De-clutter your life with a new George Wimpey home

Moving home is the ideal time to sort out your belongings, get rid of junk and de-clutter your home. 

And homebuilder George Wimpey East Midlands has launched a special “De-clutter your life” campaign to help buyers.

They have teamed up with the advisor to the stars, Elika Gibbs, known as the Practical Princess to offer advice before the big move.

“Moving home is a great opportunity to de-clutter your home and ultimately your life,” explains Elika. “The more organised one is, the easier one's life becomes and what better time to start than when you're moving home”.

She adds: “By planning ahead and getting rid of the excess clutter you can lighten the load on move day and start life in your new home as you mean to go on, organised and in control.

“Where there has previously been chaos, you will have clarity - and unpacking in your new home will be a pleasure.”

George Wimpey homes are designed with contemporary living in mind, offering clever storage solutions and flexible living spaces. To help you get your clutter under control, George Wimpey East Midlands and Elika have come up with 10 innovative tips for home movers.

George Wimpey East Midlands Sales and Marketing Director, Lynne Hartshorn, comments: “We want to make moving house as simple and straightforward as possible, which is why we have linked up with Elika. Even the most organised people can be surprised at how much junk they have when they come to move house. By following our top tips they will not only save money on removals, it will also help them make an easier transition into their stylish new George Wimpey home.“

Top Tips For De-Cluttering Your Life

1. When you're getting ready to move home, it is no good just shoving everything into random boxes on the premise that your shiny new house will be a festival of organisation. Use the weeks leading up to the move to list all your belongings. If there is a toy in the kitchen, make sure you put it in the playroom/bedroom where it belongs and will move to. Put all your safety pins in the sewing box, and sort through junk drawers. This way, all your boxes will make sense and unpacking the other end will be far less stressful.

2. Throw out or give away all the body creams and bath oils that you have been given and never used. They are just gathering dust and will only do the same in your new home. Only keep what you actually use. These products don't always have sell-by dates but the texture and scent can deteriorate.

3. Pack bathroom products up in different labelled boxes (hair, teeth, manicure, etc) so that it is easier to transport and unpack and once in your new home, easier to pull out and clean.

4. Storage companies do an acid-free wrapping paper. Use this to wrap all your furniture and delicate items gently and loosely and then tape up. Cover again with bubble wrap and seal with tape. You're ready to go without the risk of damage or acid-staining. This can also be used when putting items into storage rather than cluttering up your new home.

5. In this world of computers, the old-fashioned filing system is almost defunct. However, there are still documents that need saving in paper form. Once you've sorted through all your old paperwork and know what you need to keep, clearly mark files (car/health insurance/birth certificate/passports etc). Once in your new home, put them in a certain place where they always live and ALWAYS take the time to put documents back after reference.

6. Use zip lock bags to store phone chargers and other electrical items such as iPods or hands free kits. Clearly marked, you will always be able to find the one you want, even on move day.

7. If you don't have time to sort out your photographs and keepsakes ahead of the move, start by sectioning them into old shoeboxes in years or holidays. You can then decide what you are going to do with them at your leisure. Boxes take up less room in a cupboard and you can easily pull them out to clean inside.

8. Only ever have in your wardrobe what you are actually wearing and pack away the other seasons neatly. Use moving home as an opportunity to do this! Obviously if it is early autumn you are not going to need your thickest coats/cashmere/jumpers so pack them away and open up some space.

9. When culling your wardrobe, pack away what you can't bring yourself to throw away. If you haven't got it out for 18 months, you are never going to wear it again and it is time to throw it out. Take your old clothes to a charity shop or sell them online - you can also recycle them at various council recycling depots.

10. Duvets and blankets often get stuffed into the top of wardrobes. Take them out ahead of your move and vacuum pack them. This flattens them right down and you can either put them under your bed or in the wardrobe in your new home taking up a third of the space. 

George Wimpey has a range of properties on offer across the East Midlands region.

For further information, visit George Wimpey's information centres, which are open seven days a week from 10.30am to 5.30pm or log on to www.georgewimpey.co.uk

For further information about Elika Gibbs and Practical Princess call 0207 371 0276 or visit www.practicalprincess.com

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For press enquiries, please contact:
Jane Webb or Helen Liggins, Tel: 01858 461111
or e-mail: janew@webbpr.net/helen@webbpr.net

Notes to Editors

Photography is included and captions are as follows:
- Elika Gibbs, Practical Princess.
- An example of the contemporary, clutter-free living space offered in George Wimpey    East Midlands' homes.

About George Wimpey

George Wimpey is a leading brand for new homes from Taylor Wimpey UK, a part of Taylor Wimpey Plc.

On 3rd July 2007, Taylor Woodrow plc and George Wimpey plc completed their merger to form Taylor Wimpey plc.  Taylor Wimpey plc is the UK's largest homebuilder and is listed on the London Stock Exchange.

As well as operating in the UK, Taylor Wimpey plc builds homes in North America, Spain and Gibraltar. It aims to be the homebuilder of choice for customers, employees, shareholders and for the communities in which it operates.

George Wimpey provides nationwide coverage in the UK through its regional businesses and satellites.  Each business builds a range of products, from one bedroom apartments and starter homes to large detached family houses.

For further information, please visit the George Wimpey web site - www.georgewimpey.co.uk

About Practical Princess

Elika Gibbs has spent her adult life orchestrating radical transformations of her friends and, more recently, her clients and their houses. The idea behind Practical Princess is based on her many years in the fashion business, her phenomenal organisational skills and, most importantly, her gift of communicating her vision and ideas to others. It was her role as a stylist at her dress and hire shop "Bodie and Gibbs" that really opened the door to the Practical Princess brand. Today, Elika Gibbs is the lynch pin of some of the world's most influential women, whose lives would not begin to work without her organisational input.

The Practical Princess concept is all about getting the most out of your daily life through good organisation. A badly hung wardrobe and over-stuffed chest of drawers inevitably means that you are only wearing about 20% of your clothes. Correctly hung and organised, using specially designed hangers, shoe drawers, folding template and bikini bags, you will finally be able to see, at a glance, what you have and, crucially, don't have. You will no longer dig in desperation, hoping that somewhere in the depths is the dress of your dreams and the answer to your current clothing dilemma.

Elika has appeared in many magazines and national newspapers, most recently, Tatler, Esquire, the Daily Mail and The Times.