Everything You Need to Know About Packing {Guest Post: Kristen}

Hi Pinky's readers! A huge thank you to the wonderful Pinky for having me over at her place today while she's off on an amazing vacation that I am insanely jealous of! For those of you I haven't met before, my name is Kristen and I blog over at See You In A Porridge (unrelated to goldilocks) about a whole lot of nothing and everything; books, cats, travel, expat life (I'm from Australia) etc etc.

One of the things I love to post - and read - about is packing. I'm one of those people who love to squish everything in a carry on. Mainly because I've been the unfortunate person who has had her luggage stolen / lost / damaged / delayed and I was just sick of it. When I first started looking into carry on only packing, I thought there was no way I could do it. I'm the girl who brought 2 full size suitcases on a 2 week trip. It was always the same though, because I brought so much it was so overwhelming that I would end up wearing the same few things and buying new stuff on holiday (I have a wee bit of a shopping problem). So I read basically every post on the entire internet on how to do it, and I've done it successfully several times. And so can you!

I have been able to pack using just a carry on for every trip I have been on in the last couple of years; Australia for 2 weeks, NYC in winter, 2 weeks in Europe and our most recent trip to Disney World / Universal (and a couple other times I haven't blogged about!). I'll never go back to checking a bag.

Today I wanted to share a basic packing list with 10 items that easily make 15+ outfits. You could change it around to suit your needs, tastes or location. You could throw in accessories - the thing is, this is super basic but it just shows you that you absolutely can do it, it's a matter of wanting to do it, and planning. That's it.

All item details can be found here.

And the outfits I put together:

You'll notice the skirt is also a dress - I know Pinky has a few maxi skirts that can be worn as dresses, which is just brilliant. I also used a different shirt in the bottom left corner to show one of my favourite things to do over a dress - knot a tee. It's the perfect way to get more wear out of a dress, especially if it doesn't convert to a skirt, and the knot is fun.

If you look at any of my packing posts, you'll find that most of them look the same, and that's because I know what I am comfortable with and what I like. I like neutrals and stripes, and that's just what I like. Packing posts, in my opinion, aren't meant to be a hard and fast rule, but a guide, and I love looking at them because they give me ideas, but I don't have to follow them down to the letter. So you don't have to follow this, nor do I expect anyone to take 10 items and actually wear them this many times without doing some laundry - but it gives you an idea, hopefully.

If you don't want to pack using only a carry on, you don't have to. But if you do, you absolutely can. Don't be discouraged, it's really not that hard. Read my tips on how to pack less here. My thing is - I'm still an overpacker at heart. I want all the options, I want to be prepared for all the things. You can still do that using just a carry on, I promise. We use the ebags motherlode bags and love them, they make my overpacking heart happy.

Thanks again for having me, Pinky!

NO, THANK YOU for such an informative post and for being SUCH an incredible wealth of information. Y'all the first person I contacted after Le Husband suggested the Europe trip last summer was Kristen. I knew had read about her summer trip and knew she had the info on the best deals and if it was something possible budget-wise. SHE is such a supportive friend and helped me constantly when I had questions about packing. The reason I can do 30 days in a carry on is all because of her, so THANKS SWEET FRIEND!!! Love you!