Happy Wednesday!
It has been a while you guys! Probably the longest break I’ve taken from the blog in 6 months (yes, I’m aware it was only 2 weeks lol). And, it wasn’t even intentional.
As I’m sure you remember, since I hammered it into your brains numerous times, we spent last week in the Dominican Republic at an all inclusive resort! The WiFi at the resort moved at the pace of molasses and even posting an Instagram photo took about 2 hours so a blog post would’ve taken the whole trip, lol!
I plan to do an outfit roundup/resort review on Friday so stay tuned for that! For this post, I’m focusing on a question I got a lot before and during my trip – what I packed and how I stayed organized.
In prep for our trip and the many others I have coming up, I picked up a new set of luggage and really challenged myself to stay organized. I’m usually that person whose suitcase ends up all over the hotel room. Which causes me to lose my mind about half way through a trip. But not this time!
Like I mentioned, I recently picked up a set of Calpak luggage. I was in the market to buy a hard sided suitcase to better protect fragile bags I bring with me (like this one), my makeup and for better theft protection. Two of my close girlfriends love their Calpak luggage, and I couldn’t resist this pretty set. And, I actually found last year’s version on sale here! There’s barely a scratch on them, and they held SO much. They’re also incredibly light for how heavy-duty they are. This was maybe the first trip I didn’t come close to hitting the 50lb threshold. Kevin was impressed lol!
I also picked up these packing cubes and shoe bags to help me organize my luggage better. I have to say, packing took me about 1/2 the time because everything fit so easily into my luggage. If I needed to rearrange anything, I could easily see what was in a pack and move it without have to take clothes out and sort through layers upon layers of clothes, socks, hats and toiletries.
When we got to the resort, I simply hung all of my clothes that I needed to. Then unzipped the remaining cubes and placed them on the closet shelves. This helped my clothes stay organized and made repacking SO much easier!
The only complaint I have is that the shoe bags don’t have a mesh lining. For some reason, I thought they did although the photos clearly show no mesh so you do have to unzip them slightly to see what’s inside.
Because a style blogger’s checked bag is equivalent to Mary Poppin’s purse (lol), I thought it would be easiest to share what I packed in my carry on and how I organized it. I did get requests to share what was in my checked bag so I’m sharing a bit of that below too!
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- Extra Clothes: I saved one of the medium sized packing cubes to pack extra clothes for Kev & I. We each packed an extra set of shorts, shirts, undies & swimsuits in case our luggage got lost.
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- Valuables: I made sure to leave room for my more valuable items in my carry on. To this day, I will never forget that my sister had items stolen out of her checked bag at O’Hare back in like 2003. I keep my valuables glued to me! For this trip, I packed my Tory Burch Millers, my new wedge heels, my jewelry and my Chloe bag.
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- Breakables: Anything that could potentially be breakable, I’ll pack in my carry on. For this trip, I packed the dupe I mentioned above. I first stuffed it with a cami and my pajamas to protect it then packed it. Side note – I also do this with hats in my checked bag. I roll pajamas or tops up and stuff the inside so the hat doesn’t get crushed.
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- Makeup: I bring as much of my makeup as I possibly can in my carry on. Make up is hella expensive and in the off chance my luggage is lost (or worse stolen!), I don’t want to risk that getting lost. I often keep things like my foundation, primer, lipstick and mascara in my 3oz bag. All dry products + brushes I keep in this case. I recently picked this case up and love it! It’s perfect for travel!
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- Hair Tools: With the same thought as my makeup, hair tools are also crazy expensive! So I typically pack the ones I bring in my carry on. This time I brought along my curling wand (base found here) and straightener!
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- Necessary Toiletries: I like to bring makeup wipes and a travel size version of my skincare in case our luggage does get lost. PS you can use code LOMEYER for 20% off any of my skincare! I also bring along a toothbrush, Tums, contacts, glasses, lotion, hand sanitizer, and migraine meds – just the necessities I need to survive on the daily, you know!
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- A good book, my journal & devotional: I pack these with the same school of thought as my other valuables. These are emotionally valuable to me, and I often find myself journaling and reading on long flights! Right now, I’m currently reading this book and discovered so many of you are too!
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- Earbuds: Always listening to music on flights or watching something, so earbuds are key! This pair has worked for years and are under $10 + Prime!
In terms of my checked bag, I tried to pack everything possible in the cubes or in shoe bags. I organized the bags by tops, bottoms, swimsuits/coverups, undies, and an extra bag for dirty clothes on the way back! The key to using cubes is to roll everything. This will maximize space and allow you to see all the contents! Just remember to bring a steamer with you. That’s something we forgot and a few items were definitely wrinkly!
In addition, I packed any additional bags, inexpensive footwear and non-essential toiletries in my checked bag.
I think that pretty much covers it! What are some necessities you bring in your carry on?
xoxo
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