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Are you about to pack? Are you deciding what to bring?


Crossedover

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Hi everyone, we are relatively "fresh off the boat" as they say....

Our stuff arrived 10 days ago.

We bought a 40 ft container and despite coming from a humble home we honestly have 20ft too much! Really! Leave it behind! Bring your special stuff and enjoy selling or giving your stuff away to those less fortunate. We can not fit half our stuff in AND there are not loads of less fortunate people walking around desperate for anything you may leave out on the verge.

I find it utterly amazing what people just put out on their verge here... Even working TVs!

Remember you are coming to a first world country with loads of lovely shops which have amazing sales!

I feel utterly guilty for what is in my garage.

What is worse we are likely to move again soon, as you do when you are settling, and now we have to pay to have all of it moved again... AND that is jolly expensive...with the money I am wasting on having stuff moved I could be buying all sorts of lovely new things.

Really come light! Bring heirlooms but leave arb stuff behind.

Good luck x

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Thanks! That's good to know! We have already started getting rid of stuff & haven't even got a visa yet!

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Couldnt agree more. We paid heaps for our old Cathay Ray Tube TV to be shipped. Bought a flat screen and put a working CRT TV on the verge. No one took it, and it got dumped!

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Thank your for posting Crossedover! We are at the "what to take, what to sell & what to toss" stage... So your post has been helpful! Will be "tossing & selling" A LOT more!!

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My big measure was whether or not I could be bothered to clean, scrub, Polish, varnish the item in question for customs inspection. That was a starting point and helped a lot in deciding what really mattered.

Even then, we've also wound up doing more and more clear outs since arriving.

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I have boxes and boxes in the garage of things that I don't have space for in my new place and so many boxes of clothes that I should never have brought over. De-cluttering is something that is done in layers. First time we try it, we throw away a few broken things. Second time round, we part with a few more things, etc, etc. I would suggest going through your stuff at least 3-4 times to make sure that you only bring over the things that you really want and love. When you get here you will most likely buy a few new things for your new home. Some houses here are designed differently to SA, so you may find what works in SA, may not be suitable in Oz. So whatever you bring over, make sure it is something you use a lot and is very functional. The cupboards in the townhouse I am staying in only has hanging space and one long shelf at the top. No drawers at all. I had a lot of fun at IKEA and found some great storage solutions. Friends, family, domestic workers and gardeners all score big time during the cleaning out process. Unfortunately there really isn't anyone to give the stuff to here. I do see some bins for Salvataion Army where they collect clothes though.

Oh and a little suggestion ..... If your couches are not too new, re-stuff the pillows before you come over. I have a coricraft couch and the cushions are quite saggy .... Can't just pop to the shop to buy new ones. I should have replaced/re-stuffed them before coming over.

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Thanks for the advice. We're wondering what to / not to bring at the moment and so all your tips help!

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Great advice!

It felt very strange putting a perfectly working tube TV that was only a couple of years old in the recycling dumpster, on top of the 1,000s of other perfectly useable TVs - I did try to give away but nobody wanted it.

The throwaway culture in first world countries is quite something to get used to, but that just is the way it it!

Definitely only bring your "good" stuff. Plenty of opportunity to accumulate crap over here! :D

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Yes, totally agree. I did massive de-clutter for months & months before we left and I still brought too much stuff. We lived on camping mattresses and cheap pots for a month and far fewer clothes than I thought I could cope with, and we were absolutely fine. You don't need the stuff. My husband and daughter brought even sentimental stuff like their trophies with *eyeroll*. If you haven't used it in 6 months, you don't need it - cliche but true. Even truer when you pay to have it shipped over and it ends up on the kerb on Council Cleanup day....

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Thank you for the advise!

We are leaving Cape Town in June and going through the same process... My husband actually mentioned today that perhaps we sell it all and replace in Aus with the bare essentials and slowly accumulate when we need it. So no tool box, bicycles, my beloved pillow or Nespresso coffee machine ! We are leaving for our LSD trip (Darwin) on 15 March which may help us decide ... Oy vey !

Anyone perhaps leave it all behind and start afresh ??

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There's nothing like the liberating feeling of having a good clear out!

But there are a few previous posts that put a different light on packing including this one:

http://www.saaustralia.org/index.php/topic/44047-ship-out-or-sell-here/

I guess that the conclusion is to bring items of value - both in a monetary sense and in a terms of their usefulness.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ok all! Some advise needed please.

We have Weatherly couches. They are 17 years old but my husband is very attached to them. The cushions do need to be restuffed and in my opinion they things need to be recovered. :glare: He, however, want to take them with us quoting the prices of couches in Oz. Surely we could buy some newish ones there second hand? Well...certainly newer than these! :blush: .

In my assessment of my house we should only take the 4 beds, 2 bookcases, a kist, aluminium outsiide patio set and wooden wall unit! The rest can stay!

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Would you like us to advise you not to bring the couches? We can do that. :)

Don't bring the couches. Terrible idea. :D

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Thanks HansaPlease! :ilikeit:

Could I pick up decent second hand couches that won't break the bank?

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You can get new one's that won't break the bank. It's not thát expensive, is it?! You can buy a decent suit for $1000 at Amart, or a very good one for $3000 at Harvey Norman.

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I wouldn't leave my Nespresso machine behind though. You can buy the pods here. Remember a cup of coffee is expensive here, abt $4 on average, even though it's very good. The pods work out cheaper

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Were also in the situation where we have no idea what we should bring. People tend to say unless its sentimental then dont bring it. But arent couches expensive in OZ beds etc? We also will be in a position (upto) now that we will be arriving without any employment so we do have the added stress that if things dont work out (sorry for being negative) and we do have to return to SA that we will have to pack all our stuff up again. So we were thinking of only shipping things over once we have employment? any ideas on that from others in similar situation? Is it easy to get cheap items that will just tie us over for a few months until we are settled?

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Hi Emma,

You can buy furniture fairly cheap at www.fantasticfurniture.com.au, you can have a look at their package deals, it's not very good furniture, but it will help you out for a few months.

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Thanks HansaPlease! :ilikeit:

Could I pick up decent second hand couches that won't break the bank?

I think you can. Depends on what you consider to be decent, and what your idea of reasonable is.

We picked up two mid-range leather sofas on eBay for $500 in great condition. Also, when we sold out house, we dressed it up by buying some couches on Gumtree. Used them for a year then sold them for a little more than we bought them for. Plenty out there!

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As soon as you have landed somewhere, join that local area's "_ _ _ _ _ buy/swop/sell" page on facebook. There are often free or dirt cheap furniture and appliances that people need gone, asap.

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  • 2 weeks later...

If u are bringing a container, make it a 20ft and then FILL it! Why pay for space you won't use?

Bring your good quality things that you use. Tools etc take forever to accumulate so bring them. Also, little items that cost here eg toothpaste ($5) hair dye etc, I brought more than a years supply Of these lol

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