Monday, February 20, 2012

Pack like a pro

Lame, lame, lame. I was writing a witty post and was about a paragraph in describing what a lovely time waste Pintrest is when it all dissapeared! Damn you, Blogger and iPad! Anyway, if you haven't tried Pintrest, I suggest you do with the caveat that you will fritter away an hour or hours creating your boards of the stuff you like.

I think what I enjoy most about Pintrest is that it takes no creativity, but after you look at your boards, you feel like a wonderful person who is entertaining, funny and has quirky interests.

After my squandered hour of pluggin in NARS Orgasm blush and photos of T. Swift, I decided to finishing washing and folding clothes, so I could pack for a bachelorette party I am attending this weekend (Friday-Sunday).

My weeks are always quite busy, so I like to make sure that I pack ahead of time, if possible, to avoid annoying mishaps, like forgetting my bra or realizing that I used up my travel deoderant on the last trip and never replaced it.

In addition, I am a huge proponent of packing a carry-on for ALL trips. Whether it's next weekend's three-day bachelorette party to wine country or a two week trip to Europe, I never, ever pack more than a carry on.

Although I didn't come up with this lovely idea myself, I still receive a few surprised gasps or comments like "I don't know how you do it."

It's easy: I don't want to give the airline any more money than they are already getting from me to check a bunch of junk that I most likely won't need; luggage that has to be checked has the chance to get lost, damage or stolen; I am only 5'3 on a good day, and I need to be able to lift my luggage by myself, especially if I am traveling by myself; and I don't want to manage lots of "stuff" while I am on vacation.

One of the best tips that really brought traveling light home to me is a passage in Janet Luhrs's book "Simple Living" where she, too, had her days of bringing way too much on a trip. But then one day packing for a trip to China she asked herself what was more important: putting on an extravagant fashion show for the Chinese people or enjoying the trip without having to keep an eye on a bunch of stuff. The latter won out.

I know there are some people that pack nothing more than a mere sack to go on vacation. But that's not me. This blog post is not about wearing your underwear for three days in a row or only rotating between two shirts. Rather, it's a jumping off point for you to pack better and lighter--and, most importantly--only what you need.

When I used to go on trips, I would consider myself somewhat of a clothes horse and try to pack things I "might" need instead of the things I did need. A lot of "what ifs" crept in to my mind: What if there was a freak snow storm in the middle of summer in Arizona? I absolutely had to pack a large jacket and then what if I wanted to go in the pool every day? One bathing suit just would not suffice; I would need at least three or four.

I would really get anxious about packing and packing it ALL. You name it, I probably tried to pack it. And 95 percent of the stuff would just sit in my bag.

That was until another friend of mine introduced me to packing light, and I never went back. As mentioned, everyone has his or her own packing tips, but these work for me:

1. Make sure that you have a good-quality rolling luggage piece that is deemed "carry-on." Most luggage pieces now adays have a tag on them advertising that they are carry on. You can get a decent piece in almost any color of the rainbow for around $80-$120. I got mine at Kohl's a few years ago, and I went for a eggplant purple color. I always carry my little roller on the plane with me, but it's easy to spot in the overhead and in a crowded airport with a sea full of luggage.

I highly advise staying away from logo luggage, such as LV. It points out that you might have lots of money. Regardless of if you do, you don't want someone to think you must be loaded and take off with your bag before your trip eveng gets started.

Lastly, I always recommend checking your air carrier for any other stipulations they might have on carry-on items to make sure that you are taking the right things with you.

2. Invest in some packing cubes. They come in different sizes. I prefer the packing cubes from ebags, http://www.ebags.com/product/ebags/packing-cubes-3pc-set/13032

These cubes allow you to organize what you are bringing and you can easily take out the bags and know where your items are located.

3. Pre-packing: Make sure that you wash all your clothes before packing, so everything that you could possibly need is clean and ready to be packed. Most of my trips are casual, so the benefit to packing right after you wash is that some of the clothes may be going in the suitcase and don't have to go to the closet first (saving you a step).

4. List: Create a list of what you will need for every trip. You can find templates that you can make adjustments to online to fit it to your needs. This list will help you remember things that are easy to forget, like your meds or cell phone charger.

Check the weather prior to deciding what types of items you will need to bring. In doing a quick search, I found that in wine country it will be in the mid-60s with lows in the 60's, so I don't need to pack very warm items.

You will also want to sit down for a moment and write out what you are doing, so you know what to pack. Using the bachelorette party in wine country as an example, I knew that Friday would be a travel day with a nice dinner in the evening. Saturday would consist of wine tasting and a casual dinner and Sunday would strictly be traveling back home.

