Newish house - much smaller

We moved from a 4 bedroom family house with big garden, double garage and outhouses to a 2 bedroom house with no garage and a tiny garden.
We really had to be ruthless. A skip , car boot sales, many trips to the tip and charity shops. We asked the AC to take what they wanted from their childhood.
You just have to bite the bullet and get rid.
Regarding new furniture, wait until you’re in the new place as you don’t really know what will go where and what sizes to get.

Manufacturers are now creating smaller scale furniture to fit into more modern houses without overwhelming the room. Even so, make sure your new sofa can get through the doorway from the hall, the space to turn is important.
When we moved into our old cottage the sofa we bought couldn’t turn from the hall to get into the sitting room.
We had to send it back and get one where the legs and arms were removable.

How exciting!

I’ve moved 11 times and buy and sell property for investment.
You are doing exact.y the right thing by getting rid of stuff, don’t take any excess with you.

For the new furniture, obviously you need to order this in advance, it’s best to go for classic design and upholstery and accessorise with cushions lamps and throws.
Homesense, Next and Oka are great for the finishing touches.

Regarding the decor, wait until you have been in a while before changing things.
Wallpapering a feature wall, mirrors, paintings and different curtains can make a world of difference.

If you choose a plain sofa and chairs you will not be too tied when it comes to curtains and wallpaper.

Good luck ?

How lovely Flaxseed. I want to move but cannot find anything suitable. Have you stayed in your area?You can make this home just as you want it, it must be so exciting. I would have a sofa with feet next time.

I have seen smaller furniture in Marks. I don’t know if they still do it but it was called the Loft range. Shop near me sells the seconds etc?!

sparkling I was really lucky to find this as there’s just nothing on the market in my price range, houses are selling as soon as they appear on Right Move!
It’s 8.5 miles from my current house. I know the area and it’s nearer to DP although further away from work

I thought I had been ruthless when I started getting rid of stuff a few months ago when the plan was to buy a bigger place with DP (see previous threads ) but looks like I need to go through it all again and get even more ruthless!

Good point re new furniture and room to manoeuvre! Thanks!

Thanks for the recommendations folks. Keep them coming please!

We have recently downsized and have cheered up the place with brightly coloured accessories.

I'd recommend living in the place with old furniture for a while before making any decisions.

We swapped our big dining table with DD1's small round one. Maybe you can try to see if anyone on Facebook would like to swap items with you?

Flaxseed
Have a look on your local eBay loads of really good bargains.
Everyone seems to be having a clear out at the moment ?

Actually I had a lot of fun with storage solutions for a smaller house. You can’t beat IKEA for ideas.

Their cd racks went in the bathroom as shelves, in the kitchen as mug racks, in the living room as paperback book cases, in the bedroom for jewellery and bits and in the hall for shoe racks. All you need in a 6 inch space?

We have a small house now after downsizing. We waited until we moved in before buying the sofas as we were afraid we wouldn’t be able to manoeuvre them through the doorways or get them down the side of the house through the patio doors. It all worked out okay in the end . Good luck in your new home.

I've just rehomed my large leather sofa and chair, and was embarrassed the young men had to lift it above their heads to get it through the side gate. My new one will be a lot smaller!

I need to buy everything, I'm a bit overwhelmed at the moment.

I'm with PB on Ikea. You don't have to buy there (I do) but their simplicity and storage ideas are stupendous and thought stimulating.

I downsized 2 years ago. In the new house I had shelving installed wherever possible e.g. above the hand basin in the downstairs toilet and in the under stair cupboard.
I also had part of the attic boarded and a fold up ladder installed so that I could keep the Xmas decorations etc. there.
I also bought a cheap wooden shoe holder from B & M which is used as stand alone extra shelving, I pinched that idea from my daughter.

My daughter has been trying to buy a sofa, with so many shops selling on line now and not on show it is very difficult. One she thought would be fine when she found it in a shop proved very uncomfortable.

Be ruthless with your clearance, follow William Morris who said “have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful”
Plus a few sentimental bits of course .

Another recommendation for a wander around IKEA for great storage ideas .
Try under bed storage, baskets and boxes which are decorative and practical .
Vacuum bags to store bedding, clothing etc for a different season save a lot of space .

A large branch of NEXT will have a lot of furniture on display to try out and get ideas.

Many years ago I moved into a flat and I wasn’t sure about the size and placement of furniture that I had my eye on in Habitat .
I made templates from newspapers to the size of the furniture and placed it into various positions in the room to check before buying. I moved in with just a bed , a beanbag and my music system to start with whilst I decorated and decided on the furniture.

Good luck with your move .

I bought my new sofa from a firm in Crumlin near Newport. The furniture is hand-made on site, and when I bought 2 years there was a 4 week waiting period.
I'm so glad that I viewed and sat in the furniture before I bought. I'm only 5ft.3" and sitting in some of the seats meant that my feet did not reach the floor. Also I suffer with a bad back and some sofas were more comfortable than others.

I’m with William Morris ?
I would suggest that before you rush off to buy all these storage units it might be an idea to look and see what your storing.
When I read that people have ( I don’t know how many) bedding sets, towels, table cloths, plates, glasses etc etc etc.
I just ask myself why!
As you can tell, I’m not a hoarder ?

I moved to my 2 bedroom bungalow nearly 2 years ago from a large 3 bed house. Had to get rid of a lot of things. Beds,wardrobes,chest of drawers, desks, chairs, bookcases,wall units ,books , ornaments plus gardening stuff etc.

But my living room is 19' 8" x 11'4" so my suite, table and chairs and wall units fit perfectly. I brought a large footstool from I kea that has storage. My king size bed fits into my bedroom with the triple wardrobe and chest of drawers and 2 bedside cupboards with lots of room to spare. I brought a double bed from Wayfair for second room that has one bedside cupboard, double wardrobe and large bookcase also plenty of room. Both beds are wooden frames on legs so have got 10 large plastic boxes with lids under each one for storage.

Had to get rid of lot of kitchen stuff that was to big , heavy or not good enough to keep. Had a brand new kitchen fitted and all new appliances so had to get rid of my old ones that I brought with me.

I love my now pared down living. Not as much to clean. Have brought new things for the garden . A bench and greenhouse. My tumble dryer is in the garage as I wanted a dishwasher there wasn't room for both in my new kitchen. But that's something I don't use often. So it's fine there .

My friend ordered a new sofa from Next in September she never got it so had her money back 2 weeks ago after waiting all that time for it. There was an independent furniture store that made its own sofas armchairs and beds and got one from there . Better quality for a fraction of the cost plus cheaper delivery.

So might be worth you looking and seeing what shops there are locally. Had my carpets from a local independent flooring shop. Excellent quality and service very happy with the price.

Thanks everyone.
I do love IKEA, so will have a trip there to get some ideas.
I have asked the estate agent to get some measurements from the vendor so that I can do some planning. I know I’ll panic if I don’t have a plan!
Thanks for the advice re M&S Loft range midgey, they have some lovely pieces.

I recently culled my wardrobe by getting rid of stuff that I don’t absolutely love, so I’m sure I can do the same with my numerous belongings