How to Move Art, Antiques and Valuables Without Damaging Them

Whatever you do, don’t forget to give your valuables some serious TLC when moving to a new home. While it’s easy to get caught up in the hoopla of moving, these specialty items should be top of mind before packing begins. Moving art, mirrors, antiques and other fragile keepsakes can be tricky. A few examples of specialty items that need extra care when moving include: mirrors, framed and unframed art, fine art, canvas art, family heirlooms, family photos, collectibles, special keepsakes and nostalgic items, antique furniture, porcelain and glass items, crystal barware and goods, china dinnerware, art sculptures, and anything else of value in your home.

For these especially valuable items, it may be best to hire a professional moving company to handle the packing and transportation for you. If you’ve decided to do part or all of the packing and moving yourself, you’ll need to take special precautions to keep everything safe and secure. Below, we’ve included materials, instructions and tips for successfully packing and moving your art, antiques and other valuables.

Artwork, framed prints and mirrors

Whatever you do, don’t try to move your art or mirrors without proper packing materials. These will make a huge difference in preventing the items from scratching or breaking.

First, locate several large, heavy-duty picture boxes that are big enough to hold your artwork, framed prints and mirrors. If you saved the original boxes that the items arrived in, I recommend using these. You can also purchase telescope boxes, which are used to pack mirrors, art and other flat-lying, rectangular objects. The boxes usually come as a two-part set and are joined together to form one long box. They should be able to better accommodate large pieces of art. If the artwork is particularly large, I suggest finding an appropriate size crate to hold the item.
Next, I strongly recommend wrapping your art and mirrors in Glassine, instead of the typical plastic wrap. Glassine is a smooth paper that is known for being air, water and grease resistant. This should properly protect anything from blemishing the fine art, print or glass. Glassine isn’t hard to find and can typically be purchased by the roll.
After securing the Glassine with tape, it’s time to break out the bubble wrap. Layer your artwork and mirrors several times in bubble wrap and secure with packing tape. I recommend wrapping the bubble wrap around the item at least twice to provide enough protective cushioning.
When moving, the corners of framed art and mirrors are particularly vulnerable to scratches and nicks. For this reason, it’s important to surround these parts with corner protectors, such as styrofoam corner protectors or cardboard corner protectors.
If you feel that the item needs extra protection, it won’t hurt to wrap a moving blanket around it as well.
When moving artwork Canvas Press recommends storing it upright – not laying it down in the moving truck. The printing company also suggests organizing multiple pieces face to face/ back to back. This alternating arrangement will ensure that the hanging hardware on the backs of the artwork won’t damage the front of another piece. Of course, if you pack the artwork in a sturdy box, you won’t have to worry about following this arrangement.
Finally, as you place the artwork into the moving truck, be sure to strategically place it in a spot where it won’t be squashed or damaged by heavy furniture and large boxes.

Antiques

From perfectly crafted porcelain plates to inherited mahogany furniture, antiques are often valuable and irreplaceable to their owners. They may also be worth quite a bit of money – not to mention, possess sentimental value as well. For these reasons, it’s especially important to handle and move these items with the utmost care. While we strongly advise hiring professionals for the job, we know that this may not be an option for everyone. Fortunately, these instructions should help you in accomplishing the task yourself.

First, I recommend taking note of all of your inventory – just in case something is damaged during the move. Take photos, make notes and be sure that everything is properly documented. Also, I suggest checking to see if the antiques are covered by your home insurance policy. If not, it may not be a bad idea to purchase antique and collectibles insurance.
Next, collect all of your supplies. You will most likely need multiple rolls of bubble wrap, packing tape, moving blankets, crates and a tool set.
If you’re moving heavy antique furniture, call multiple friends and family members to help. Don’t try and lift heavy pieces by yourself. You’ll risk scratching, denting and damaging the antiques, which will in turn diminish their value.
If the furniture is large, and you’re able to safely disassemble, I suggest doing this first.
Once your parts are ready to go, wrap the antique in as much bubble wrap as possible and secure with tape.
Next, apply another layer of protection to the furniture or household item with moving blankets and secure with tape.
After wrapping with bubble wrap and moving blankets, I strongly recommend placing these valuables in a wooden crate. These moving crates are usually custom-made. If you’re unable to find a wood crate, I suggest using another sturdy outer layer, such as a large cardboard box. Adding this outer layer of protection to your antique will help tremendously during the transportation stage. Crates and boxes are sure to lessen the impact from bumpy roads and prevent belongings from getting tossed around inside the truck.
When loading and unloading the antique, make sure to have several extra sets of hands helping out. The last thing you want to do is drop or break the antique while hoisting it into the truck.

Hiring professional movers

Of course, the best way to move fine art, mirrors, antiques and other valuable items is to hire professionals for the job. Fortunately, there are many movers and shipping companies who specialize in packing and handling these very things. To find them, you don’t have to look any further than Moving.com. We’ve vetted our art and antique moving partners to ensure that they are detailed, reputable, and reliable – so that you can find the best moving company to handle the job. All relocation companies in our network are also licensed and insured, which means your move is sure to be in good hands.