With that in mind, I jotted up a list day by day to see what I would need:

Friday travel (these items were not packed)
--Yellow striped shirt
--Scarf (in case it gets cold on the plane)
--Boot cut jeans
--grey sneakers (these are my heavier pair of shoes. I am only bringing these and some dressy flats, so I decided to wear them on)
--light grey button down jacket (This jacket is the heavier of the two jackets, so it is a wear on item)
--Purple bucket tote for me to store my Nook and other items I may need.

Friday evening at a nice restaurant
--Black lacey shirt
--Skinny jeans
--Black ballet flats with bows
--Patent leather red Coach purse (This purse is what I will use for the remainder of my trip. It is small enough and festive enough to take to dinner, but it also comes with a longer strap, so I can put it over like a cross body bag on Saturday when we are wine tasting)
--Black button down jacket, if needed

Saturday day wine tasting
--Taupe colored top (Stay away from whites if wine tasting)
-- Black jacket (repeat from Friday night), in case it gets cold, but I can also wear the taupe shirt alone as it has a bit of shine to it.
--Boot cut jeans (repeat from Friday's travel look)
--Pantent leather red Coach purse (repeat from last night)
--Grey sneakers (these are really cute slim Sketcher's sneakers. Not the bukly kind you would go jogging in).

Saturday evening
Note: I am not sure what we are doing yet, but the taupe colored top can be dressed up or down with the jacket.
--Taupe top (repeat from wine tasting)
--Black jacket (repeat from dinner the night before and wine tasting earlier in the day)
--Dark wash skinny jeans (repeat from last night)
--Patent leather red Coach purse (repeat from earlier today and last night)

Sunday travel
--Jason Wu for Target Milu shirt
--Black jacket (repeat from the last two days)
--Boot cut jeans
--Grey sneakers
--Purple bucket tote that can be stored under the seat as my personal item

Of course, I also bring my undies, socks and bras. For this trip, I am only bringing one extra bra and about two pairs of socks and four pair of underwear. Black sweats and a tank top were also packed for sleeping purposes. I also packed a dark grey shorter sleeve sweater, in case I have spill or need to change.

5. Invest in minis
Most beauty and toiletries that you use are available in minis or you can make them mini by placing them in small (less than the maximum 3 oz TSA requirement containers).

You may only bring a one quart sized clear plastic ziploc-like container of liquid, gel type items if you are carrying on, so choose wisely. Check the TSA website for all the details. I purchased a sturdier plastic bag from Wal-Mart a couple of years ago. It is TSA ok, and it holds up better than the normal plastic ziploc bags. I also make sure to place this smaller bag in a larger clear bag to reduce the chance of any kind of spills while I am in transit.

I always bring even less than the 3 oz containers. I can store more and have never finished a 3 oz. container on vacation. If you are interested in getting smaller containers, I would highly recommend the Nalgene set, http://www.rei.com/product/402139/nalgene-travel-bottle-kit-medium. I am not sure if these lovely little bottles are air tight, but I've never had a problem with them leaking or items like lotions drying out while using them. They also have the benefit of being dishwasher safe.

Think about items that you could substitute to reduce the number of liquid items. For instance, I generally use a liquid face wash, but when I am traveling, I bring face wipes, so I have more room in my bag. And, if you are going to a destination for two weeks or more, you may even think about buying a lot of your toiletries there. I did this in Europe a couple of years ago, and since I was staying at the same location for 80 percent of the time, I just went to the local pharmacy and stocked up on some shampoo and conditioner as well as toothpaste.

Unless you are going out to the middle of nowhere, most places are so close to a pharmacy or other place you can pick up these items, and it might be worth it. You will reduce the risk of products spilling or exploding in your luggage, too.

You might also want to consider getting by with what you are provided with at hotels. They might not be your go-to soap or hair products, but they get the job done, and you don't have to worry about packing additional items.

For makeup. I try to go for travel palettes that have several pretty colors for eyeshadows and blushes all in one small pallette. That way, I have all the colors I need and don't need to bring an arsenal of products.

For makeup brushes, try MAC. They have a lot of cute travel brushes that come out during the year as limited-edition. I was lucky enough to purchase the Hello Kitty set a couple of years ago. Although travel sized, these brushes don't dissapoint and pack the same punch as their full size counterparts while at the same time fitting neatly in to your carry on.

6. Where to put it all
Save hassels when you get to the airport by making sure you know where everything is. Nothing is more frusterating or annoying than being behind a person that is digging for their ID or plane ticket.

Have your items in an easy to get to place. I like having my ID in a secure pocket outside of my wallet, so I can get to it easily without fumbling around.

Make sure that your TSA liquid items are easy to get to as well. I will probably carry these items in my tote until AFTER I go through security, so I don't have to waste time digging around my bag. Second best, is having these items easily accessible in the front compartment of my luggage.

From traveling to wine country for the weekend or traveling to Europe for three weeks, you can always take a carry on. It makes everything more memorable. Next time, I will show you how everything fits neatly in my luggage.