If you’re anything like me (with a bulging wardrobe and a serious shoe addiction) you’ll probably find the act of packing a bit of a tricky one. And packing for short weekend breaks, where the size of your suitcase is under scrutinisation, the trickiest of all.
I feel your pain, really I do. For years, packing for holidays would send me doolally and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to pile on clothes in airport security just to be allowed through on weight/hand luggage allowance. Why is it so hard? Well the simple fact is, I own too many clothes (and shoes, and bags, and jewellery) and transporting your entire wardrobe across the country/world isn’t exactly the done thing now is it? (even if that would be my ideal situation) I’m also one of those ‘dress for my mood’ type of gals which means some days I wake up feeling like I need to be hugged from within all day in a comfy sweater and slouchy jeans, while other days anything other than a giant tulle skirt seems totally inappropriate.
The problem with this is that you kind of need to know what kind of mood/vibe/ look you’re going to be in/want to channel on any given day of your trip before you can start packing, and seeing as that was never possible I’d usually end up trying to pack all the clothes and all the shoes to form enough outfits for every eventuality, which only led to disaster and despair, both in the packing process and the travelling process.
Weekend breaks are of course the worst as at least with a longer holiday you’ve got the advantage of a bigger case and can afford to bring multiple options, but when you have the dimensions of a Ryanair/Easyjet hand luggage allowance getting in the way of outfit indecision, things get stressful (and messy – my bedroom would be turned upside down and inside out before one single item would make it’s way into that small suitcase – tell me I’m not the only one?).
However over time, (and due to way too many last minute squishing and binning and stressing moments in airports) I’ve forced myself into packing appropriately (i.e. not attempting to bring my entire wardrobe and being ok with that) and taught myself a few key tricks that keep me sane during the packing process (allowing me to actually enjoy it!), and result in happier travelling, even if I don’t have the option to wake up and throw something together based on my mood that day.
Such a weekend trip is imminent, as this Friday we’re off to the beautiful Venice for that birthday surprise GB treated me to, and in a bid to finally pack just the right amount (does/can that ever happen?) I thought I’d share my ‘packing rules’ with you, so that any fellow shoe-aholics and packing disasters can perhaps find the ordeal easier too.
So here is a lazy girls guide to packing… when you own too many clothes.
Plan your outfits before you begin
If you’re a packing phobe, this will be the hardest step. ‘Can’t I just leave it all until the last minute and wear whatever I happened to throw in when I get there?’. Well you can, but chances are you’ll get to your destination and realise you haven’t packed enough pants or have about three pairs of heels but no dresses to wear with them. It took me a while to get my head around it too; ‘But how will I know what I feel like wearing that day?’ and ‘What if I wake up one morning and really really want to wear that cute skirt, isn’t it better to pack it just in case?’. When I finally accepted that the answers were ‘you can’t’ and ‘no!’ planning ahead became somewhat of a necessity, and actually rather fun. It’s enjoyable to start getting excited about the trip, thinking about where you might go and what you might do, researching activities and putting together outfits based on what you’re planning. Now I usually spend an evening in the week before I leave trying on different outfits or pairing pieces together on the floor/bed until I have a full outfit (right down to jewellery and accessories) for each day of the trip. So if you’re heading off for four days, plan four complete outfits, plus perhaps one or two evening alternatives should something fabulous come your way, and maybe one extra change just in case something terrible happens like you fall in a river or get mugged for your Manolos (both happened to Carrie Bradshaw and she is everyone’s packing inspo right?).
Major brownie points if you can make as many of your planned outfits as possible mix and match using interchangeable separates (i.e. the same jeans work with all tops, or one pair of sandals fits with every dress) as this will create even more room in the case, and brings me nicely onto my next self initiated rule…
Resist the urge to take ‘just in case’ duplicates
I know, I know, how can you possibly choose between this breton top and that breton top? How will you know whether you’ll feel more comfortable wearing those jeans or these jeans? But I swear this was where every -heavy, bulging, zip about to burst – suitcase that I ever carted off and on tubes, trains and planes originated. Whenever I couldn’t decide between two near identical items, I’d just pack both ‘just in case’. But before you know it you end up with a suitcase full of identical ‘just in case’ white tees or skinny jeans and not enough room for vital items such as straighteners and make up. Now I try really hard not to double up on items such as basic tees, jeans or jumpers and instead just choose the one that goes with the most of my other items. Unless you’re planning on wearing jeans every day of your four day trip (and getting them really dirty each day) then one pair, two at most, will do. In the scenario of the picture above, I’d probably pick one black and one blue pair, and two different shapes (i.e. skinny and mom) because if I felt like wearing a skinny jean one day, whether they were blue or black hopefully wouldn’t make too much difference to the overall outfit.
And when it comes to breton tees, as hard as it may be, accept that one set of stripes will probably see you through.
Check the weather forecast
I realise you can never predict the weather entirely, but on the whole those weather scientists ability to predict what nature has in store for us, is usually somewhere in the right region these days, so do yourself a favour and check out what’s ahead before you start stressing over how many different coats you need to bring. I’ve been notorious for packing completely inappropriately for the weather in the past (why it never dawned on me to check BBC weather beforehand I do not know!) and have found myself in freezing cold New York without anything near to warm enough outerwear, and in sweltering Devon with tights and boots. Weather know how will make that planning of outfits significantly easier – the choice between flower crown and wool fedora hopefully becoming obvious – and aid dramatically in reducing unnecessary coat packing.
Only take accessories that work with more than one outfit
Ah the accessories – every fashion girl’s downfall. Too many shoes, too many bags, a mountain of jewellery, all of which you’d easily find a place for if you could. As I always say, accessories are key and I hate to leave them out as they can make or break an outfit. Usually I get to the point of having packed all my clothes and shoes, feeling pretty chuffed with myself that the suitcase can still zip close, only to remember the large pile of bags, scarves, hats and sunglasses that I’d thought would be excellent with that dress. My trick here is to only allow myself to pack an accessory if I know I can make it work with at least two of my outfits, if it works with all of them even better. That way I’m not bringing any stray items that will be unneccessary should I change my mind about what I wear. Ideally I’ll choose jewellery that can be worn with any or all of my chosen outfits, and pick shoes and bags that can double up for day and evening. For a weekend trip I try and limit myself to one pair of heels that will go with any dress, one pair of trainers and one other boot/sandal depending on where I’m going/what time of year it is. One pair of sunglasses is usually enough and one day bag, one evening bag should suffice.
Keep heavy items out
As well as making carrying your case much more manageable, avoiding overly heavy items will eliminate the risk of airport security getting all ‘if it doesn’t fit in the compartment I can’t let you on’ on your ass. I always leave the packing of heavy items such as hairdryers, make up, toiletries, books etc until last so that if space is tight I can give myself a good talking to and ask ‘do I really need to bring that?’. Luckily some airlines now allow a seperate hand bag as well as your hand luggage which is a godsend and means you can throw all the heavy, and valuable, items in that bag without adding to your hand luggage weight. Camera’s, iPad’s, make up and toiletries all need to be easily accessible at security anyway so it makes sense to keep them separate, and try to leave things you won’t use at home (going to a hot country – you don’t need a hairdryer).
Five simple tricks that have helped me, at the age of thirty, finally learn the art of packing light.
Do you find packing difficult? What are your tricks for packing light?
The post A Lazy Girls Guide | How to Pack (when you own too many clothes) appeared first on Bumpkin Betty.