How to Pack up Jewelry Before a Big Move

Pack your jewelry carefully.

When you have a nice jewelry collection, particularly one that’s fairly valuable, you may get a little nervous when facing a residential move. How will you safely pack it up and transport it all? It starts with hiring a professional mover and involves heeding the following tips for proper packing.

Before Your Move

You’ll have to set aside enough time to get the job done. It won’t be as easy and quick as packing clothes! Here are some tips:

Sort out jewelry pieces: Place a few large sheets of paper on a flat surface and arrange all of the jewelry pieces there.
Arrange by type: Put earrings with earrings, rings with rings, and so on.
Get rid of pieces you no longer want: This is a great time to de-clutter your jewelry collection. Toss costume jewelry or outdated pieces you haven’t worn in a year. Anything without sentimental or monetary value is fair game.
Gather the right jewelry packing materials: This includes packing paper (not newspaper!), bubble wrap, plastic wrap, plastic baggies, cardboard for your earrings, egg cartons, sunglasses cases, pill organizers, rubber bands and packing tape.

How to Pack Necklaces

Those long chains will easily tangle together if you don’t pack them right. Check out these tips:

Cut a drinking straw to match the length of the chain, then slip one end through the straw and shut it at the opposite end.
Use plastic wrap to secure chains to straws, empty toilet paper rolls and cardboard.
Wrap each piece in packing paper.
Use bubble wrap for your outer protective layer.
Use rubber bands or some tape to keep these small packages from opening.
Place necklaces into sealable plastic bags to keep moisture at bay.
Put bags into a cardboard box, such as a shoe box.

How to Pack Bracelets

From bangle to cuff to chain, there are many types of bracelets that need special attention during the packing process.

Use the straw method from above for elegant chains.
Wrap each bracelet with soft packing paper.
Wrap bubble wrap over fragile portions of the bracelet, such as a gemstone, charm or ornament, etc. Use tape or rubber bands to secure.
Arrange your safeguarded bracelets into a shoe box as well.

How to Pack Earrings

It’s important to ensure your earrings don’t get entangled or hooked together. Here are some tips:

Gather small cardboard cutouts or even business cards, poke holes in each with a safety pin and slip the hooks through. Wrap each in plastic wrap.
Use pill organizers and sunglasses cases to place earring pairs in. Wrap the pill case in wrap followed by one layer of packing paper; fix with tape. You can do the same thing with a hard-shell reading glasses case.

How to Pack Rings

Stones can be easily become damaged during the moving process, so use these methods to ensure safe transport.

Place each ring in an egg carton, after wrapping them individually in soft packing paper.
Use pieces of bubble wrap to protect any gemstones.
Place some cotton into each compartment to fill up any space above the ring.
Stretch wrap the egg carton to keep everything in place.
Place the carton in a shoe box.