No matter how you approach it, moving is an exhausting undertaking. It can also be nerve wracking, especially when you’re moving valuable and highly breakable items such as crystal glassware? Well, we can’t take the exhaustion out of your moving process, but we can ease your nerves about that crystal glassware with a few tips, tricks, and ideal products for packing wine glasses.
Before we continue with our tips, though, a little about the KnowWines blog. We are an Amazon.com affiliate and we do receive a small commission if you purchase items through our affiliate links at no cost to you. The commissions we receive help us pay for web hosting fees, products to test, and other costs associated with running this site. Thanks for using our affiliate links and supporting our independent blog!
How to Pack Wine Glasses for Moving
Measure Your Wine Glasses
To select the right size of box, you’ll need to measure the height of your tallest glasses. You want to be sure that the boxes you select have enough room to accommodate your glassware. Attempting to force crystal glassware into a too-small box will leave you with shattered crystal glassware!
Find the Right Boxes
The type of box we prefer for packing wine glasses is a “banker’s box.” The top is constructed of a single piece of cardboard (versus four pieces as seen in traditional boxes). Also, a banker’s box lid does not require tape to close, minimizing the amount of pressure one has to place on the box. Finally, the banker’s box can be reused after moving to store paper files or home items in your closet.
These boxes come with dividers and cushion foam
If you already have a standard-sized box and simply need glass dividers, you can also buy just the dividers and cushion foam online:
Alternatively, if you have only the box and glass dividers but no cushion foam, the foam can be purchased here:
If you don’t want to take on the added expense of glass dividers and cushion foam, just skip them and pack them as we describe below. Simply make sure you have lots of packing paper!
Select Your Packing Paper
You will definitely need some kind of packing material to protect those wine glasses. Packing paper is less expensive than bubble wrap and a lot less bulky. It’s also recyclable or reusable by kids as a canvas for drawing or painting! You can get unprinted newsprint paper at most moving supply stores as well as online.
Yes, could also use regular printed newspaper. However, some inks will stain wine glasses, which is why we recommend the unprinted paper instead. If you do stain your wine glasses, you might want to try an overnight soak in the sink or in a bucket with some unscented denture cleaner.
Find Good Quality Packing Tape
It’s really important to get some good quality tape to secure both the top and the bottom of the box. Higher-quality tape will secure the lid to your box securely, thus preventing a box that pops open during the move, potentially damaging your glasses. These heavy duty rolls will do the trick.
Get Some Packing Labels
It’s really important to indicate to movers (or, friends and family who are helping you move) which boxes have fragile contents. We love these color-coded packing labels as they make box sorting a breeze. Included are labels indicating to not stack other boxes on top of your wine glasses and to orient the movers or your friends which end of the box is up.
Our Step-by-Step Guide to Packing Wine Glasses
This is the process we use to securely pack our wine glasses when we move. We have a lot of wine glasses (and we’ve been through several moves), so we think it’s a tried-and-true method!
Prep the Moving Box
Assemble the moving box as instructed. Don’t forget to tape up the bottom really well using that heavy duty packing tape! Taping the box well not only prevents the box from coming open, it also provides more structure and strengthens the box. If you’re using glass dividers, insert them once you have the box constructed.
Wrap the Wine Glasses
Remove one sheet of packing paper from the box and lay it out flat. Place the wine glass in one corner of the paper, far enough from the corner that you can insert a small portion of the wrapping paper into the bowl of the wine glass. Bring up the bottom corner of the packing paper and gently wrap the stem. Then, roll the wine glass gently to use the rest of the wrap. Don’t ram too much paper in the wine glass bowl or you will break it. Also, don’t twist the glass too much when you are wrapping it. When you’re done wrapping, carefully place the wrapped glass into the box (within layers of more packing paper OR in the glass dividers you’ve inserted).
Secure the top of the box
Tape up the top of the box really well. Label it with all the pertinent stickers: “This End Up,” “Fragile,” “Kitchen” (to indicate where movers should take the box), etc. Be sure not to stack other boxes on top of boxes holding wine glasses. Finally, if at all possible, supervise the moving of these boxes to be sure that they are handled carefully!
How to Wrap Wine Glasses (for Visual Learners)
Check out this video if you prefer to see (rather than read!) an example of wrapping wine glasses for moving. This video will show you how to wrap wine glasses for packing, just like the pros do it!
Check out this video if you prefer to see (rather than read!) an example of wrapping wine glasses for moving. This video will show you how to wrap wine glasses for packing, just like the pros do it!
That’s a Wrap on Packing Wine Glasses!
To recap, here’s our approach in a nutshell:
Get all your supplies together (you can use the fancy boxes with dividers, or use the more economical process we show). Wrap your glasses individually. Make sure the exterior of the box indicates that the contents are fragile. Don’t put a heavy box on top of it your box holding wine glasses.
When you’re unpacking (which is so much better than packing!), reuse your bank box for storing paperwork or other items that you’d like to keep dust-free and away from light. If you don’t have space to keep the boxes, upcycle them on Facebook marketplace or Craigslist. People are often looking for this type of box, and you shouldn’t have trouble finding takers!
Best wishes for a great move, and happy packing!
Cheers!