There are few things in the world that can cause as much stress as packing the perfect suitcase. Do I need this? What if it's cold? Do I check or carry-on? What did I forget?
First, know your packing and travel style. Are you a "accessories change the look and I can wear this 3 times!" or are you a "I need to pack my entire wardrobe because I have NO idea what I want to wear everyday!" I am a notorious over-packer. And I am Ok with that!! I do try to follow some of my own advice and whittle down my luggage from 3 checked bags to maybe just 1 and a carryon (or 2!) Stop judging me.
Next, make a list. Seriously I cannot tell you how much this one little tip has changed my packing life. I travel all.the.time. I try to take at least 4 leisure vacations a year, and I have at least 4 or 5 work trips a year, so learning how to pack more efficiently was key for me.
Where do I begin? Great question, I start with the type of trip and the climate. Obviously my packing list for a week in Hawaii looks very different than my list for a week in Paris in the Fall. For my next trip, I'm headed to Hawaii, so that's where I will start this list. I know that in Hawaii I will be beach or pool side for the majority of my days, with a golf lesson, hike, and a trip into town for the day likely thrown in so I need more swim than usual, and a few day-time outfits that will stand up to some activity. Then dinners I will change into something else - and I'm always cold ALWAYS - so I need layers I picked up an amazing wrap top in 2 colors available here and I am SO happy with it, soft, comfy, perfect fit, both casual and workout wear - Done!
Knowing those things, I start with my dinner outfits. This may seem like a strange place to start but it works for me, as you experiment with your list you may start somewhere else and thats good too. I have 8 nights of dinners, I'm guessing I will dress up for at least 3 of them and the rest can be casual. With that in mind I select some of my favorite go-to's: A DVF printed silk shirtdress, (I found a similar on sale here!) a cotton striped Ralph Lauren 3/4 sleeve dress, and a gorgeous floral haute hippie midi dress. Knowing me, I will want jeans on some nights, so I plan on 1 pair of jeans and 2 tops. While I am not a huge fan of wearing the same things multiple times, I will wear my dinner wear a couple times each as I will be in those outfits for about 3 hours at nighttime.
Next, daytime stuff. I am a fan of dresses so I've got a linen sleeveless number and a striped cotton swing dress on the list, as well as a maxi dress because it's the perfect throw on and go dress (This one is absolutely perfect!) I know I'll need shorts for the golf lesson, and maybe a few other days for flights between islands and days in town, I have a few cute shorts (sailor shorts seriously adorable), and a bunch of t-shirts and tanks to interchange. I try really hard here to make sure that each pair of shorts and shirt can be worn with multiple colors - if I find I've packed shorts that only go with 1 top, I take them right out of the suitcase, this is wear I generally pick up the most discarded items. Be ruthless here, if it doesn't go with at least 2 things, take it out.
Shoes, ah my god shoes. I used to pack about 7 pairs of shoes not counting flip flops and flat sandals. That's crazy. Thankfully, I've realized I really don't need all those shoes on a tropical vacation. Now, I try to pick one pair of dressy sandals (these are my go-to) that will go with literally everything, a couple pairs of flat dressier sandals, and then a pair of basic flip flops for the beach or pool. And I'm pretty proud of that!!
Shop my packing list:
