I'm a chronic overpacker. At least I was, until I moved a plane ride away from home and realized I can't be checking my bag every time I go somewhere! Thankfully, I've streamlined the process quite a bit, though I'm always looking for tips and tricks to pack even less. You have to be able to get your rollerbag into the overhead bin, after all! Thankfully, Refinery29 wrote a post just as I was leaving with some really excellent tips that I was able to put into practice for this trip.
First, you should be thinking of your trip wardrobe in terms of items, not outfits. This goes against how I had been packing in the past. Oops. But, it was actually kind of helpful. Second, count the number of days you're traveling. For this trip, I was going to be in California for 9 days, not counting my 2 travel days. I divided that number by 5, rounded to the nearest whole number (2) which gave me the number of dresses I would pack. Then multiply that number by 3 to get the number of tops and bottoms you should bring (6).
I opted to pack only 1 dress and an additional skirt (more options!), so I brought with me one dress, two skirts, a pair of shorts, and four shirts (two tank tops and two t-shirts). I tried to stick with neutral shirts so that they would go with my bottoms.
Then came the necessities. I knew we were going camping on Lake Tahoe, where it would get cold during the night. Therefore, I needed to bring appropriate clothes along, even though they took up more room. We also planned to spend some time on the beach, so a bathing suit (I brought 2 just in case), cover up, and hat were necessary.
I packed lightly in terms of shoes. Thankfully, the summer means sandals are always appropriate, so flip flops and a pair of dressier sandals did the trick. I also had to lug my hiking shoes along because of the camping trip.
Last were accessories. I tried to keep these to a minimum, but I still over packed. At least they're small!
In order to fit everything in my suitcase, I used the tried-and-true, Girl Scout-approved method of rolling my clothes. Small things (underwear, socks, etc) went inside my hat, which was on the bottom. I then packed my boots around it and evened out the surface with a layer of clothes.
I packed the rest of my clothes on top and was set to go! There was plenty of space for my purse in the lid of my suitcase, and my accessories and makeup bag fit right on top. I wore one pair of shoes and packed other in my carry-on. I wore pants, a t-shirt, and my third pair of shoes to travel in and carried a scarf and jacket in case it got cold on the plane.
There you have it! An easy, fool-proof method of packing. This was seriously so simple, I can't believe it took me that long to actually pack this way. Refinery29, you're geniuses.
