Measure rooms and record measurements to properly map your move

The first rule of moving is to label every box and piece of furniture so it ends up in the right room. But getting it to the proper spot within the room would be even better. By mapping your rooms, you can.

The process is simple but should be done systematically and carefully. If a couch is two inches wider than the spot it needs to fit into, you’ll have a problem on moving day. But with a little care, your new home can come together quickly and easily like well-fitting puzzle pieces.

First measure, then measure again:

• Measure the length and width of each room in your new home using a standard 25-foot retractable measuring tape.

• Record measurements and draw them to scale on a sheet of graph paper (one per room).

• Be sure to measure nooks and crannies such as a bay window and add them to your worksheet.

Include anything that needs to open:

• Measure the dimensions of windows and add them to your worksheet. How high a window is placed on a wall will indicate what furniture you’ll be able to place under it.

• Measure door openings and indicate which way the door swings open.

Indicate any other elements that will impact furniture placement:

• Fireplaces

• Columns

• Built-in bookshelves

• Chair rails or wainscoting

• Bulkheads

• Radiators

• Vents

Now, measure your furniture:

• Be accurate when measuring furniture that can be tightly placed, such as bookshelves.

• Be generous when measuring pieces of furniture that will need a little space around them, such as couches and coffee tables.

Make furniture cut-outs:

• Use sheets of graph paper to make shapes that accurately represent the size of each piece of furniture relative to your room sketches.

• Arrange your furniture cut-outs

• Once you have placed your furniture where you want it, glue-stick it in place.

Add the maps to your “Open-Me-First” box.

In your new home on moving day, tape each map to a wall in its room so that you and the movers can quickly place pieces of furniture in the right spot as they’re unloaded.

— SmartMoves, Canada Post.