You might be thinking, "Why would I take this advice from a girl who just got back from a trip where she completely over-packed and then bought two Mexican blankets forcing her to wear 3 sweaters and a jacket on the plane ride home?".
To that I say, that girl, (me in case it wasn't obvious) is exactly who you should be taking this advice from. I know everything you should not do in this scenario, making me the perfect teacher. Do what I say, not what I do. Learn from my mistakes! Experience is the best teacher. Those who can't do, teach...or whatever cliche makes you feel good about continuing to read this blog post. In truth, I do believe I truly nailed some parts of this little experiment that I partially chose to do, partially was forced to do (Forced, because I literally don't have a large suitcase anymore). Other parts I bombed, obviously, but we already talked about why that's technically a good thing if you think really hard about it.
Let's start with what I did right shall we?Disclaimer: My title is s l i g h t l y exaggerated. Obviously there are going to be occasions where you have to check a bag. Sometimes it can't be avoided. But I really believe that there are many times that it can! It saves a lot of time and hassle in the airport that it's completely worth it to try. 1. Roll your clothing. It's such a huge space saved it's unreal. I do this with all my leggings at home too and it's so easy to get everything really small with this technique. 2. Downsize your liquids. You're only allowed so many liquids and gels on board an aeroplane even if they are under the max size. Just because an item is under 100ml doesn't mean you need to bring the whole thing. I put all my face wash, moisturiser, etc. into sample size containers with the amount I would need for the time I was gone. There's no reason to bring the entire thing for a week or two. Plus, you'll have less things to bring back as you can leave behind the smaller containers! 3. Bring items that can be used in more than one outfit. Self explanatory. 4. Take advantage of your personal item. Mine was a backpack and I fit a bunch more stuff in it, including my purse! Even better if you make it something you can use as a day-pack on the trip. Stuff I didn't do so well but you should... 1. Ditch all the "just in case" stuff. Every time I go somewhere, I bring a bunch of things where when I'm packing I go, "but what if...I might need this, maybe...". Want to know how many times I've used any of those things? Pretty much never. And it's usually always something that if the situation really demanded it, you could just buy it there. 2. Don't pack so much damn STUFF! Usually, I don't wear half the clothes I bring and end up shamefully returning those items back into my closet, unworn and wrinkly. Don't be like me. If you're planning on living in a bathing suit for a week, don't bring so many bras and underwear. If you're going on a ski trip, you're probably not going to wear a tank top. 3. You're going to buy something. Even if you don't plan on it. My parents recently went to Chicago and ended up having to buy unanticipated raincoats. I was personally victimised by a couple of Mexican blankets. Sh*t happens. Leave room. I swear I'll do better next time. T
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