tightened
When the crew arrives at the new home, ask them to set up the beds first. Once the beds are together and made, everyone has a place to land, even if every other room is still full of boxes.
Kids’ Bedrooms
Children handle a move better when their own room comes together first. Let them pack a small box of favorite things that they carry themselves. Pack their room last at the old house and unpack it first at the new one. Put the bed in roughly the same spot relative to the door if the new room allows it. Small touches like that make the first night feel familiar.
If you also have pets, our post on keeping dogs and cats calm on moving day has ideas for using a quiet bedroom as a safe room.
A Simple Bedroom Packing Timeline
- Two weeks out: Sort closets. Donate what you will not move. Clear under the bed.
- One week out: Pack out-of-season clothes, extra linens, books, decor and anything you will not need before the move.
- Two or three days out: Pack shoes, most folded clothes, art and mirrors. Empty the drawers that need emptying.
- The night before: Pack the first-night box. Set aside what goes in your car.
- Moving day morning: Strip beds, bag the bedding, and leave the beds for the crew.
Want Help Packing the Bedrooms?
Some people like to pack every box themselves. Others hand the whole house to a crew. Many choose something in between, packing their own clothes and leaving the beds, mirrors, art and heavy furniture to the movers. Any of those approaches works. Our packing services can cover as much or as little as you want.
Hilton Moving and Storage has helped families move in Naples, Marco Island, Bonita Springs, Estero and the surrounding area since 2010. If you are planning a move, call us at (239) 231-7050 and tell us about your bedrooms, your closets and anything that needs special care. We will help you plan a moving day that ends with everyone sleeping in their own bed.
