Little Black Guidebook

The 6 item challenge is all about living in only 6 items of clothing for a month to get a better feel for what you really need and detach from your clothing possessions. I think its a cool project, but I don’t know if I could travel on only 6 items like this lady: My month of madness, or how I traveled in 6 items

BTW, the challenge doesn’t include accessories or underthings. Still, I wonder what the guys on the OBOW would think of this as a packing technique! Although, they’ve been hung up on men’s trench coats as a packing technique lately, I think they would still be impressed.

Update: As a personal test I tried to do a 6 day challenge for my 3 week trip. I’ll be leaving tonight with 10 items instead. Personal best, but still far from minimalist.

Spring Europe Trip: Packing List

I’m not going anywhere this spring (sob), but if I were I could totally go two weeks with just these items: Dress, skirt, dress shirt, long sleeve shirt, short sleeve shirt, cardigan, trench coat, guidebook size purse (with all important cross-body strap and closed top), pants (that go with both button down shirt and more casual shirts and is sink washable), and two pairs of shoes (both flat, comfy for walking and which can dress up skirts and pants). It all sort of goes together and can be mixed and matched (long sleeve t-shirt under dress, button down with pants or skirt, t-shirts with skirt or pants, etc.) for a wide variety of occasions and most of it is sink friendly.

Contrast this with: Confessions of an Overpacker

“I realized why I overdo it. I stared at my closet, overflowing with jeans and cardigans. That’s what I miss when I’m away: choice. Call it superficial, but having more than one or two t-shirts reminds me of home. I make a lot of sacrifices to live abroad. When the homesickness sets in, I can find some solace in my suitcase.”

“When your baggage is your home, sometimes it’s nice to have a two-story suitcase.”

I relate, but I can’t do that. It stresses me out lugging so much around. I would rather give myself a budget to buy it there if I need it than to lug it around for sure, but we’re all different.

Hawaii Packing List by lisetiffner

I can’t post our itinerary here ahead of the trip because hubby reads the blog. The first three days will be just us, then we have an Army Family Programs event and then he has his Army commander’s conference. He’s so stressed about the Army part that he doesn’t have time to think about the vacation part so I am surprising him and planning everything. We leave tomorrow night and I am super excited. Right now in Alaska the leaves are yellow and the temp is in the 60s so it will be nice to warm up.

This packing list from the One Bag One World forums has me wondering if this woman is packing for Sudan or Europe and 6 months or 18 days. Really, does she think you can’t buy feminine hygiene products there if she needs them? Very survivalist in my opinion. I’m more of the type where I say: “Pack it if you absolutely know you’ll need it, otherwise buy it there.” Unless she’s hiking in Europe and not going to any cities she is going to stick out so much its not funny. Oh well, to each their own. 18 days in Europe will be wonderful no matter what you bring or look like, I’m jealous.

Mexico/San Diego Wedding+Army

Hubby will also be taking three pairs of shoes, but that’s because he flies out directly from San Diego only a few hours after the wedding for a week of Army duty. All of his clothes have to be washable and reusable because he can’t check a big bag, schlep it to Mexico and back and then jet off for training easily. He’s trying to go carry-on only with wedding clothes, a week of Army clothes and a laptop, which is quite difficult with how bulky those uniforms and boots are.

He packed his REI Adventure pants, which as he said “If I made it through Italy in August, I can handle Mexico.” He’s also bringing a Horny Toad button down shirt which he can sink wash and wear over again if necessary if he has any free time in the evenings after duty. I’ll probably be bringing his one wear only pretty wedding clothes back with me. His other lightweight favorite is his Marmot Ion windshirt which folds down to the size of a handful of Kleenex and really is the perfect layer for planes and humid climates where all you need is a little extra something to keep the air off of you and not a heavy jacket. I tried talking him into using his Army PT shorts as swim trunks, but he said he’s not allowed to use US Army uniform items while in foreign countries.

So there you have it, my no-wash Mexican weekend and his carry-on only 10-day Army packing list.

A stumbled across this post on: “18 Things You Don’t Need on Your Packing List” during a recent spout of travel blog reading which seriously compromised my ability to productively goof off during my lunch break by paying bills or catching up on online shopping. I would disagree that an iPod shouldn’t be packed. Yes, you shouldn’t wander the Louvre with white earbuds sticking out oblivious to where you are, but on a long plane ride it can be a life saver. I agree with pretty much everything else though.

Maybe you remember my post on what I brought on my own trip to Italy August of last year, well here is another light traveler who is going to Italy on just carry-ons. Its nice to see another perspective. She’s definitely more fashionable than me.

Here is my first pass at a packing list for our upcoming trip to Hong Kong and Singapore. I long for uber-cute outfits and tons of accessories, but I know from experience that without the budget of a travelista who is going to have a driver carry her bags and a single hotel to stay at, all that cuteness comes with a price. It weighs you down.

My biggest struggle is to find nice linen or cotton items which layer, don’t cost a ton and sort of color coordinate so I don’t have to bring as much. The expected temperature for the time of year we are going is 85-90F so I also had to call a friends to find out whether sleeveless was appropriate and if I really needed a suit in Singapore, the answer to both was yes.

I have two days of meetings which require a suit and at least one formal dinner to attend all while sink-washing. I did find a nice drip-dry suit, but it is black and tropical wool is really a pain. I opted instead for linen with a lining for the suit, which I will not wash, but just wear for the two days. If packed properly it won’t wrinkle before I wear it. When I get around to actually shopping for the trip I may opt out of packing a jacket for the suit. I picked a pair of linen pants which looked like they wouldn’t wrinkle too badly, but I’m still looking for the perfect pair of travel khakis which are sink-washable, but don’t look like they should zip off at the knees. I also picked a swimsuit which can be worn as a top when used as a seperate.

So here it is, 11 days, 2 countries, and 13 possible outfits for a one bag travelista. 

Asia Trip(1)

And here it is broken down into outfits. Ocassions covered: formal dinner, business meeting/conference, comfy/cute on the plane, working out in the room, site seeing.

Asia Trip (2)

Hawaii Wishlist

Hubby has an upcoming trip to Hawaii in May for an Army meeting. He’ll be busy 3 days and they will pay his airfare, but we are planning on extending the trip a few days on either end and spending a week there total. It is providing just the necessary motivation to stick with the Weight Watchers meetings and complete food journaling. I call this image my Hawaii wish list. If my wishes are full filled I’ll be wearing the two-piece bathing suit, but I would be content rocking the coral colored one piece as well. I could totally go a full week packing only the items above. Two dresses and two pairs of shoes and a cardigan to throw over-top in the evening. One of the dresses is nice enough to go to dinner in at night. All I would add is some toiletries, a pair of jammies and maybe my new Macbook for blogging. A girl can dream anyway, especially in this weather. So that’s my wish list.