Are visions of vacation travel dancing in your head? Here are a few of our favorite packing tips…
No need to dig: Pack your clothes in the order in which you will need them, with the pieces you will need first on top in your suitcase. Examples: If your first stop is bedtime, you may want your nightclothes handy. If your first stop is poolside, make sure your bathing suit is the first thing you grab. It’s nice not to have to search for those garments, messing up the other clothes you packed so neatly.
Create a system: Travel light! Give lots of thought to what you really need. If wrinkles are a concern, this packing order should keep the creasing down to a minimum—first, lay out jackets and dresses…then shirts/blouses and skirts/pants…followed by jeans—all folded in half across the length of the suitcase. Shoes and sandals go in the corners. Memorize this system and future packings will be a breeze. This is our favorite packing video.
T-shirts, shorts and spaghetti straps: For light summer wear, instead of folding clothes, roll them. You can make your clothes so small when you do this—you could easily fit a weekend of outfits in a casual handbag! (Sorry…no hair dryer.)
Easy trip home: Bring the clothes that you dislike the most on a long trip…wear them once or twice…and then leave them behind at the hotel when you check out. Your bags will get lighter as you travel.
Thanks to Stephanie Pierson, author of Males, Nails, Sample Sales: Everything a Woman Must Know to Be Smarter, Savvier, Saner Sooner, and PureWow.com for help with this tip.
