Let the second installment of "Packing with a purpose" commence! When it comes to travel, not having to check a bag is the way to go in my opinion. When I can, I never check luggage. I never have to wait in line for my bags and I never have to worry my baggage will be lost or not make it to my destination. For fourteen days in Italy and beyond, I will bring only a carry on and my backpack with personal items and some makeup and toiletries. I have a few tips to make sure that you can pack a carry on as effectively as possible.
1. Bring outfits you can wear more than once.
Dresses are great for this because they are no-thought outfits than can be worn more than once. To Italy, I am bringing two dresses that can be worn day or night.
2. All of your clothes should match.
When I pack for a trip, I make a list of all the clothes I would ideally like to bring if space was not an option. Once I have this list, I narrow it down based on clothing that goes together. I only brings tops that can go with all of the bottoms I bring and vice versa. That way, if something happens to one of my tops or bottoms, I can still wear the all of the pieces together.
3. Think about where you are going (activities, cultural differences, weather, etc.)
In Italy, I will visit many churches which means covered shoulders and knees.With that in min, it helped to narrow down my clothes immensely. I packed outfits I could mostly wear in a church or somewhere I need to be more conservative that could also be worn other places. Be sure to acquaint yourself with the activities you will be doing and where you will be going to ensure that all of the clothes are appropriate. This will also help to narrow down the clothes you will bring.
4. Bring one pair of pajamas.
Pajamas don;t get very dirty so you can wear the same ones multiple nights. Don't waste precious space on clothes no one will see. If you must, wear the same pair of bottoms and two pajama tops.
5. Wear one pair of shoes and pack another.
This means, bring as few shoes as possible. be realistic and try to make sure all of your shoes go with all of you outfits. (This goes along with #2 and all your clothes matching-shoes should too!)
6. To save space, roll your clothes.
To maximize space, roll your clothes instead of leaving them merely folded. No only does this prevent the clothing from wrinkling, they also take up so much less space. If you follow any of these tips, please follow this one. It will change your packing life, I promise.
To put this into perspective, I packed all of this in a standard carry on with room to spare:
2 dresses
1 cardigan
9 tops (one is a dressier, going out top, 2 button downs, 6 t-shirts/tunics)
2 bottoms (1 black knee-length skirt and one blue skater skirt and I will wear the jeans on the plane)
1 set of pajamas (top and t-shirt)
Underwear, socks, and bras
1 pair of shoes (I will wear my other pair on the plane)
Even with all of these clothes, using the rolling technique I even have room to spare and I have tons of outfit possibilities since all of my pieces go together! I hope that this helps you, my fellow travelers, pack the perfect carry on and lose the hassle of checking luggage!--C
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