Oh, My Goodness Y’all!!!
I literally cannot believe we are leaving today for our wedding. After two years of planning and everything we have gone through since postponing the wedding in October, I cannot believe it is finally here.
I honestly never thought it was going to come-lol, but we are here and on our way to Napa!
While packing yesterday and as I was going through my normal packing steps, I realized I have never shared my packing tips with you! So instead of doing the 1 million things on my to-d0-list before leaving, I decided to put this post together for ya’ll – lol. These are not steps I do every time, but I would say 8/10 times I travel, I do the following!
(1) Look At The Weather
First things first, before I start buying or packing anything, I check the weather to see what it is going to be like. Is it going to be cold? Rainy? Crazy hot? By knowing the weather situation, it helps eliminate a lot of outfit contenders and narrows down your options.
My favorite app to check the weather is The Weather Channel App.
(2) Write It All Down
Next, I look at each day of the trip and write out what we will be doing on each day. This helps me decide the type of outfit I will want to wear for each day. Including if we have dinner plans & etc. I usually pick a day and night outfit for each day of the trip. It may not be necessary to write it all down, but it’s what I like to do!:)
(3) Take Pictures
Once I have an idea of what we will be doing for the trip, I pull out all of my potential options, try them on and take pictures in them, decide what works and what doesn’t! This really helps me to not over pack!! It takes a lot of time and it’s tedious, but it makes packing so much easier and it gives me so much ease when I get to my destination. I swear by it!
(4) Make a ‘Vacation Photo’ File
Sometimes I even go as far as making an entirely separate folder on my iPhone for all of my outfits. For this one, I named it, “Napa Wedding Week”. When making the file, I look at my previous list, decide what I want to wear for each day and label each outfit photo for the day I want to wear it. I don’t do this for every vacation, but for the ones when I am really trying not to overpack, this tip saves me.
Also, please ignore the fact that my phone is only on 10% battery – lol.
(5) Organization is Key
Organization is everything when it comes to packing! These tips make unpacking at your final destination so much easier. I’ve mentioned this before, but in case you haven’t noticed from today’s post, I’m extremely Type A so organization gives me ease and peace of mind.
- When packing items like hats, stuff pieces like scarves or socks into them, not only help them keep their shape when traveling (no one likes a smashed hat!) but also to use the maximum space. Then place your hat at the bottom of your suitcase and pack around it.
- If you have multiple purses, pack them inside one another or stuff other items in them.
- Categorize your pieces. As in, put all of your jeans together, shorts, blouses, sweaters & etc.
- Try using garment organizers! I’m personally obsessed with them! They are great for grouping all of your pieces.
(6) Items I Never Leave Behind
- A portable steamer
- Workout clothes + Running Shoes
- Hanging toiletry bag
- Sheet Masks (my skin gets so dry when traveling!)
- Dry Shampoo
- All of my chargers (iPhone, camera, laptop, headphones)
**Last Tip – Featuring Your Carry On**
Always bring a carry on with basic toiletries and at least one spare change of clothes. One year, my bag was lost over three times, so I have learned my lesson with this one! You always want to pray it doesn’t happen, but I would personally rather be safe than sorry.
Alright, guys! That’s it!
Bear with me these next few weeks as I finally get to marry the love of my life. Instead of the normal 5 days a week, I will only be posting MWF for the rest of the month. I really want to take this time to really soak in these next few days/weeks and just enjoy every minute of it.
xo,
Lauren
SHOP THE POST