Hurrah! It is August and it is summer holiday time. And although you are looking forward to your well-earned break, you may also be dreading packing your suitcase!!
Some people tackle this chore with military precision – with Excel spreadsheets containing packing lists from previous holidays. Others however, may have the contents of their whole wardrobe on the bed with no idea about where to start!
I am all about making this task simple whilst giving you a number of clothing options.
With the increased use of hand luggage only flights, keeping your holiday wardrobe to a minimum is becoming more and more important.
Here are my top tips to help you pack a suitcase for your holidays
I’m afraid that there does need to be an element of planning to make this successful……you need to answer the following questions to ensure that you take the right clothes with you.
- Where are you going?
- Where are you staying?
- When are you going?
- What you doing?
- Who are you going with?
- How long for?
- What luggage are you taking?
Think through your options as there is a difference between what you would take away for a weekend in a boutique hotel with your girlfriends and a fortnight camping in Cornwall with the family!
Your suitcase is the ultimate capsule wardrobe and therefore your simple holiday wardrobe needs to be…
Versatile and Practical (as well as gorgeous and flattering) – any clothes that make it into your suitcase need to work hard for their place. The easiest way to achieve this is to limit the number of colours that you take with you.
You will need a couple of neutral colours eg black, navy, white, beige, grey, brown, cream, as these will act as a base for any other colour you add. (Read this blog for more details)
Then choose (a maximum of) 1 – 3 other colours to add into the mix – if you have had a colour analysis session this will be easy to do. If you limit your colours this will stop you taking that extra outfit or pair of shoes that don’t go with anything else and you probably won’t ever wear!
Limit your shoes, if you can! Look for metallics and stick to the same colours as the rest of your suitcase. Add interest to your outfits with jewellery.
You generally will need fewer bottoms than tops and add in a couple of dresses that could be worn out to dinner and then during the day for sightseeing &/or as a beach cover up.
Ninja Packing Strategies
- If you are checking a suitcase into the hold, use your beach bag as hand luggage and keep essentials with you – money, change of clothes & basic (small size) toiletries
- Use small items to stuff into the corners of your suitcase or into shoes/sun hat
- Try rolling rather than folding – this is life changing – you can fit sooo much more into your suitcase, especially if you place the rolled garments into the “grooves” of a wheeled suitcase.
- Put shoes in plastic bags
- Take bin liners for dirty clothes and wet towels
- Make your suitcase identifiable – especially if it is plain black
- Use packing cubes – fabulous if you are travelling to different locations during your holiday
- Cling film & tape to stop liquid spills
- Cotton pad to stop powder explosions
If you need any help or guidance to create your capsule holiday wardrobe please contact me as I would love to help.
Wishing you a happy holiday with no packing stress!
