Dual-Purpose Packing

I've been helping my grandparents move to a new house. This process has involved a whole lot of packing that is almost immediately followed by unpacking...knick-knacks, plates, glasses, etc. Now, some packing material is, well, less-than-clean and some of it can be downright dirty. The thought of eating from a dish or drinking from a glass that's been surrounded by grubby paper kind of makes me cringe. Of course, we certainly don't want to add washing dishes to our already long moving to-do list.
Our solution? Pack in towels. You've got to move the towels anyway; why not use their cushiony softness to cleanly protect your breakables?