If you pack smart, you can pack less. That can save you money — you can take a smaller bag and not have to check it — and give you more space for souvenirs and the free toiletries provided to you. Even Donald Trump steals the slippers from his hotels. Win, win, win.
Still, I am not one to condone wearing the same thing every day in the interest of saving space. On the other end of the spectrum, you don’t have to pack a totally different outfit for every day you’re going to be gone (or two, if you’re planning on dressing up for dinners). There is a happy medium. Here are Five tricks to get the most out of your travel wardrobe while still being impeccably well-dressed.
1. Pick a color scheme and stick with it.
If everything you pack matches, you can pack less. If you have two pairs of pants or pants and a skirt, two shirts and two jackets or sweaters that all go together reasonably well, that’s 2^3 outfits (eight). That’s right. Math.
2. Basic clothes, eye-catching accessories.
You can get away with wearing those basics twice if the eye-catching part of your ensemble is the tie or scarf (or statement jewelry). And you can fit a lot of ties and scarves in a suitcase.3. You only need three pairs of shoes. Seriously.
While having lots and lots of shoes to choose from is nice, when you’re traveling, you need to focus on smaller, lighter accessories or your bag is going to be overweight. You only need one pair of good dress shoes (bring the ones you like so much you don’t mind wearing them over and over), a pair of good walking shoes and, if there’s a beach involved, a pair of flip flops. That’s all. Don’t kid yourself.
4. Alternate wisely.
Part of the trick to not looking like you’re wearing the same thing every day is to not wear the same top or dress two days in a row (that’s the most noticeable part of the outfit). And, if you have a particularly fabulous dress or shirt or a crazy pair of jeans, you can only wear it once, so plan ahead. Also, don’t ever try to dress down a print the day after you wore it to dinner. Go back to a basic.
5. You have to unpack.
When you get to your destination, to get the most out of your travel wardrobe, you have to take all the stuff out of the suitcase. Hang it up, put it in drawers. If you don’t do this, not only will your clothes look like they just came out of a suitcase (seriously, you can’t hide it), but you’ll forget what’s in there. You need to unpack it to be able to see it all properly.
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