How To Pack For A Long Weekend

expert packing tips

Let’s hang onto Summer! The best way to do that is to take a weekend getaway! There is plenty of time to soak up the last rays of sun and fun. Earlier this year we took a long weekend to Lake Geneva. It was a charming little town about an hour and a half north of Chicago. You can read my full travel guide here. And we need to get another long weekend books ASAP!

Mike and I love to travel and ever since we’ve been married we take a big European summer vacation in cities like Budapest, Paris and Positano. This year, though, we are skipping the large vacation and doing a few long weekend getaways with Lizzie. We are still testing the waters traveling with a baby, and even though she is very good in the car, we hope she is equally as good on an airplane. I’m working on another post about traveling with a baby, so more to come on that down the road.

I find that the hardest part of these trips is how to pack for a long weekend! I have two packing styles; overpacking and underpacking…there is no in between for me. Most of the time I am the over packer. At home I can live in the same tee shirt for days (and right now it’s my J.Crew Vintage Tee), but on vacation I want to bring 10 tee shirts, dresses, pants, shorts and everything in between.

The best part about my overpacking and underpacking issue is that when I overpack, I wear the same outfit the whole trip. And naturally when I underpack, I go to a local store to buy something to wear. I know you all do it too! To help you all out, today I’m sharing my top seven tips on how to pack for a long weekend.

Select The Perfect Bag

How to pack for a long weekend start with selecting the perfect bag. You want a bag that fits everything, but isn’t impossible to carry. In addition, you don’t want the bag so full that it’s impossible to zip up. You need to have room for extra souvenirs you buy on your trip. When I pack for a long weekend, I like to use a large duffel bag vs. a suitcase.

My favorite bag to pack for a long weekend is my Longchamp Le Piage expandable bag. I picked mine up when we went to Paris and it’s a great memory from that trip. Since it’s a Parisian brand I did get it cheaper by getting it in France. So if you are going to Paris, buy a Longchamp bag, you will thank me later! This bag is HUGE! When it’s full expanded you can’t easily fit enough for 3 days including all my hair care products. We all know I need a lot of hair care (see what I use in my daily routine here).

If you are flying this with bag there are a couple things to know. If you use the bag in it’s smallest size it counts as a personal item i.e. your purse. Which means you can still bring a carry-on suitcase. When it’s fully expanded it counts as your actual carry-on and can still fit under the seat. If you’re feeling brave you can try both a carry-on and this bag fully expanded. It did work for me once on my flight home from Paris, but hasn’t since 🙁

Stick With One Color Palette

Having one color palette is the easiest way to pack for a long weekend because everything goes together. Select neutral tones like white, beige and grays. With these colors you can easily mix in a pop of color with your clutch or scarf. Having one color palette to work with is a lot like creating a mini capsule wardrobe. Creating mini capsule wardrobe for each season is fun and easy to do.

Pack One Outerwear Piece

Even though it’s summer you can and will get chilly at some point. I’m constantly cold and always have a little jacket with me even on 90 degree days. Bring along something that will go with everything, like this jean jacket. I just picked mine up last week and I can’t get enough of it. This jean jacket goes with blacks and browns perfectly, it’s the lighter wash that appeals to both color palettes.

If you are looking to save room in your bag, wear the jean jacket when you travel. It can be folded up super small to fit in your purse or be draped over your arm. Or if you are always cold, like me, just wear your jean jacket even when it’s 90 out.

Two Pairs of Shoes Max

For you shoe lovers this one is going to be hard. Shoes are heavy and take up a ton of space in your bag. Only pack two pairs max and save the space. I pack a sneaker always and a shoe that is a little more dressy. Sneakers are so mainstream now you can actually wear them with everything, even a dress. I’m loving my new sneakers by Tread.

In the summer I also pack a sandal that can be work during the day and at night. The sandal needs to be functional and look good with multiple items. My choice is the Day Cross Sandal. It’s part of the Day family from Everlane and is very comfortable. I can walk miles in these sandals!

Roll Your Clothes

I’ll be the first to say I thought this was a stupid idea…until I tried it. Rolling my clothes actually creates more space in my bag. When you just pile stuff into your bag it takes up a ton of space and you can’t use the space efficiently. But rolling clothes, changes everything.

When you roll your clothes you shrink the footprint of each item. You can easily line up your items flat instead of piling them up vertically. Rolling also allows you to use dead space in your bag or suitcase. You can place any item in an awkwardly shaped space without a problem.

Limit Your Toiletries

Don’t hate me for this one, but limit the amount of toiletries when you pack for a weekend trip. When I’m at home I have two different face creams, an eye cream, a vitamin C serum and a face wash. That’s a bit much to travel with for a few days. I pare down my routine for those days. I’ll use my day moisturizer for day and night. I also skip the eye cream and serum.

I also leave my shampoo and blow dryer at home. If I’m traveling to a hotel I use what they have. Yes, my hair will look different and feel different for a few days, but its all ok. By using what the hotel has I create more room in my bag.

Organize Your Outfits Ahead of Time

I saved the best for last with this one. It’s my best kept packing secret! You all know that packing is a process. If you don’t put the effort in to do it properly you are going to have a hard time getting dressed when you get on your trip. I usually set out with a grand plan for packing and carefully layout all my outfits ahead of time. I’ve been know to write down my outfits, just to help organize myself.

I then take a picture of each outfit with my phone. We all have phones with cameras these days so let’s use the technology to help us! Simply layout the outfit on your bed and snap a photo of it, it’s that easy. When you arrive on your trip you won’t have to create an outfit because it’s already done! It’s genius and a huge time saver when you are on your trip.