2 Weeks in Europe…In a Carry-On

Yes, you heard that correctly. Two full weeks of traveling through Europe all packed in a carry on. When we went to Italy we had 2 connecting flights and one of them was in another country so I didn’t have a lot of faith that my checked luggage would make it. Plus we would be traveling all over once we got to Italy, so if bags were lost the airlines might not be able to get in touch with us. All that to say…I accepted the challenge of packing 2 weeks of CUTE outfits in a carry-on. A lot of the travel blogs I was reading on how to pack in a carry-on focused mainly on those who were backpacking through Europe so the outfits, while practical, were not always the cutest. So…I poured myself a glass of wine, turned on some Doctor Who, and began digging through my closet.

What Goes in?

The key is understanding that you will wear most things more than once. I planned on wearing my bottoms no more than 3 times, tops twice, and dresses twice. If you feel the need to wear clothes only once, then I would suggest finding somewhere you can do laundry. Some hotels offer laundry facilities and most of the apartments we stayed in came equipped with a washer/dryer combo. We brought a few Tide-pods, a travel bottle of softner, and a bottle of Downey laundry freshner (we used this tons).

Here is what I ended up with:

2 dresses
2 pairs of jeans
2 skirts (1 patterned, 1 pencil)
1 lightweight rain-resistant overcoat
2 cardigans (black and white)
4 chiffon shirts (1 sleeveless, 1 long sleeve, 2 short-sleeve)
2 chambray shirts (1 polka dot, 1 light-wash)
1 white cotton v-neck
1 lightweight striped sweater
4 tank-tops
4 bras
2 sets of pajamas
14 pairs of underwear
2 belts
2 scarves
4 pairs of comfortable flats plus a pair of sneakers

2 skirts, one pencil and one patterned

1 lightweight overcoat

A patterned and plain chambray shirt

4 lightweight shirts

2 cardigans and patterned sweater

2 Casual sun dresses

How do I pick what to put in?

2 scarves, 1 patterned and 1 plain

Trying to figure out what should actually go in together is the hardest part. Here are a few of the rules that I used when putting my list together. If a top doesn’t go with at least 2 bottoms, if not all 4 it DOES NOT GO IN. An accessory needed to go with at least half of the outfits. Bottoms needed to with 75% of the tops. I tried to keep patterns to a minimum since it can be hard to match to more than one item. I stuck with one patterned bottom that went with 5 different tops, and 2 patterned tops that went with three different bottoms. You can always add fun patterns in with your accessories like scarves and shoes (assuming they go with half of your outfits).

Sneakers on, 4 pairs of flats

Picking shoes is one of the ways you can add some fun and pizazz to your outfits. I ended up with 4 pairs of shoes in my suitcase and 1 pair on my feet. I made sure the shoes I packed were comfortable enough to walk many miles each day and that they matched most of my outfits. A good formula to use is to stick with 3-4 pairs of shoes and make sure they match at least half of your wardrobe. So keep those cute one-outfit pairs at home. I ended up with 4 pairs of flats packed into my suitcase, two plain and two patterned.

2 belts

Now comes the fun part. Start putting together all those outfits that you pulled clothes for. With each outfit , make sure you have a pair of shoes in that stash to match. If your outfit requires a different pair of shoes, then rethink that outfit. Add in a couple of accessories like belts or scarves to add different options to your wardrobe and you should be all set!

1 purse…yes only one

When packing the clothes into your suitcase, be sure to pack smart. Roll your clothes instead of folding them and utilize ALL of the space you have in that sucker. I put my underwear into plastic bags to stuff them inside my shoes and rolled shirts into my jeans to save every spare inch. All travel documents, chargers, toiletries, and books went into my personal item bag so I could access it at any time.

It was hard to pack 2 weeks of life into a tiny carry-on suitcase, I will be the first to admit it. Normally I am the person that packs an extra pair of shoes and 3 extra shirts just in case. However, after traveling light I have to admit that it was definitely worth the challenge. I couldn’t imagine trying to lug massive suitcases around the cobblestone streets in Italy, having a smaller bag meant one less thing to worry about. So rev your engines, pack your bags and good luck on your mission!