Happy Monday ladies! I’m super excited to share this post with you today because I am a notorious overpacker, and I managed to fit everything I needed for this trip into an carry on! I actually still feel a little like I overpacked because I laid out the clothing I had picked and realized I could make over 40 (yes, 40!) outfits with just the clothes I brought. So today I’m sharing my list of what I packed, and some tips for how to keep your luggage light and pack organized, too!

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After we shot these photos, I ended up switching my Longchamp for my North Face backpack. As we started talking more about all the things we were looking forward to doing, I decided a backpack would be much more useful and my North Face can fit a ton of stuff, too. Longchamp Le Pliage bags are wonderful though, because they fold up so small so I was still able to bring a tote sized bag along in the bottom of my backpack.

TIPS FOR THE OVER-PACKER

ONE. MAKE A LIST.

Make a list for every kind trip on your phone or iPad before. Something you can check off and then back on so you’re not remaking your list. Take a few days to build it. Then before your next trip, think about what you’re going to do and check off everything on that list you don’t need. Then continue checking things off as you add them to your luggage, making sure to pick the smallest version possible of anything you need. For example, when you check off deodorant, make sure you packed in a travel sized version.

TWO. SAMPLE SIZES.

One hinted at this one, but bring small versions of things. I travel a lot with sample sized perfume and make up. On this trip, I wanted to bring my favorites, but in my go-bag (which will be a post coming soon!), I only have small full-sized or travel sized products that I get in subscription boxes or with orders.

THREE. MULTIPURPOSE.

Use a neoprene laptop case to keep all your papers and magazines flat and smooth in your bag. It’s super easy to pull out and grab the things you need, and you won’t end up with a crinkled mess of papers, which makes you mess everything up, and then all of a sudden your bag won’t close and it’s time to board!

FOUR. COLOR CO-ORDINATE.

Pick black and white, and a pop of color. This is the rule I always break, and this trip was no exception. However, you can break it strategically. For me, I picked one bold color, and two soft neutrals, and split the amount I let my self bring following a 50/25/25 rule. In the end, I had about half of my pieces in black and white and half in one of my colors. To show you how this breaks down, check out this list:

(4 Bold Color + 2 Neutral Color + 2 Neutral Color) + 8 Black & White = 16 Pieces

When you edit your list, you may find that there’s something you really want to bring that fits in with one of the colors. To add it, just take away one of your black and white pieces, and “borrow” that space for a color. I always like to do a run through and see how many outfits I can make, too.

FIVE. LAYER.

Bring pieces you can layer. I brought tops of different thicknesses and sleeve lengths with the express purpose of layering them to make them warmer or create a different look for an outfit. Don’t forget, you can add a skirt over your dress or a sweater over a dress to totally change the look! Don’t pack anything you don’t think you can incorporate into some kind of layering strategy. When you edit, ask yourself “Can I layer this with more than one thing in this pile?,” if the answer is no, don’t bring it.

SIX. WEAR THE TOUGH PIECES.

Wear your thickest clothes (if possible) on the plane. I chose my olive jeggings because they look super cute, but are also crazy comfortable. I knew I’d be comfortable doing all of our activities in them, they would keep me warm, and I could wear them on the plane. By wearing a tank top and a button up for the flight I could adjust my layers to fit the temperature the room. I packed my jacket in my personal bag in case I needed another layer. I also put my thickest sweater at the top of my carryon so I could grab it if for some reason it seemed like it was going to be colder than I expected. (You can usually tell by watching people walk off the plane!)

SEVEN. WRINKLE-FREE.

Don’t bring anything you can’t smash or roll up. If you have to iron it out, don’t bring it. You can hang most pieces in the bathroom while you shower and the steam will release most of the wrinkles. But when you pack, you want to make sure you maximize space by rolling your clothes and tucking as much as possible into any nooks and crannies in your shoes, the corner of your bag, even your pressed makeup bag! Obviously, only use the quart sized bag for the liquids!

EIGHT. PACK FROM BIG TO SMALL.

Once you know exactly what your bringing, and maybe you put some things in your bag already to get a sense for how it will fit, take everything out in a clean open area on the floor or your bed. Then start with the pebbles, and then add the sand: pack the biggest things like shoes or pouches, and fill corners or crannies within those shoes or pouches as you pack. Imagine you’re playing a game of real life Tetris, pack your suitcase up in layers and try to complete a layer entirely before you move on. For example, my pouch full of pressed makeup, brushes, and toothbrush had enough room for me to put a dress and a top rolled up inside of it, then it laid perfectly flat in my bag. Then I was able to roll up some pieces of clothing and tuck those around it to perfectly fill the bottom layer of my bag.