Moving experts recently shared with realtor.com® some of their most creative tips and tricks for helping home owners pack up their belongings.

Glasses and cups: Insert a stemware into a tube sock to prevent cracks. Also, “pick up wine or beer boxes with cardboard separators to pack glasses and other fragile items — liquor stores give these away for free,” says Mim King, a professional organizer in Minneapolis.

Jewelry: Prevent necklaces and bracelets from getting tangled up by taking a few empty toilet paper rolls or drinking straws. Thread each chain through a toilet roll or straw. Then fasten the clasp.

Plates: Use bubble wrap or insert paper plates in between ceramic ones and then stand them up in a box, suggests Randy Shacka, president of Two Men and a Truck in Lansing, Mich.

Clothing: Slide a trash bag over hanging clothes to make them easier to carry or stack, suggests Wes Taft, co-founder of the mobile app moveCHECK.

Linens: Use towels, sheets, and dishcloths to cushion other objects. For example, roll up wooden and plastic utensils in dish towels, Shacka suggests. “Pack pillows at the top of boxes to add extra cushion and wrap artwork in blankets,” King says.

Electronics: Use the plastic tabs from loaves of bread to secure electronic cords to prevent tangles. “Be sure to label them so you don’t lose track of which cord goes to which piece of equipment,” says Taft. He also recommends snapping a photo of your electronics before unplugging them so you remember how everything connects in your new home.

Source: “Weird Packing Tricks That Actually Work,” realtor.com® (June 24, 2016)

“Copyright NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. Reprinted with permission”