I have 4h to pack up a studio apartment and my heads going to explode

[IHopeYouStepOnALegPiece]

Lived here for a year so shit has accumulated and I’ve been overwhelmed with work and life and suddenly I have 4h to get this done and I don’t know where to start

Luckily no furniture other then a divan bed which will go in one piece with everything to the storage unit

I have no idea where to start

i have 3 suitcases worth of clothes to get into one

pillows and bedding to get reduced to the smallest size

general books/Knick nacks/toiletries. 3 boxes worth to fit into 2

I need to hoover and clean the floor and skirting boards

wash 3 loads of laundry (machine is not in the house, separate building)

Please tell me how to get this done

Bag up the clothes. Wash them after the move.
Binbags each for the duvet and pillows.
Why do you have to condense the books down another box? Just put the overflow into bags for life.
Have you booked a moving company?

Use bin bags for the clothes - take everything straight off the rail in the wardrobe coat hangers included, roll it (in a big single lump) and put in a bin bag. When you get to where you are going you just rip the bag off, unroll and hang straight back up

Roll your clothes before putting in suitcase. Do not do laundry. Good luck.

Maybe start by getting off Mumsnet?

Firstly, I wouldn't bother with the laundry, it can be washed when you get to your new place. Second, bin bags for the clothes and bedding etc. Then use the suitcase for books etc to give you more space than just the two boxes. Basically just focus on speed not neatness then you'll have time for the cleaning.

From experience you probably have more boxes full than you think but bin bags for either lighter stuff or to donate will do the job.

Is the laundry absolutely essential?

room by room.

does it need to be suitcases? can you use bin bags instead?

roll clothes instead of folding. you can get more into a suitcase that way.

be ruthless with things - stuff you are not fond off or are unlikely to use/wear can go into the bin.

good luck.

Go for a walk to clear your mind before resuming. Your overwhelmed. You need some ruthless bin bag sorting!

Put dirty washing in a bin bag and take it with you to do wherever you are moving it to. You don't have time to do 3 loads and dry it in 4 hours, so write that off.

Why are you constricted to 1 suitcase and 2 boxes? Can you nip to a shop nearby and get more empty boxes and a couple of big bags for life for the rest of your clothes.

You're in a bit of a 'throw it in whatever works and sort it out when you have more time' situation.

Should’ve said everything is going into storage for a month so loath to not wash stuff

borrowing friends storage so v limited space

moving van booked and coming at 1230

if you have belts use those to hold together the rolled up duvet (s)

room by room
it's a studio...

Use duvet covers to put stuff in
One for the dirty laundry and another for bedding etc
Better and squashing than cases

Squashier* not squashing lol

You can go back to the storage unit later with the fresh laundry.

You don't have time for 3 loads laundry. One maybe - pick the things that really would be minging if not washed.

Unless it’s filthy don’t bother with laundry, it can wait or you can go back and collect it from storage. Pick a room and work clockwise. Have bags/boxes for each sort of stuff, one for books, one for trinkets or bits, one for clothes. Don’t dwell on how much you have to do, head down and get on with it. From a master procrastinator

Use pillows, towels and duvets as stuffing for fragile things in boxes. Stack plates vertically so they take a drop equally and the bottom one doesn’t break.

Distribute books throughout your boxes as the lowest layer. A box full of books is impossible to lift.

Tape clothes on hangers together 8/10 at a time and put a binbag over them, dry cleaner style.

Just one load of the dirtiest laundry. The rest in duvet covers as PP says.

I've no idea why you would leave three loads of laundry until this morning tbh. Everything else is doable if you get a few boxes/bags for life. Id be inclined to drop the laundry for a service wash somewhere and pick it up when you've finished everything else.

Well, frankly, you won't get all this done in the time you have.

So you need to make a plan B for the washing. Separate that out, and head to a laundry after 1230.

Everything else, black bags as said. As quickly as possible so you can clear the space. Then you can clean - as that has to be done by 1230.

You can properly sort your items in storage after you move

I’m thinking the laundry building has a dryer too, so it could be ready by 12:30, just a hassle with everything else going on.

Drop the laundry idea. Unless you can guarantee that the newly-washed clothes are 100% dry before being put into storage, they'll probably smell of damp/possibly go a bit mouldy if you store them whilst slightly damp.

I think it's better to store slightly dirty clothes and wash when you take them out again than to store damp clothes because you didn't have time to get them properly dried - if they get musty or mouldy they could be ruined. Can you get hold of any of those bags where you seal them and suck the air out with a vacuum cleaner? Lots of high street household shops have them and they do make a big difference.